Back in 2012, when many of America’s freshly graduating college students were just 19 years old, they voted in droves for President Barack Obama — by an estimated margin of 60 percent to 37 percent over Republican Mitt Romney.
And now, as the members of the Class of 2015 accept their hard-earned diplomas and stare into the cold, hard abyss that is the real world, things appear very bleak.
How bleak?
Just 14 percent of this year’s college seniors have steady, career-type jobs lined up for their lives after graduation. Thus, 86 percent of America’s college grads — about five out of every six — have zilch in the way of career prospects for their post-campus lives.
The data comes from a newly-released poll conducted by AfterCollege, a popular website that connects job-seeking college students with employers.
This year’s version of the Obama economy is slightly harder on newly-minted female college graduates. Eighteen percent of male college seniors have found jobs compared to just 11 percent of females.
White graduates have secured their first jobs at the highest clip.
Liberal arts majors and the like are having a much harder time than graduates who have majored in science- and technology-related fields. Some 28 percent of new graduates in technology have lined up related, paying gigs.
Only about 25 percent of students say they were able to parlay an internship into a real job.
Students obtaining graduate degrees this year are actually managing to fare slightly worse than college grads. A mere 13 percent of graduate degree recipients will be starting real jobs after they receive their diplomas, according to the survey.
Also, employment prospects have been growing dimmer for college grads with each passing year. The AfterCollege survey from the spring of 2014 showed that 17 percent of students managed to land any kind of real job as cap-and-gown season was rolling around. (RELATED: Obama’s Economy In Action! Just 17 PERCENT Of College Grads Have Real Jobs Waiting)
A relatively high 20 percent of the collective Class of 2013 had found jobs by graduation, according to AfterCollege.
Despite the dismal jobs picture, this year’s crop of college grads is still holding out hope for plenty of plush perks. In addition to a good salary and opportunities for career advancement, over half want a lively work culture, the ability to work remotely part of the time, a casual dress code and, of course, free beverages and snacks.
A typical class of 2015 graduate who took out student loans will be paying back just over $35,000, notes The Wall Street Journal.
The national online survey, conducted between March 27 and April 13, 2015, comprised 1,259 current or recent college graduates in the United States.
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