Stat of the Day

53.6% of Young Graduates Can't Get Good Jobs

Reuters
Dino Grandoni 9,825 Views Apr 23, 2012

Just how bad is it out there for young college graduates? Bad. Really bad. In a report from the Associated Press' Hope Yen, we get a hard, shocking number to frame the debate: "About 1.5 million, or 53.6 percent, of bachelor's degree-holders under the age of 25 last year were jobless or underemployed."

That portion of our nation's young people without good jobs is saddening -- this young blogger counts his blessings -- but at this point, it's hardly surprising. By now we've heard about the cruel economic fate befalling the pucky young graduates of today. The recession has eliminated a lot of mid-level jobs that aren't coming back because of technology (think bank tellers); kids are getting degrees in fields that aren't hiring (think English); and even the few jobs young'uns are able grab don't require a bachelors degree or the massive debt that can come with it (think barista). What this AP report does, which we appreciate, is create a clear figure to focus on and discuss. In typical Millennial style, we'd expect a Tumblr riffing off that percentage, if 53 percent hadn't already been claimed by anti-Occupy conservatives.

Correction: The headline for this article originally read "53.6% Young Graduates Don't Have Jobs." It has since been corrected, and we regret the error.

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