This semester’s college graduates have something to look forward to other than the end of homework and finals. This year, the United States is seeing some of the greatest job growth since the 1990s. Fewer people are finding themselves unemployed, more college graduates are finding work immediately after receiving their degrees, and an influx of jobs have made their way to the United States. The combination of all of these things makes for a happy and employed class of 2015.
Falling unemployment
In May 2010, unemployment was at 9.6 percent in the United States, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. [1] Last May, unemployment decreased to 5.5 percent, the lowest it’s been since 2008. In a five-year span, we have seen unemployment drop over five percent. When the class of 2015 first entered college, the job market was looking rough. Now that these grads are leaving school and entering the workforce, things don’t look so bleak.
Increasing number of available jobs
During the recession, many companies couldn’t afford to hire on more employees. For a while it seemed like there wasn’t enough work to go around, but this year has been different. In February alone, almost 300,000 jobs were created in the United States. [2] It was expected that jobs were going to be created that month, but the cold weather made many believe that it wouldn’t reach the numbers that were actually put out.
Although this year’s influx of jobs has been helpful for those graduating in 2015, the jobs created in late 2014 have also benefited recent grads. Last November, over 320,000 jobs were created, which made 2014 the best year for job growth since 1999. [3] Because of the rapid job creation last November, those that graduated at the very beginning of 2015 found themselves flush with job prospects.
More companies are looking for fresh meat
In recent years, it has been tough for fresh college graduates to find work, since most companies wanted candidates with more experience. According to a study by CareerBuilder, companies are on the hunt for new college grads. The study shows that 65 percent of employers plan on hiring 2015 graduates. [4] This number has gone up by eight percent since last year, and it’s the highest it’s been since 2007.
The class of 2015 is also expected to make more money than grads in the past few years, according to the same study. One third of the companies are going to pay more than they did in 2014. A fourth of the companies are going to pay these graduates $50,000 or more. Now that jobs are more numerous and higher paying, maybe these college grads will be able to pay back their student loans in a timely fashion.
To see if your field is highly demanded, check out the statistics gathered by CareerBuilder that show which majors are most likely to snag you a job this year.
Business: 38 percent
Computer Science: 27 percent
Engineering: 18 percent
Math: 14 percent
Health Field: 14 percent
Communications Technology: 14 percent
Journalism: 10 percent
Liberal Arts: 9 percent
Education: 7 percent
References
[1] http://data.bls.gov/timeseries/LNS14000000
[3] http://money.cnn.com/2014/12/05/news/economy/november-jobs-report/
