USC Grads Brace For Uncertain Future In Shaky Job Market
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — A rock-and-roll music legend will be among those on hand Friday for commencement ceremonies at the University of Southern California.
KNX 1070's Jon Baird reports while some graduates are ready to trade in their books for a briefcase, many are still looking to land their first real job.
Graduates taking part in USC's 131st Commencement Ceremony and around the U.S. will be facing one of the toughest job markets in recent memory, with only an estimated 17 percent of grads having a job lined up.
Just under half of all workers who graduated from college in the past two years say they are underemployed and working in jobs that do not require their college degrees, up from about 41 percent in 2013 who claimed to be in a similar situation, according to the Accenture 2014 College Graduate Employment Survey.
And while having Grammy-winning musician John Fogerty as one of the speakers at USC Thornton School of Music's satellite ceremony may be consolation for some, the harsh reality of today's job market was already weighing on other grads even before their caps were in the air.
"It's kind of tough out there," said one communications major.
But one mom of a USC grad said while the current economic climate may be tough, this year's class may have some real advantages due to their tech-savvy lifestyle.
"These kids have a lot of opportunity that we can't even think of, that we haven't even dreamed about," she said.