the Informer

Job prospects are looking up for 2012 graduates according to a recent survey by Career Services that spoke with the 2011 graduates.

“There are indications in the data that the economy is improved,” John Kniering, Director of Career Services, said.

The survey was sent out in November 2011 and continued until this February. A record amount of graduates replied to the survey being 513 respondents out of the class of 1,700.

“It is going to take us some time until we get back to where we were,” Kniering said, “but things are up.”

Of the 2010 graduates, 63.1 percent reported being satisfied in the level of success they are currently experiencing in their career while 67.1 percent of 2011 graduates report feeling successful.

Only 70.7 percent of the 2010 graduates reported being employed either full-time or part-time.

The 2011 statistics were up to 71.6 percent of the graduates being employed full-time or part-time.

“The bottom line is that there is good indication that the worst is over,” Kniering said.

“It’s good to hear,” Alex Eckel, a senior Cinema major, said. “In this industry, it’s really who you know. I was recently contacted by a girl I used to skate with to help out on a music video.”

The survey also revealed how important internships and social media and networking are becoming in job searches with 44.1 percent of the 2011 graduates using these methods.

“Google helps a lot,” Chanel Bowen, a senior this year who will be graduating in May, said. “You find the companies better that way.”

Bowen currently has multiple interviews set up. She has been searching for jobs since January of this year.

“Internships helped and so did the job fair in Feb.,” Bowen said. “Put your name out there.”

“The economy is extremely fragile,” Kniering said. “There is always a chance things will change, but regarding the 2011 class, things are looking up.”

That assurance is good news for the seniors graduating in a mere couple of months. They can be assured that things are not as bleak as they seem. There is strong hope that employment is up. This does provide some comfort.

“College employment is getting better,” Kniering said.

The other thing that the survey showed was that fewer students are attending graduate school. The survey reported 74.8 percent of the 2011 graduates not being in graduate school, which is up from the 69.2 percent of 2010 graduates.

It is unclear as to whether that is because graduate school is less affordable or that students are finding it easier to go right into jobs.

Overall, the outlook for this year and the years to come is looking positive and maybe graduates will not have to worry so much.