Trying to conduct a job search when you’re unemployed can be nerve racking, but a large percent of people at least have the knowledge brought on by experience that they will eventually find work. Recent college graduates often don’t have this surety to fall back on when they find employment within a short period of time after receiving their diplomas.
The problem is, during a time of economic recession, finding jobs online or through other methods usually takes much longer. According to a recent survey conducted by the National Association of Colleges and Employers, currently less than 20 percent of those who graduates this year that have applied for jobs already have one.
The Student Survey, which was conducted from February 19th to April 30th, and the report that followed showed that this is a large change from previous years. By the time of graduation over half of those that had applied for jobs in 2007 had already secured a position. In 2008 this statistic fell to 26 percent.
Since many don’t expect the country to fully recover from the nationally experienced economic recession until sometime in 2011, this means that next year’s percentage could be much lower. Because of this, those who expect to finish college next May should consider starting that job search earlier than they would if the job market was better.
Interestingly enough, the survey found that the decrease may not be completely the fault of a suffering job market. According to the NACE, fewer students had applied for work before graduate this year than in previous years. This year only 59 percent of graduates had started their job search, where as, in 2008 66 percent of these individuals had begun to look for employment. One year prior 64 percent of individuals had started looking for work before graduation.
NACE’s survey also found that of the students that have already found jobs from this years graduates, 73 percent of them had participated in an internship program during some point in their time in college. This is a good indicator that those who hope to have an easy time finding work after graduation should intern before they receive their diploma.
Tags: Job Search, Jobs onlines