Only 30% of 2025 & 41% of 2024 graduates find jobs in their field

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:https://www.cengagegroup.com/news/press-releases/2025/cengage-group-2025-employability-report/
https://www.anthropic.com/research/labor-market-impacts

For high schoolers, instead of spending so much money, time, and energy trying to impress colleges, shouldn’t they focus more on figuring out the right major or finding a school that’s actually a good fit? The job reports for college graduates, plus all the constant layoff news, feel like pretty strong warning signs. It makes me wonder whether colleges are really preparing students for a tougher job market or a potential economic downturn in the coming years.

I’m also surprised when I hear advice like “just pick an easier major” in order to get into top schools or “you can rely on the school name or network to get a job.” That might sound magical, but how does that actually work for middle-class or lower-income families without any resource to begin with? Networking is probably exclusive to "the Privileged" who does need to work for a day. Why would those with advantages open doors for those who don’t? It just doesn’t seem like realistic.

I'm worried about my engineer daughter who is going to graduate this year. Engineering jobs used to be so plentiful, but now she's been applying for jobs and getting nothing. She's a good student, has worked in labs, been a TA, has great summer jobs, but has not secured a job yet. I can only think that this economy is shrinking. She's going to work as a barista if she can't find work right away, but it's depressing that an engineer can't find a job right out of college!!

the neighbor kid graduated from MIT a few years ago, had a good not great job but supposedly a lot of growth and one of those two year executive training programs where you move around a lot. two years later, wasn't hired by said firm and spent a long time looking. Now working for a municipality. it's a good job, but I think people think engineers .. and MIT engineers even more .. just get snapped up. It's not always true. But she'll never been unemployed for long.