Graduates feel job squeeze
Recent reporting finds American college graduates describing the entry‑level market as shrinking and opaque, with many blaming AI and fewer openings as they struggle to find roles. Graduates say longer searches and a feeling of helplessness are common among the class of 2026. (The Guardian)
American college graduates are entering a weaker entry-level job market, with unemployment and underemployment both rising at the end of 2025. (newyorkfed.org) The Federal Reserve Bank of New York said the unemployment rate for recent college graduates reached about 5.7% in the fourth quarter of 2025, up from 5.3% in the third quarter. Its underemployment rate rose to 42.5%, the highest since 2020. (newyorkfed.org) The National Association of Colleges and Employers said employers projected just a 1.6% increase in hiring for the class of 2026 compared with the class of 2025. In the group’s November 12, 2025, release, it described hiring as flat for new graduates. (naceweb.org) That slowdown has been showing up in graduates’ job searches. CNBC reported on April 6 that BlackRock chief executive Larry Fink said this year’s graduates could face the highest jobless rate in years, partly because artificial intelligence is making some entry-level work obsolete. (cnbc.com) Economists and employers are also describing a shift in what “entry-level” means. A January 2026 World Economic Forum briefing said routine tasks that once gave newcomers a foothold are increasingly being automated, while employers ask early-career workers to do more with artificial intelligence tools from the start. (weforum.org) Some labor researchers have found sharper effects in jobs most exposed to artificial intelligence. The Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas said in January 2026 that a Stanford study found employment for workers ages 22 to 25 in the most artificial-intelligence-exposed occupations had fallen 13% since 2022. (dallasfed.org) Not everyone puts the blame mainly on artificial intelligence. Oxford Economics said in a 2025 analysis that graduate unemployment was rising alongside a broader tech-sector pullback, while the National Association of Colleges and Employers said employers were still emphasizing internships, work experience, and the ability to show concrete skills. (oxfordeconomics.com) (naceweb.org) The result for the class of 2026 is a market with fewer obvious first rungs: more graduates competing for slower-growing hiring, while employers raise experience and skills expectations for jobs that used to train beginners on the job. (newyorkfed.org) (naceweb.org) (weforum.org)
