Recent College Grads Face Hiring Freeze

By Kerry-Ann Hamilton
Black College Wire

As the strains of �Pomp and Circumstance� and the euphoria of commencement fade, many recent college graduates are turning the search for employment into a full-time job.

Howard University alumna Charmion Kinder spends several hours a day in the Information Lab at her alma mater, canvassing job Web sites and feverishly checking e-mails for job openings. Her online searches often last until midnight, the center�s closing time.

Kinder said she anticipated a challenging job search, but did not foresee the level of difficulty she has encountered.

�I expected to at least get interviews with companies,� the Connecticut native said. �Most companies� Web sites require that you [prospective employees] post your resumes online or fax it. We never get to speak to anyone.�

Kinder, a public relations major, has opted to accept a low-paying internship for the summer while she continues her search.

For months, labor force analysts have predicted a tough environment for the 1 million members of the Class of 2003. Now, says a new survey from Manpower, Inc., the world�s largest staffing and employment service, three out of four employers expect to cut jobs or hold off on hiring this summer, contributing to the worst employment market in 12 years.

Manpower�s latest Employment Outlook Survey, released June 17, cites information from 16,000 companies.

�It�s a buyer�s market right now if you�re an employer,� Patrick Anderson, principal economist of the Lansing, Mich.-based Anderson Economic Group, told the Associated Press. �Some of those who are getting a real shock are especially those who are emerging from college and don�t have strong work skills.�

In most fields, a buyer�s market allows employers to pick from among many qualified applicants.

The number of education jobs, for example, is at its lowest level in 27 years of Manpower data, with more employers expecting to cut jobs than to increase them.

But there are bright spots.

Paul Regnier, a spokesman for the Fairfax County public school system in Virginia, said the survey findings are not representative of his school district�s hiring patterns. Fairfax County, located just outside the Washington, D.C., operates the nation�s 12th largest school system.

�Our human resources department is not having trouble getting enough applicants,� Regnier said. �We hire approximately 500-1,000 teachers a year because our student population is constantly increasing.�

Regnier said the county faces challenges in hiring teachers for areas such as special education, higher-level mathematics and science, as well as English as a second language. The spokesman also mentioned that other jobs are available in the school system in information technology, finance and facilities.

Howard University School of Communications Office of Career Development is actively providing job listings to recent graduates.

Lincoln Brown Jr., a placement services assistant, is a liaison between students and human resources offices in the Washington area and nationally. He said that since the university�s May 10 graduation, a lot of graduates are visiting the placement office seeking jobs.

�Graduates are looking for jobs in all the communication fields, including journalism, advertising, public relations and legal communications to name a few,� Brown said. �We are certainly in a recession, which makes it difficult to secure employment.�

Brown said some students worsen their chances of getting a job by their reluctance to relocate.

�Sometimes their first choices, usually in the Washington, D.C., area, are not the ones available. Graduates should be flexible,� Brown said.

That�s a lesson that George Washington University alumna Nicole Cottrell apparently learned early. Having earned a bachelor of arts degree in May in women�s studies and political science, Cottrell was hired as a regional campaign director for the 2004 presidential campaign of Sen. Joseph Lieberman, D-Conn.

Cottrell has decided to relocate from her home in Litchfield, Ky., to New Hampshire at the end of July to begin her new job.

�I�m very excited. This will be a good opportunity to see if campaign management is what I want to do for a career,� Cottrell said. �It will be a resume booster as well.�

Genia Wright, also a recent Howard graduate, relied on former work contacts to land a job. She has clinched a full-time position as the director of the District of Columbia office of the Foundation for Ethnic Understanding.

This national nonprofit foundation is dedicated to strengthening relations among ethnic communities.

Wright began her job search months in advance, while she was still interning with the Congressional Black Caucus Spouses Program. She worked with the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation for four years as an intern initially, than as staff assistant and an events coordinator.

�I am excited about working at the foundation because it is progressive and I share their vision,� Wright said. �I encourage my former classmates to contact past employers. Depending on the Internet posting is not enough as those are accessible to millions of people.�

Kerry-Ann Hamilton is a recent graduate of Howard University and a former editor of The Hilltop.

Posted June 24, 2003