NEW COLLEGE GRADUATES ARE FACING ONE OF THE MOST CHALLENGING MARKETS FOR ENTRY-LEVEL JOBS IN A DECADE.

IN JUNE, THE MOST RECENT DATA AVAILABLE, THE UNEMPLOYMENT RATE FOR RECENT GRADS WAS NEARLY 5%.

THAT'S HIGHER THAN THE OVERALL UNEMPLOYMENT RATE.

WE ASKED RECENT GRADUATES TO TELL US ABOUT THEIR JOB SEARCHES.

>> MY HOPE AFTER GRADUATING COLLEGE WAS TO GO STRAIGHT INTO A FULL-TIME JOB IN REPORTING.

>> MY INITIAL PLANS WERE TO FIND A LOCAL JOB IN A MAGAZINE.

I JUST WANTED TO FIND JOB WHERE I COULD WRITE.

>> I HAD ASPIRATIONS OF WORKING FOR THE GSA, GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION.

I WAS GOING INTO A THIRD ROUND INTERVIEW WITH THEM AROUND NOVEMBER, DECEMBER, AND THAT IS WHEN THE FEDERAL HIRING FREEZE TOOK OVER.

>> I WOULD OFTEN BE WHAT I WOULD CONSIDER GHOSTED BY EMPLOYERS, WOULDN'T GET ANY FEEDBACK AT ALL, NOT EVEN A REJECTION, JUST NOTHING.

>> I MUST HAVE STARTED APPLYING FOR JOBS IN APRIL, AND I KNOW I'VE SENT 85 JOB APPLICATIONS SINCE.

IT'S BEEN REALLY DIFFICULT.

>> WHEN I WASN'T GETTING ANY FEEDBACK FROM MY APPLICATIONS WAS REALLY DEJECTED.

IT MADE ME FEEL LIKE I WAS UNQUALIFIED FOR ANY JOB IN JOURNALISM.

LIKE MAYBE I WASN'T GOOD ENOUGH.

>> THE EXPERIENCE HAS DEFINITELY BEEN DISCOURAGING, BUT I'D LIKE TO TAKE THE MINDSET OF I JUST GOT TO KEEP PLUGGING AWAY, KEEP SENDING IN APPLICATIONS, KEEP TRYING TO REVAMP MY RESUME.

>> I THINK I'M A LITTLE TOO STUBBORN TO SWITCH CAREER PATHS RIGHT NOW.

I WILL KEEP THAT AND KEEP APPLYING AND HOPE FOR THE BEST, I SUPPOSE.

JOHN: CHRISTINE CRUZ-VARGAR IS THE CHIEF EDUCATION OFFICER AT HANDSHAKE, WHICH IS AN ONLINE PLATFORM THAT CONNECTS YOUNG JOB SEEKERS AND EMPLOYERS.

CHRISTINE, WE JUST HEARD FROM THREE YOUNG PEOPLE.

YOU HEARD DISAPPOINTMENT.

YOU HEARD A LITTLE FRUSTRATION.

HOW TYPICAL IS THAT FROM WHAT YOU HEAR?

CHRISTINE: IT IS VERY COMMON RIGHT NOW.

THE JOB MARKET IS TOUGH, COMPETITIVE.

WE HAVE SEEN IN OUR DATA THAT JOBS ARE DOWN 15% FROM LAST YEAR BUT APPLICATIONS ARE UP 30%.

JOHN: WHAT MAKES IT SO TOUGH?

CHRISTINE: A NUMBER OF FACTORS MAKE IT DIFFICULT.

ONE IS THE OVERALL ECONOMY.

THE SECOND WOULD BE THE GOVERNMENT.

AND THE THIRD WOULD BE WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH AI DISRUPTING WHAT ENTRY-LEVEL JOBS LOOK LIKE RIGHT NOW.

JOHN: TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE AI PART OF THAT.

WE'VE HEARD SOME PEOPLE SAY THAT AI IS TAKING OVER MANY OF THE TASKS THAT ENTRY-LEVEL WORKERS WOULD NORMALLY DO.

CHRISTINE: SO EMPLOYERS ARE GOING TO HAVE NEW EXPECTATIONS AROUND HOW YOU USE AI, HOW IT'S INTEGRATED INTO YOUR ROLE, THE AMOUNT OF PRODUCTIVITY YOU HAVE AND I THINK THAT ALTOGETHER IS GOING TO MEAN THAT THE SKILLSET FOR AN ENTRY-LEVEL WORKER WILL CHANGE AND EVOLVE AND IT WILL LOOK DIFFERENT.

SO FOR SOMEONE TRYING TO GRADUATE AND FIND WORK RIGHT NOW, THEY'RE IN THE MIDDLE OF A VERY MESSY PROCESS WHERE EMPLOYERS ARE TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT THEY WANT AND WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE.

JOHN: WE HAVE HEARD ONE OF THE YOUNG MEN TALKING ABOUT WANTING TO BECOME A REPORTER THINKING ABOUT SHIFTING FIELDS BUT WANTED , TO AVOID THAT.

HE SAID HE WAS STUBBORN ENOUGH THAT HE DIDN'T WANT TO DO IT.

WHAT ARE THE SORTS OF TOUGH CHOICES OR HARD DECISIONS THAT YOUNG PEOPLE ARE HAVING TO FACE NOW AS THEY LOOK FOR THEIR FIRST JOBS?

CHRISTINE: WE SEE IN OUR DATA THAT OVER 40% ARE WILLING TO ACTUALLY EXPLORE OTHER INDUSTRIES THAT PERHAPS DO HAVE MORE HIRING RIGHT NOW.

FOR EXAMPLE, HEALTHCARE IS STILL RISING IN TERMS OF NUMBER OF OPPORTUNITIES AND THERE AREN'T ENOUGH PEOPLE WHO WANT TO GO INTO HEALTHCARE.

SO SOME FOLKS THAT HAVE TECH SKILLS, FOR EXAMPLE, INSTEAD OF WORKING IN A TRADITIONAL TECH INDUSTRY ARE THINKING ABOUT, HOW MIGHT I DO HEALTH TECH?

HOW CAN I PIVOT IN THAT WAY?

SO THAT'S ONE TYPE OF DIFFICULT DECISION.

THE SECOND WOULD BE LOCATION.

WHERE DO I WANT TO LIVE?

THIS GENERATION, THIS CLASS KNOWS THAT IT'S EXTREMELY EXPENSIVE TO LIVE IN CERTAIN CITIES.

SO THE COST OF LIVING IS FACTORING INTO THEIR CHOICES ABOUT WHERE THEY CHOOSE TO APPLY, WHAT LOCATIONS THEY WANNA LIVE IN.

I THINK A THIRD PIECE IS REALLY CONSIDERING, WHAT TYPES OF SKILLS ARE THEY ABLE TO BUILD AND ARE THEY TO BUILD IT FAST , ENOUGH FOR WHAT EMPLOYERS ARE LOOKING FOR?

AND EMPLOYERS ARE STILL FIGURING THAT OUT.

SO IT COULD CHANGE FROM ONE YEAR TO ANOTHER.

JOHN: [16:31:25]YOU MENTIONED HEALTH CARE IS A PLACE WHERE THERE ARE A LOT OF OPPORTUNITIES.

ARE THERE FIELDS THAT ARE SORT OF OVERSUBSCRIBED, THERE ARE MORE PEOPLE CHASING AFTER FEWER JOBS?

CHRISTINE: I THINK WE HAVE SEEN JUST IN THE PAST YEAR OR TWO, BIG TECH HAS SLOWED DOWN HIRING.

THE CLASS OF 2025 IN PARTICULAR HAS BEEN WATCHING HEADLINES FOR THE BETTER PART OF TWO YEARS SING MAJOR LAYOFFS HAPPEN.

IT IS ALSO THE INDUSTRY UP -- ADOPTING GENAI THE FASTEST SO THEY ARE ON THE FOREFRONT OF EXPERIMENTING WITH WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE, HOW MUCH HEADCOUNT DO YOU NEED, HOW MUCH COULD BE PAIRED WITH TECHNOLOGY AND WHAT WILL THE FUTURE OF ENGINEERING TEAMS LOOK LIKE?

THAT IS AN INDUSTRY WHERE WE HAVE SEEN SLOWDOWN.

JOHN: WHAT IS YOUR ADVICE FOR MEMBERS OF THE CLASS OF 2025 STILL LOOKING FOR THEIR FIRST JOBS?

CHRISTINE: FIRST YOU HAVE TO FIND A SUPPORT NETWORK TO KEEP YOU POSITIVE THROUGH THE PROCESS.

IT IS TOUGH, IT IS COMPETITIVE, IT IS EASY TO FEEL REJECTED AND DEJECTED AS YOU GO THROUGH THIS PROCESS.

THAT COULD BE YOUR COACHES, IT COULD YOUR PEERS, DOESN'T MATTER WHO, YOU JUST NEED TO FIND SOMEONE.

I THINK THE SECOND PIECE IS THINK ABOUT HOW YOU CAN UPSKILL.

SO YOU HAVE YOUR DEGREE, FANTASTIC.

ARE THERE OTHER SKILLS THAT YOU NEED TO PAIR WITH THAT RIGHT NOW?

AND TAKE THE ADVANTAGE OF ALL THE ONLINE RESOURCES AND ALL THE FREE RESOURCES THAT ARE AVAILABLE TO YOU AND FIND WAYS TO UPSKILL YOURSELF IN THE DOWNTIME WHILE YOU ARE LOOKING FOR A JOB.

AND THEN LASTLY, REMEMBER THAT YOUR FIRST JOB IS NOT YOUR FOREVER JOB.

KEEP IN MIND THAT WHATEVER THAT FIRST JOB IS, IT WILL TEACH YOU SOME SKILLS, GIVE YOU A CHANCE TO STEP UP INTO THE NEXT THING, BUT IT DOES NOT HAVE TO BE PERFECT.

SOMETIMES JUST RELEASING SOME OF THOSE EXPECTATIONS CAN HELP YOU FIND THAT NEXT JOB A LITTLE FASTER.

JOHN: GOOD ADVICE FROM CHRISTINE CRUZ-VARGAR OF HANDSHAKE.

THANK YOU.

CHRISTINE: THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME.

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