Job market looking hopeful for fall college grads despite some uncertainty

SALISBURY, Md. – “We’re in the midst right now of a phenomenon that a lot of people are referring to as the great resignation or the great reshuffle. So there’s a tremendous amount of churn in the job market at the moment,” Fallon said.

The U.S. economy created fewer jobs than expected in November leaving the future in question for many December grads. Kevin Fallon, Director of Career Services at Salisbury University says, despite the current stats the market looks promising.

“We received really good information from the National Association of Colleges and Employers projecting a 30% increase in college hiring over the next 6 months. So we don’t expect our December graduates to be sitting around for very long,” Fallon said.

Joshua Nicolas is a senior Nursing major at S-U. He already has a job lined up at TidalHealth in the ER Department. Nicolas says despite the current healthcare crisis, he’s ready to hit the ground running and save lives.

“A lot of people were leaving it. I just felt like wow a lot of people are leaving. Some people see danger and leave, some run towards it. Hopefully, it’ll make a difference,” Nicolas said.

Kamren Winslow, also a SU senior, is majoring in Exercise Science and graduates in May 2022. Although his plans aren’t solid just yet, he says his determination and upcoming internships will prepare him for the uncertainty up ahead.

“I guess just kind of looking forward to it just cause like no one really knows what to think. That makes me not nervous but actually kind of anxious really,” Winslow said.

I’m told students aren’t alone in the search as the university provides assistance along the way, a helping hand that extends out even after graduation.

“And I think a lot of students are surprised once they get rolling and they get their job search up and running they find out that its a lot of opportunities they weren’t aware of,” Fallon said.

“Keep taking small steps to the job you want to get to and eventually just go from there. Just trial and error,” Winslow said.

“Every economy is going to have ups and downs. I feel like if there’s a will there’s a way,” Nicolas said.

I’m also told that the nursing and education majors at S-U have several offers to choose from upon graduation.

Despite the job slump last month, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the unemployment rate fell from 4.6% to 4.2% University personnel say they expect the market to look up for Spring 2022 graduates as well.