“Recent college graduates struggling to find work in job hunt”

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Recent college graduates struggling to find work in job hunt Posted: 06 Jul 2010 11:11 AM PDT Recent college graduate Steve Wolfe, 22, of Chantilly, wants out of his parents' house -- and bad. The West Virginia University sports management major graduated in May and began his job search in March, but still has no bites. Without an income, he's living at home again, which has further motivated him to ramp up his job-finding efforts, he said. "What I've found out is, it's been pretty tough and there's a lot of people who are in the same boat I'm in," said Wolfe, adding that he's still not sure what he wants to do career wise. "I've had friends put in 50 to 100 [job] apps, and heard nothing back." Wolfe's story is not uncommon, said Research Director Don Lillywhite of the Virginia Employment Commission. "This is a tough year for college graduates. Probably not as tough as last year, but still ...," he said. Unemployment rates are up nationwide and in the Washington, D.C., metro area from those of summer 2009, according to the commission. However, job availability has improved. "Virginia is one of the best states to be looking for a job right now," Lillywhite said. Statewide, about 178,000 jobs are currently available. In the metro area -- which includes Maryland -- that number is higher, about 190,000. This should be a ray of hope for recent grads and others looking for a job, Lillywhite said. "Northern Virginia and the Washington, D.C., area is probably the best place to be looking for a job," he said. "Right now, there are more jobs than people looking." Industries with higher numbers of positions open include finance and business management, health services, computer and mathematic sciences, and architecture and design services. The Virginia Employment Commission offers some services to help those who are looking for work, including résumé building and advice. Lillywhite said those on the hunt should keep their ears open, keep networking and ask those who have a job how they got it. In an effort to do just this, Brett Hiserman -- who graduated from Chantilly High School the year before Wolfe -- organized a golf tournament at General's Ridge Golf Course in Manassas on June 26 to assist out-of-work friends. "The golf tournament was basically to have a good time, but to also help these guys who have crappy jobs, get them reconnected and get them financial help." The tournament was sponsored by local restaurants, which sponsored the jobless players and provided gift cards as rewards to those who did well on the course. Hiserman, who graduated from Clemson University in 2009, said he started planning the tournament before he had found regular employment. With mounting student loans and bills, he said he moved back to Chantilly for help. "I live at home with my roommate, my dad," he joked. "We get along pretty good. My mindset was you go to college, you graduate. Then you get a job." That's not how it happened for him, he said. "I started applying for jobs that I was looking at when I was 14. I applied to golf courses and even to be a referee," Hiserman said, who recently gained employment at Brocade, a company that provides computer networking solutions. Unemployment numbers are usually higher in the summer, said Lillywhite, when college graduates join the workforce. He said it's important for college grads to not set their hope on their dream job, but rather seek employment opportunities wherever they can. Five Filters featured article: Headshot - Propaganda, State Religion and the Attack On the Gaza Peace Flotilla. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction.

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