Yesterday one of my very good friends sent me a text message asserting that she is looking for a job, having recently graduated from George Mason University with a BA in Art History. She was hoping that perhaps I could help her find employment through my sphere of influence. Admittedly I do know many more people than she does, simply because I work for the Chamber of Commerce. I'm surrounded by the exchange of money, ideas, products and personnel on a daily basis. But try as I might, I could not pull anything out of the back of my mind wherein some company might be hiring for someone with any particular education, least of all art history. There have been offerings of part-time, seasonal and administrative positions galore. Craigslist is stacked with requests for massage therapists and graphic artists. But what about those who have dreamed of sailing out of college and into a job with some security, maybe some benefits?
When you search the blogosphere, you find others talking about the lamentable fact that many recent grads can find nothing in their given field. So it goes that those who have family support may take unpaid internships in order to gain experience in hopes that they will be hired with pay once the economy thaws. In doing this, they further put off financial independence. Others who are not so lucky as to be able to move back in with Mom and Dad are forced to grab whatever they can find to pay their bills. So where does that leave this generation who graduated between 2007 and 2010? It looks like the choices are that you opt out of your chosen field and forgo the opportunity to gain experience as an entry level rocket scientist or you work as the one who gets coffee and makes copies for the "real" rocket scientists, your nose pressed against the glass as you wonder when it will be your turn to draw a paycheck. It seems that by the time the economy picks up, these recent grads will not have the experience needed to keep up with someone fresh out of school and they may be lost in the shuffle.
What are your thoughts?