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How Do Recent College Grads Really Stack up? Employment and Earnings for Graduates of the Great Recession

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Bibliographic Details
Title: How Do Recent College Grads Really Stack up? Employment and Earnings for Graduates of the Great Recession
Language: English
Authors: Greenstone, Michael, Looney, Adam, Brookings Institution, Hamilton Project
Source: Hamilton Project. 2011.
Availability: Hamilton Project. Available from: Brookings Institution. 1775 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036. Tel: 202-797-6484; Fax: 202-741-6575; e-mail: info@hamiltonproject.org; Web site: http://www.hamiltonproject.org
Peer Reviewed: N
Page Count: 4
Publication Date: 2011
Document Type: Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: Higher Education
Descriptors: College Graduates, Employment Level, Educational Attainment, Economic Climate, College Seniors, Labor Market, Graduate Surveys, College Outcomes Assessment, Education Work Relationship, Salary Wage Differentials, Economic Impact, Employment Potential, Educational Benefits
Geographic Terms: United States
Abstract: The May employment numbers broke from the positive news of the last few months and revealed weakness in the job market. Not surprisingly to most Americans, these numbers indicate the job market remains tough--particularly for the nation's young adults. College seniors graduating this spring will enter a job market vastly different than the one that existed when they started college. Indeed, when the Class of 2011 first enrolled for classes, the unemployment rate was below 5 percent. In this context, there have been a series of recent news stories documenting the challenges facing recent college graduates in their job search. This has triggered new debate about the value of a college degree in the current economic climate. Are today's college graduates really better off than their counterparts who did not invest their time and money in a post-high-school degree? In this paper, the authors examine the most recent data on young adults age 23-24--"Class of the Great Recession"--to show whether those who chose college are better off in terms of both their employment prospects and earning potential. They also continue their look at America's still growing--"job gap," or the number of jobs that the U.S. economy needs to create in order to return to pre-recession employment levels while also absorbing the 125,000 people who enter the labor force each month.
Abstractor: ERIC
Entry Date: 2013
Access URL: https://www.hamiltonproject.org/files/downloads_and_links/05_jobs_graduates.pdf
Accession Number: ED539542
Database: ERIC
Description
Abstract:The May employment numbers broke from the positive news of the last few months and revealed weakness in the job market. Not surprisingly to most Americans, these numbers indicate the job market remains tough--particularly for the nation's young adults. College seniors graduating this spring will enter a job market vastly different than the one that existed when they started college. Indeed, when the Class of 2011 first enrolled for classes, the unemployment rate was below 5 percent. In this context, there have been a series of recent news stories documenting the challenges facing recent college graduates in their job search. This has triggered new debate about the value of a college degree in the current economic climate. Are today's college graduates really better off than their counterparts who did not invest their time and money in a post-high-school degree? In this paper, the authors examine the most recent data on young adults age 23-24--"Class of the Great Recession"--to show whether those who chose college are better off in terms of both their employment prospects and earning potential. They also continue their look at America's still growing--"job gap," or the number of jobs that the U.S. economy needs to create in order to return to pre-recession employment levels while also absorbing the 125,000 people who enter the labor force each month.