State of the World for College Students

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As the world continues to digest what’s going on due to coronavirus, we wanted to share how college students/graduates are being affected. As the country braces for a recession, many are not thinking of how this recession impacts the graduating seniors, or college freshman, sophomore, or juniors. The world has become a much scarier place and we wanted to do our part to inform and help students. Let’s get started!

What we’ve learned…

  1. College does NOT help you determine what you want to do for a living, what career path you would be a good fit for, or what companies need you to know to hire you for internships or jobs
  2. The average company uses 120+ software tools daily. Yet the average college student graduate knows roughly 8-12 technologies (Word, Powerpoint, Excel, Google Docs, Google Sheets, Adobe Creative Suite). If you don’t know the tools or have the skills companies need you to have in the next couple of years, it’s going to be rough looking for a job upon/after graduation.
  3. Most students have no clue how to write effective resumes...and colleges are giving you the wrong info. Which one of these does your resume look like? Which resume do you think will get the interview first?
Good resume
Bad Resume

Let’s talk numbers…

In 2019, roughly 2 million students graduated college. 66% of students did not have jobs lined up upon graduation - and that’s in one of the strongest economies. Of these students, after 7.4 months of unemployment, 49% end up in jobs that didn’t require a college degree - for example bartending, retail, customer service, or barista.

After spending thousands of dollars on college tuition and so much time studying to get a degree, that’s not what you were expecting or wanting to hear right? The numbers are scary, but this is our reality.


The next few years…

The job market is going to be pretty unforgiving over the next few years. As we head into a global recession, our analysis is that the digitally-enabled jobs or jobs within digitally-enabled companies are the ones that will survive and continue to thrive.

The recession will force many companies to rethink internships and entry-level jobs, making it far more competitive than ever to gain experience. As if companies weren’t already specific in who they are looking for in a potential candidate, they will be even more selective in the years ahead.


So how do you survive the inevitable recession?

Most people are generally unaware until it’s too late, but there’s been a massive skills gap developing between what companies need and what students are learning in college. Part of the problem stems from the fact that most students are not familiar with the vast majority of the in-demand jobs/roles companies need to fill. So they don’t select the right major, classes, and internships to build the experience employers need.

The one thing you can do to set yourself apart from the competition is build the skills you aren’t being taught in class. If you’re a Freshman, Sophomore, or Junior, you are not exempt from the worry. As we head into recession territory, it’s more important than ever to gain the knowledge and skills you’ll need to thrive within your career path.


How can PathMatch help?

Nancy Soni, CEO of PathMatch, wanted to provide guidance and support to students in or entering college. Over the past year, PathMatch has built a career matching platform that matches students to high-paying, in-demand career paths based on their personalities, strengths, interests, location preferences, and 50+ other variables.

To help students understand what skills and experience employers are looking for and how to best stand out, PathMatch also has flexible plans available for those who would like career matching, advice, and help.

As most of you are practicing social distancing, this is the best time for you to gain clarity on what digital career paths will allow you to thrive in the upcoming economy. We use AI to match our clients to modern, in-demand career paths and our career coaches provide valuable information on what you need to know to make one of the most impactful decisions you’ll make about your future.

Most people are generally unaware until it’s too late, but there’s been a massive skills gap developing between what companies need and what students are learning in college. Part of the problem stems from the fact that most students are not familiar with the vast majority of the in-demand jobs/roles companies need to fill. So they don’t select the right major, classes, and internships to build the experience employers need.

The one thing you can do to set yourself apart from the competition is build the skills you aren’t being taught in class. If you’re a Freshman, Sophomore, or Junior, you are not exempt from the worry. As we head into recession territory, it’s more important than ever to gain the knowledge and skills you’ll need to thrive within your career path. Become a PathMatch client today to find the right path for you and how you can go about achieving it.

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