Daniel Goldstein, 23, of West Orange, New Jersey, still began applying for jobs during his final semester at Montclair State University. It was spring 2024.
Later in the application for a year and a half, Goldstein still couldn’t find a job. She has graduated from several internships under her belt with a degree in Communication and Media Studies, but the overwhelming response from companies is that she has not had enough experience in entry-level work.
It makes her feel “destined,” she says.
Goldstein isn’t alone – some of her classmates have managed to find work, but many have also faced similar challenges in finding work. Goldstein and her classmates are one of many graduate students looking for jobs in the worst job market for new graduates since June 2021. Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
The US economy is slowing down. Gross domestic product (GDP) in 2025 was a small contract, considering it purchased more foreign goods and fewer domestic goods in anticipation of higher tariffs. Experts say prices continue to rise, but many predict that the chances of a recession are rising, but it is unclear how tariffs will continue to affect the US economy over the next year. Amidst this economic uncertainty, new graduates may need to scramble to earn and save money, and postpone important economic milestones of their financial independence, such as moving out of their parents’ homes, until they acquire a full-time job.
“The slower economy will put all workers at a disadvantage, especially those with the least experience,” says Stephen Kates of Bandrate Financial Analyst.
Goldstein uses freelance opportunities to tide her as he hunts for a full-time role, but she lives with her parents. It is unclear when she will be able to find work. Because there are limited openings for millions of students who have graduated over the past year.
“When I started college, I imagined at this point that I was in an apartment where I was working with my roommate at this point, but it seems like I’ll have to skip that stage of my life completely, even if my rent goes up and I don’t have a job,” Goldstein said in an email.
The conflict of economic factors is creating a rarity of work for new graduates
According to data from the Federal Reserve Bank in March, New York, the unemployment rate among university graduates was 5.8% recently, nearly 2% higher than the 4% share of the general population. This has been the highest unemployment rate among college graduates since July 2021 when the US was in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic, with the recent unemployment rate among graduates at 6%.
Today, recent university graduates face many economic factors that have stacked decks against them. The unemployment rate today is relatively low. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). However, the proportion of job openings is also relatively low. Many companies have hired or suspended employment entirely due to concerns about economic uncertainty. This created a phenomenon known as “.Amazing stay. “When employment slows, many workers remain in their current jobs instead of job hopping. This contributes to the lack of roles.
“It’s a good time to work, but not so much hunting it,” says Sarah Foster, US economy reporter at Bankrate.
According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers, employment for the class of 2025 is particularly scarce in certain industries, including support services, information, finance, insurance, real estate, and some manufacturing. Whether you are a new graduate or not, according to BLS, the only sectors that will steadily add employment to your job, whether you are a new graduate or not, are healthcare, leisure and hospitality.
In contrast to Goldstein’s experience, Tiffany Williams, a 2025 class graduate from Texas Tech, found a role in her field relatively quickly. She graduated with a Masters degree in Counselor Education and after months of searching, she found her role as a semi-licensed professional counselor in her personal practice. Originally, she wanted to work in higher education, but the lack of jobs there led her to a healthcare-related position. She found work after about 100 applications and emails reaching out to healthcare practices.
“I think the response rates we got from our private practices cleaned up the need for counselors,” Williams says.
It is increasingly done by artificial intelligence that further complicates many entry-level job and task issues, such as new graduates, marketing, information technology, customer service, data entry, and more. Large companies like Microsoft, Google and Salesforce are also announcing new AI initiatives and layoffs at about the same time, according to USA Today. Industry such as customer service and marketing have certainly not disappeared, but as a result of AI implementation, demand for entry-level work has softened.
“Navigate Now”: How to get through today’s job hunting
Finding a job is rarely easy, and managing your finances when the job market stacks up against you can be even more challenging. Here’s how you can afford to live your day to day life while looking for a role in today’s market.
1. Stay alive like a student while hunting your work
With the high cost of living today, it is difficult to buy essentials, whether many are employed or unemployed. You may need to make trade-offs to float financially until you can find a full-time role on a competitive salary.
If you need to count every dollar on a job hunt, Pentis recommends staying alive like a college student. That means living with family or roommates where possible to reduce unnecessary spending. Unnecessary expenditures may include:
- Subscriptions and memberships such as gym memberships
- Food and drinks such as coffee and alcohol
- New clothes, shoes, accessories
- Beauty and skin care including salons and barbers
- Travel expenses
If you have a student loan, it is especially important to keep costs on wrap after six months of graduation. Most federal student loans (and many private student loans) have a six-month grace period where interest accumulates, but you don’t have to start paying. Before you begin paying your student loan, use this opportunity to pay off any outstanding debts, such as credit card debt, and save as much as you can so that you can begin building an emergency savings fund.
2. Take a look at your personal financial situation
3. Think of side hustles
If you are looking for the perfect role but need a way to stay earned, think of a side job that allows you to make time for yourself.
Here are some great side hustles for recent alumni:
- Private tutor. Especially if you still live near the university and can tutor your major, let that level work with individual tutoring.
- We sell things online. If you have furniture in your dorm room or the clutter of childhood, don’t throw it outside of college while you’re out. Please sell it instead. You can remove unnecessary items and generate additional revenue by selling on Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist, Poskmark, eBay or Etsy.
- Gig app. Apps for pet titti and dog walks like Rover and WAG, and task fullment apps like TaskRabbit are the perfect options for new alumni. You can organize furniture for someone on your own schedule, put together furniture, and run errands.
- Freelance in your field. Not only can freelance bring money, it can also add more experience to your resume. If you have an internship in college but are not looking to hire for a full-time role, reach out to your internship coordinator and see if they accept freelancers. Or reach out to local businesses in your area to see if you’ll be accepting low-cost freelance jobs, such as business consulting, social media management, marketing assistance, and building a new website.
4. Expand your job hunting
If you’ve been looking for a role for a while, even if you’re not lucky, it might be time to expand your job hunt. In addition to full-time roles with competitive pay, you should also consider applying for:
- Internships and fellowships in your field
- A role that may require you to move to another city or state
- Freelance and contract opportunities
- If you prefer remote roles, face to face or hybrid roles
Working internships and freelance jobs is especially important when you don’t have a long resume and need more experience. If you are turned down due to lack of experience as a new graduate, gaining more experience is invaluable.
You may also consider applying for jobs outside the field or below the desired salary. If any job is better than no work and plays a role that doesn’t fit perfectly, you can continue your search.
“Unless you’re overflowing with contract work in the area you want, don’t ignore the proper pay role you might feel “under you,” Bankrate consumer lending analyst Andrew Pentis writes about student loans. “Being employed is not ideal, but it at least helps you pay your bills without being overly dependent on your debt.”
5. Improve your resume and credentials
When you compete with other job seekers, especially those who have more experience than you, it’s important to know how to promote yourself.
“Remember that the job market works just like any other market. You’re selling your time, but you need to have a buyer,” says Foster.
Even if you don’t think you have any marketable skills, you may be surprised at what you can do with your resume. Includes fellowships and internships, as well as volunteers and school extracurricular activities that you have done as “experience.” Or add them under the Education section of your resume. This is a great way to showcase soft skills developed in schools, such as conflict management and leadership.
If your hard skills appear to be lacking, consider taking courses through a university or online platform Coursera, This allows you to add more certifications to your resume. For example, if you want to break into a communication field, Google Analytics or Crisis Communication. If you want to break into computer science or it, consider learning new programming languages or getting a cloud certificate. aws.
Additionally, if you don’t already have one, consider building an online portfolio that will showcase your studies, school, and related projects you’ve done after graduation. Include your name and contract information in your portfolio and link it to your resume to show off your best work.
6. Break through noise using a network
Cates graduated from university during the Great Money Crisis in 2009 and realizes how difficult it can be to find a job during periods of economic instability.
“It feels like a scream into the void,” says Cates.
Currently, there are major job boards like LinkedIn, offering a quick option to actually apply for a position in just a few minutes, so the job application is easier than ever to fill out. But it’s easier than ever to get your resume thrown away by an AI screener when thousands of people apply for the same job.
According to Bankrate experts, take advantage of the network to stand out from the crowd. In a university, it is very important to connect with professors, graduates, guest speakers, internship coordinators and other people who can act as networks when they are looking for a first role in the school, depending on your field.
If you’re graduating from university and don’t have a strong network to retreat, don’t worry. There are a few things you can do to start building.
Conclusion
Job hunting is difficult, but not impossible. Treating job searches like work does work like work itself – set a certain number of days and a certain time each day to find roles (e.g. 9am to 1pm, Monday to Friday) and take a break yourself. Careful management of your finances, expand your network, and improve your application materials will put you in a better position to get through the job hunting process. The perfect job awaits you.
