Posted on 07/01/2012 3:24:51 AM PDT by Cincinatus' Wife
Andi Meuth earned a history degree from Texas A&M in May and has applied for 150 jobs, so far with no luck.
Jon Ancira graduated with a bachelor's degree in psychology last year, but can't find work that uses his degree. After six months of searching, the 26-year-old did finally land a job — at a bank.
Alex Ricard, 21, is grateful to be using his electronic media degree from Texas State at a social media startup company, but it's an unpaid internship.
He says he's sent out three to five resumes a week for the past two months, with almost no response from prospective employers. When he does hear back, he says, it's most often that he doesn't have enough experience.
While the particulars for each graduate are different, the overarching narrative has become familiar.
Up to half of all recent college grads are jobless or underemployed, doing low-wage work outside their chosen fields, according to a widely reported analysis this spring by the Associated Press.
These young women and men still have high expectations — as do their parents — that a college degree will pay off, despite rising tuition and the resulting debt.
But increasingly, say economists and workforce experts, there is a mismatch in today's job market between graduates' skills and those needed in the fastest-growing career fields.
The recession changed the economy permanently, economists say. In this largely jobless recovery, millions of mid- and entry-level positions are gone, the work now automated.
Many of those with college degrees who do find jobs can expect lower salaries and reduced earning potential over their working lives. Rising debt — the average graduate carries about $25,000 in loans — can push the often-necessary advanced degree out of reach.
Locally, the unemployment rate among 20- to 24-year-olds has been about twice as high as the overall rate.
Psych degree overload
Ricard still holds out hope that his degree will eventually lead to a job, given the increased importance of social media and digital technology, but he has his limits: August.
“If I haven't found something by then,” he said, “even though I'd like to think my days of fast-food jobs are behind me, it becomes less about the job I want and more about the job I need at that point.”
Not all graduates face such dire straits. Those with in-demand degrees in areas such as engineering, information technology and nursing enjoy much brighter job prospects.
Kevin Davis, who earned an electrical engineering degree from the University of Texas at Austin, had three job offers before he graduated in May. He took a job with Toshiba in Houston.
John Hollman will graduate from Austin Community College in December with a two-year associate degree in nursing. The San Antonio native already has two job offers, one from his current employer of nine years, Texas Oncology.
But employers and workforce agencies say the labor market is suffering from a jobs-skills mismatch.
Psychology, for example, is the third-most-popular four-year degree in Texas and one of the fastest growing, according to Workforce Solutions Alamo, a public agency that works to bring people and jobs together.
Problem is, there's almost no demand at that level, said Eva Esquivel, communications manager with the agency.
More than 5,000 people graduated from Texas colleges and universities with bachelor's degrees in psychology in 2010, she said, to compete for four job openings in the field, with an annual salary of $22,000.
“That's not even enough to pay student loans back,” Esquivel said. Most psychology jobs require a higher-level degree — and there still aren't many positions available.
Ancira, who saw some of his psychology research published while studying at Northwest Vista, one of the Alamo Colleges, said he found fewer research opportunities after transferring to UT.
Disenchanted, he looked into changing majors or getting an advanced degree, but the burden of $36,000 in student loans put him off.
Meuth, who lives in San Antonio, said she knew the job market for history majors without a master's degree or teaching certification was limited but decided to go for a major she was passionate about, even in a slumping economy. She wants to work in a museum eventually, which requires a master's, but is putting it off for now to avoid taking out any loans.
Conversely, Texas colleges graduated far fewer engineers than psychology majors in 2010 — just 271 petroleum engineers, according to Workforce Solutions Alamo, and demand far outstrips supply, especially as the Eagle Ford Shale continues to boom.
Starting pay for petroleum engineers averages $85,000, Esquivel said. For the 405 chemical engineers who graduated in 2010, it's about $60,000.
Skills in short supply
Chris Nielsen, president and CEO of Toyota Motor Manufacturing in San Antonio, said the company has struggled to fill engineering positions and points to the healthy starting salary as proof of the competitive nature of the field.
But perhaps more crucially, Nielsen said that in the six years the company has been building trucks in San Antonio, it's never been able to fill all its trade positions, or what it calls “skilled job” positions.
Those include maintaining assembly-line robots, which Nielson said requires training in programming, hydraulics and pneumatics.
These are good, career-track positions, he said, many that pay in the $60,000 range.
Toyota is hardly alone.
Manufacturers surveyed in the latest “Skills Gap” report from the Manufacturing Institute, an affiliate of the National Association of Manufacturers, reported that roughly 5 percent of current jobs go unfilled because of a lack of qualified candidates. That's as many as 600,000 unfilled jobs — machinists, operators, craft workers, distributors, technicians and more — that manufacturers say hamper their ability to expand operations, drive innovation and improve productivity.
Those surveyed said the national education curriculum is not producing workers with the basic skills they need, and the trend is not likely to improve in the near term.
Tom Pauken, appointed to the Texas Workforce Commission by Gov. Rick Perry in 2008, has become a passionate advocate for greater vocational and technical training.
He laments what he calls a “one size fits all” approach to higher education, which assumes that everyone needs a four-year degree.
Those who do are often saddled with enormous debt and still can't find good jobs, he said. “Meanwhile, there is a shortfall of qualified applicants for those with skills training as welders, electricians, pipe fitters and machinists.”
Entry-level salaries for those jobs in the San Antonio area begin in the low- to-mid-$20,000 range, according to Workforce Solutions Alamo, and rise to the upper $40,000s at the expert level.
In San Antonio, Alamo Colleges runs Alamo Academies, which aims to train high school juniors and seniors for skilled employment in fast-growing local industries, including aerospace, information technology and security, manufacturing and the health professions.
The academies, which are a partnership among the community college district, local industry and workforce agencies, also provide college credits, and expose students to occupations that require a college education. Students stay in their high schools, take about half their classes at the academy and participate in a paid internship in their chosen field.
After high school, graduates earn an average starting pay of more than $30,000 and will have earned a couple dozen college credits.
“I tell students they need to do career planning even before education planning,” said Esquivel, who travels a 12-county region talking to high school students about where job growth will occur in the coming years. “I wish more students would take advantage” of the information her agency has to offer.
Luisa Ramirez, the on-campus recruiting coordinator at the University of Texas at San Antonio, said she's seen an increase in freshmen who come to the career center seeking advice, rather than waiting until they're seniors.
“They've seen their parents go through the recession,” she said, “So they're more aware.”
Ancira said many recent graduates might be in for a rude awakening.
“You go to school thinking you're going to graduate and there's going to be a job in an office waiting for you,” he said, “but a few years into it, you realize that's not really going to happen.”
I know I’m late to the party but what good are all these degrees in liberal arts. Want a job, become an engineer and work your brain off getting that knowledge. Liberal Arts come free with life.
Their first 3 examples are HORRID examples. Really? History, psychology and stereo systems?
Ask him if he would be interested in SCUBA training. Heck of a demand in the entertainment industry and you get to visit exotic places. Pay is not high but when he becomes a mariner you get the time of your life.
AND for the first time since the United States of American was founded, there is not a single Protestant on the Supreme Court.
???
Your statement “getting your hands dirty” brought to mind an incident that happened just after I opened my Industrial Electronics servicing business back in 79.
I had a job opening posted in the paper and a applicant showed up (not knowing a thing about industrial (down to board repair) electronics or machinery.
One of the first questions he asked after taking the tour was “what type of smocks do we wear?” I just grinned at him and answered “we don’t wear smocks, industrial electronics is the DIRTY electronics.” Needless to say, he was discouraged and went out to find some “clean” work to do.
“Three years later the boom was busted.”
I had been in business for only 3 years when in March, 82, I suddenly knew something was seriously wrong with the oil patch.
My favorite saying that was going around back then was “Things are picking up. They picked up my TV yesterday and will be back tomorrow to pick up my truck.” LoL!
Actually, it was a horrible experience to be a businessman and live through that. I had to lay all of my employees of and carry on business by myself. Didn’t bring it back to full power until 1986....but I did without borrowing any money from anyone.
That’s called learning at college that surpasses any on earth...The School of Hard Knocks. It teaches a course in business not found in any college classroom and prepares you to survive anything.
Computer Science major here; can't find a job either.
I'm former military; and a Computer Science major. (Still can't find a job right now.) -- The gunsmithing is a intriguing, maybe I ought to learn that.
All degrees that require math, logic and a firm grasp of reality.
Hey! I think I have found the problem!
Gusmithing has been my hobby for years, and it may very well become my primary source of income soon.
Not enough gunsmiths in America, and way too many people with guns they have no clue on how to repair much less clean.
Even a simple cleaning service like a monthly plan for a fee gives you weekly cleaning and maintenance, even at your own home.
Like a Stanley Teamer service except it is a service to maintain your weapons by trained professionals. So many people live in diverse areas, even lubricants are important if you live in AZ or AK.
Thats my business plan, an at home tunup, service and firearm cleaning package availabe for a monthly charge.
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Obama voters. No they can't :) |
That's a great idea.
Don’t be so smug. We’ll see if your kid makes it in a few years. You already know from the article that psych undergrad degree will be useless, no matter the business plan and the vast majority of business plans fail even when developed by skilled and qualified people. With state licensing requirements and ObamaCare regulations, you’re still encouraging this path? Pity.
Good suggestion, thanks! Our county Aquatics and Fitness Center offers SCUBA classes.
Lifeguard son just came in from work. It’s 104 outside. I need to get up to his room and make sure he comes down to get more water, instead of passing out in bed from dehydration.
psycho-babelfish: English-Psychologist & Psychologist-English Translation Services.
GPAs aren't the be all end-all of everything; I held a good GPA in excess of 3.5 for a long while, but graduated with something like a 2.6, 2.3, it doesn't matter. Why? Well it took me nearly a decade to get the degree, at the end you could say I had the worst case of seniorits ever. Certainly taking classes where we 'learned' the same thing over and over didn't help keep motivation up.
I know I had to take Statistics several times before getting it; and even then I know I only tentatively grasped the surface of it.
What my transcripts should show is that I work towards the goal w/o giving up; but they won't see that, they'll see a 2.X GPA.
I wanted to keep it just low key, my worst nightmare would be that a Federal task force would do the same in order to gain ownership information. So it may sound like a good idea but in light of the political situation it could also be very perilous, but then the best things in life are dangerous.
Aye; there is that. I'm thinking about running for pres (2016), and let me say: adhering to the oath of office would instantly put me in peril and danger.
{Oh but what Chaos I could wreak upon the domestic enemies of the United States simply by enforcing the laws!}
Imagine using the "president can order indefinite detention" clause being used against the USSC until the USSC ruled it unconstitutional; or asking the counties/cities to use Eminent Domain on all physical properties using "projections" of increased tax revenue until they decided to overturn Kelo.
Physical sciences. Software is called software for a very important reason my FRiend. Get a second major in electrical or mechanical.
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