Just last month, APUS honored some 2,800 students who successfully completed their degree programs.  The ceremony was a very nice one and the excitement of the students who attended was obvious.  Fast on the heels of such exuberance, however, is the daunting task of locating jobs for those who were not already employed as many of our students are.  Across the nation, many recent college graduates are finding it increasingly difficult to find a job.

The global economic crisis is certainly no secret.  It has remained one of the most prominent headlines in American newspapers and on news programs for at least the last couple of years.  As recent college graduates are finding out, the economic crisis is having a dramatic effect on companies and entire industries in which many were hoping to find jobs after graduating.

In April, the most recent month for which data is available, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the unemployment rate rose from 8.5 percent to 8.9 percent, increasing the number of unemployed persons in the United States to 13.7 million.  As companies find themselves struggling to meet the financial restraints placed on them by a dwindling economy, many have announced significant layoffs in recent months.  As the New York Times reported in a January 27 article, 62,000 jobs were cut by U.S. and foreign companies on January 26 alone.  Some of the most significant layoffs occurred at Caterpillar (20,000 jobs lost), Sprint Nextel (8,000 jobs lost), and Texas Instruments (3,400 jobs lost).  Interestingly, the article predicted that the unemployment rate would peak at 8.3 percent by 2010.  Considering April’s unemployment numbers, it is easy to see that the economic downturn has taken its toll on employment and will likely continue to do so for some time.

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