2008 Woodie Awards
Job outlook poor for grads
Katie Via
Issue date: 10/10/08 Section: News
Originally published: 10/9/08 at 6:08 PM EST
Last update: 10/9/08 at 6:33 PM EST
With the stock market falling and fluctuating at unpredictable rates, many are left uncertain about the future of the economy, and students may be wondering what exactly it will mean for them both during and after their time at college.
Those graduating and preparing to enter the workforce may have an increasingly difficult time finding jobs, said Robert Christopherson, professor and chair of the economics and finance department at Plattsburgh State.
"But it's hard to tell," he said. "The stock market goes down 700 points one day and up 500 the next. A bailout may stabilize things, but if it's a prolonged recession, students will most likely face more difficulties."
Christopherson said this difficulty would also vary by major, with some students encountering more obstacles than others.
Students graduating from accounting or nursing programs, for example, are more likely to find jobs out of college than those graduating from education programs, he said.
For graduating seniors experiencing uncertainty in the job market, Christopherson suggests it as an opportunity for students to continue their studies and obtain additional degrees and credentials.
"Your salary will be higher for the next 30 to 40 years, and that will more than pay for the additional costs of education," he said.
Neal Duffy, associate professor of economics and finances at PSUC, also suggests this strategy.
"College students have never seen an economic crisis such as a lot of our faculty did in the early 1980s when inflation and unemployment both reached double-digits," he said. "This will probably be a good time to stay in college because unemployment could reach 10 to12 percent next summer."
Christopherson said he advises students just beginning their college career to think critically about stability of the field they are going into, while warning incoming freshman of the potential difficulty in obtaining student loans.
"If this credit crunch persists, then it will probably become more difficult for students to get loans," he said, explaining that banks will only want to lend to the most credit-worthy borrowers.
Those graduating and preparing to enter the workforce may have an increasingly difficult time finding jobs, said Robert Christopherson, professor and chair of the economics and finance department at Plattsburgh State.
"But it's hard to tell," he said. "The stock market goes down 700 points one day and up 500 the next. A bailout may stabilize things, but if it's a prolonged recession, students will most likely face more difficulties."
Christopherson said this difficulty would also vary by major, with some students encountering more obstacles than others.
Students graduating from accounting or nursing programs, for example, are more likely to find jobs out of college than those graduating from education programs, he said.
For graduating seniors experiencing uncertainty in the job market, Christopherson suggests it as an opportunity for students to continue their studies and obtain additional degrees and credentials.
"Your salary will be higher for the next 30 to 40 years, and that will more than pay for the additional costs of education," he said.
Neal Duffy, associate professor of economics and finances at PSUC, also suggests this strategy.
"College students have never seen an economic crisis such as a lot of our faculty did in the early 1980s when inflation and unemployment both reached double-digits," he said. "This will probably be a good time to stay in college because unemployment could reach 10 to12 percent next summer."
Christopherson said he advises students just beginning their college career to think critically about stability of the field they are going into, while warning incoming freshman of the potential difficulty in obtaining student loans.
"If this credit crunch persists, then it will probably become more difficult for students to get loans," he said, explaining that banks will only want to lend to the most credit-worthy borrowers.
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