The Economy and Your Job Search

You have heard that the economy is in trouble. Graduation is drawing near and you may be worried about your future. It might be tempting to pull the covers back over your head and hope it will all go away. But if you keep ignoring your job search, you’ll have to call mom and dad and ask if your room is still available. So put down the game controller, log off of Facebook and let’s get started on your job search.

Is it really that bad? Yes and no:

• First, don’t expect a job to fall into your lap – even in a good economy. The type of opportunities you will have will be dictated by your interests, your flexibility, your effort and (finally) your major.
• Overall unemployment rate is projected to reach 8.5% in 2009 BUT unemployment for those with a bachelor’s degree or better is likely to reach only 3.7% to 4.1%. (NACEweb.org)

Some industries are hiring and some aren’t:

If you have always planned to work on Wall Street, it might be time to think about Plan B. Look for stable industries: hiring is occurring in government agencies, government contractors (such as defense), high-tech manufacturing, professional services firms, and healthcare (from NACE, 1/28/09).

Look to the Michelin Career Center for help with your search: www.clemson.edu/career or stop by our drop-in hours from 9 to noon or 1:30 to 4pm weekdays.