Study: 40 percent of college grads under-employed
By Brittany Anas Camera Staff Writer
Posted: 05/27/2011 11:38:13 PM MDT


Brian Christenson took a film studies class in high school that captured his interest and led him to major in the subject at the University of Colorado.

While at CU, he worked a part-time job at Blockbuster that surrounded him with movies. He was inspired by famous alumni Matt Stone and Trey Parker, who -- before creating "South Park" -- were known for sleeping in cots where the cameras and equipment were stored on the campus because they spent so much time working there.

But when Christenson graduated from CU in 2009 with his bachelor's degree in fine arts, he had a tough time finding jobs in his field. There were either low-paying gigs or career jobs requiring at least two years of experience, he said.

To get by, he's settled for a job selling phones at the mall -- working 40 hours a week and earning about $22,000 a year. He's among a growing share of college graduates nationwide who are working jobs that don't require college degrees.

"It's definitely not something I want to do long-term," Christenson said.

Data from the Center for Labor Market Studies at Northeastern University in Boston shows that only about 60 percent of employed college graduates are working jobs that require degrees, down from about 75 percent in 2000.

"It's gotten a lot worse since the recession," said Andrew Sum, a professor of economics and director of the center.

New graduates are competing with unemployed workers in their job searches, and there are fewer jobs because of the economic downturn, Sum said. And employees are more likely to stay put in a recession, he said.

"You don't have the turnover that would open up jobs for you," Sum said.

Across the country, about 1.94 million college graduates were working in low-skilled positions between September 2010 and January 2011. That includes everyone from the bartenders with biology degrees to the store clerks who studied business.

Christenson said he's considering moving out of Colorado to an area that has a bigger film market, such as Los Angeles or Vancouver.

While he's here, he's been taking small gigs -- like shooting video of a wedding later this week. But he doesn't use the skills he learned in college at his sales job in the mall.

CU released a report last year that showed about 44 percent of graduates expected to get a full-time job upon graduation; 16 percent planned on working part-time; and 20 percent were going on to graduate school. About 5 percent were working internships or student-teaching. The remaining students said they were serving in the military, volunteering, traveling or taking additional coursework.

Lisa Severy, director of Career Services, said the university doesn't track the number of students who are working jobs that don't require bachelor's degrees.

But, she said, there is a difference between a job requirement and what someone actually needs to compete for the job. A company may advertise a position that doesn't "require" a degree, but in fact, most of the candidate pool has one.

"So, someone without a degree probably wouldn't be competitive," she said.

As for advice for students who are considering jobs that don't require degrees while they search for careers, Severy said: "I would probably advise someone to take a position that is slightly below their level but in their field of choice or with their company of choice. Getting a foot in the door and then advancing is a good strategy, especially in a down economy."

Adam Scurto, who graduated earlier this month from CU with a degree in marketing, quipped that his job for the time being is mowing his parents' lawn. He moved back home to Castle Rock until he's saved up enough money to move out. He has job interviews lined up and has even turned down some offers.

"It's very important to me that I find a job in my field or something similar," Scurto said. "I put a lot of money and effort into getting the degree I did for a reason. I'm very passionate about marketing."

Scurto said he's a strong communicator and was a student ambassador while at CU, giving tours every week to strangers, which honed his public-speaking skills.

He wants to find a company where he's a good fit.

"For the time being, I'm focusing all my efforts on finding a job that fits my qualifications," Scurto said. "But after a month or two, I'd consider taking a job that doesn't require a degree just for the money until I can find something that I'm satisfied with."

http://www.dailycamera.com/cu-news/ci_18158167