Students walked across the stage, diplomas in hand, hoping that they would land a job right after and now many are walking into a wall. For the recent college graduates, the thrill of graduating is quickly being replaced by the anxiety of job searching in a market that feels stacked against them. Recent data indicates that the unemployment rate for college graduates aged 22 to 27 has consistently been higher than the national average since January 2021. This trend is partly due to the unfortunate timing of their graduation as they entered the labor market during a hiring slowdown following a period of high job openings in 2022.
Moreover, a significant portion of recent graduates are underemployed, working in positions that do not require a college degree. According to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, about 41% of recent college graduates are underemployed, with many in the humanities and liberal arts fields.
Now with Trump’s renewed tariff policies, situations could go from bad to worse. By raising costs for companies, especially in manufacturing and tech, tariffs often lead to hiring slowdowns, job cuts, or a shift toward automation to save money. That means fewer entry-level roles for new graduates trying to break into the workforce. According to TIME and MarketWatch, industries hit by tariffs are already scaling back, and with economic uncertainty rising, companies are becoming more cautious about expanding teams. Fresh graduates are already juggling student debt and limited experience, and the timing couldn’t be worse.
