It looks like missing the unlimited dining hall food isn’t the only thing to dread about leaving college — according to a new Wall Street Journal report, the job market for entry-level jobs isn’t promising.
The Wall Street Journal reports that the unemployment rate for young adults fell to 11.3 percent in July, but is still higher than the national average, which sits at 6.1 percent, according to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The reason behind this is two-fold: with companies still trying to recover from the massive recession back in 2008, many have implemented automated services that would have previously been jobs for an entry-level employee.
Also, the highly qualified professionals who have seen hardship throughout the recession are now serious competition for the entry-level positions.
On top of everything, the same report says recent college graduates who can find an entry level job are being held to higher standards than ever before.
Even those just starting their college careers, like Plattsburgh State freshman Janelle Burgos, are beginning to feel that pressure.
“I think that it puts a lot of pressure on myself and other freshmen to choose the right major — and fast — to give us a chance to score on those rare entry-level jobs,” Burgos said. “My strategy is to get as far ahead on my studies as I can in order to put myself ahead of the the rest.”
PSUC senior Robyn Greenfield said she is also feeling the pressure in her last year of college.
“As someone who is going to be entering the work force soon, that’s never something you want to hear,” Greenfield said. “The fact that there are limited opportunities for myself and my peers is very concerning.”
PSUC’s Career Development Center, located in the Angell College Center, enforces the idea that early preparation is the key to success in the future and serves to help the campus community bridge the gap from college life to a career.
The center offers seminars throughout the year on topics such as resume building and utilizing networking programs, like LinkedIn.com, to give the students the tools to start their prospective careers.
Julia Overton-Healy, director of the PSUC center, said she is committed to making it the “best in class of the SUNY system.”
Overton-Healy said that PSUC students have a lot of advantages on campus.
“One thing Plattsburgh students have as a distinct advantage is [that] your professors really get to know you — that usually doesn’t happen at a larger school,” Overton-Healy said.
Overton-Healy also gives some tips on the biggest mistakes she said she believes most college students make when it comes to career preparation in their college years, including not looking for their first job outside of college early enough.
“The national average for finding meaningful employment is eight months,” Overton-Healy said. With most college loan grace periods only being six months, starting your career search early enough becomes a very important matter.
Having a good network of professionals and utilizing networking websites, Overton-Healy said, is also an important step to starting the bridge from college to career, as nearly 80 percent of employers use LinkedIn to find candidates.
“Networking isn’t just who you know, it’s who knows you,” Overton-Healy said.
The Career Development Center offers workshops and resumé building assistance Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., as well as 24/7 access through CardinalConnect.
