The post-recession job market has not been kind to recent college graduates.
According to a report by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York published last week, 44 percent of recent graduates are underemployed, meaning they are working jobs that do not require a degree.
“Kids invest so much into their education,” said Patricia Garcia-Linares, a 19-year-old UF accounting sophomore. “To think they don’t get a return on that investment is scary.”
Underemployment among the nation’s younger demographic is nothing new, the study shows.
The underemployment rate for college graduates has consistently been about 33 percent for the past two decades.
But for recent college graduates, the underemployment rate has hit a new high, rising from 34 percent in 2001 to 44 percent as of 2012.
Despite these numbers, Heather White, director of UF’s Career Resource Center, said the futures of UF students look promising.
“What we’ve experienced here at UF is a very different story,” she said. “All of our numbers are showing significant increases in hiring.”
More than 9,000 students interviewed for jobs last year through the Career Resource Center alone, White said.
She said there was also an increase in employer attendance at Career Showcase this semester.
“The story and the picture for the Gators is positive,” White said.
Joshua Long, a 22-year-old UF information systems junior, said that as a transfer student, he’s in a unique position to compare the career resources UF offers with his previous school’s.
“Most colleges don’t go this far out of their way to get kids recruited and get them a job before they’re out of college,” he said.
[A version of this story ran on page 3 on 1/24/2014 under the headline "College grads overqualified for available jobs, report says"]
