Class of 2002: Looking for Work
Feb. 4 -- With his economics, business and computer science course work, college senior Adam Cearley is the kind of student who not too long ago would have been courted by potential employers offering signing bonuses, fat salaries and perks like company cars and foosball tables.
But like many members of the class of 2002, Cearley is coming to terms with tamped-down expectations. Before the recession officially began last March, "even philosophy majors could find jobs," said Cearley, 21, a senior at Rhodes College in Memphis, Tenn. "Now, it's a seller's market for employers."
Indeed, while some specialties are still in demand — pharmacists, teachers, nurses and civil engineers, for example — college career officers say they are struggling in the bleak economic climate to help many students leverage their diplomas into job offers.
A Rutgers University January 2001 job fair, for example, hosted 247 employers and 2,650 job candidates. For 2002, the number of employers dropped to 178 — a 29 percent decline — but jobseekers swelled to 4,887.
For the fall 2001 semester, Rutgers also saw a 40 percent decline in on-campus recruiting activity from 2000. "That suggests a significant decline. We're not talking about single-digit changes," said Richard White, director of Rutgers' office of career services in New Brunswick, N.J. Although some economists say the recession could soon end, White said he hasn't seen any easing of the tight job market.
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Rutgers' experience seems to be reflected nationwide. A survey of employers released last month by the National Association of Colleges and Employers showed that they expected to hire approximately 20 percent fewer new college graduates this year than last.
And last year wasn't exactly a prime time for first-time job seeking, when nightmare stories abounded about corporations rescinding job offers or delaying the start of employment for a year or more.
Ask Not What Your Country …
Now, corporate belt-tightening is forcing many in the class of 2002 to seek alternatives to traditional employment.
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