The Economist published a report on recent graduates between the ages 25-34 and the skill level of employment they find themselves in. What is most concerning is that about 33% of American graduates find themselves under-employed; or under utilizing the skills and education they acquired in college. The U.S. is about 10 percentage points higher than the world average. Luckily for us that our average income is among the highest in the world at $56,200 a year.
This worries me because I have many friends that just entered the labor force that I graduated with. Many of them are very intelligent and performed well in their majors. Here is my theory on why younger people are finding themselves underemployed. The value of a college degree has devalued over the years. More young people are going to college than ever before. With two year colleges and more universities opening, young men and women have the opportunity to get an education. Unfortunately, there is only a limited amount of work a person can find in their field of study. The positive is that we have a more educated work force, the problem is that the workers are being undervalued and their full potential is not being reached. This makes the job searching process more competitive then ever, and in theory the best candidates will be hired for jobs; of course if you know some one it will help out a lot more. As my favorite saying goes, "it's not the grades you make but the hands you shake."
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