Students heading toward graduation: if you’re wondering why job hunting feels like swimming upstream, you’re not alone.
The job market for college grads has hit its lowest point in five years, says Michael Nietzel from Forbes, drawing data from the 2025 Graduate Employability Report from the global edtech company Cengage Group. Based on surveys of nearly 2,500 hiring managers, educators, and recent grads, the report shows that a mere 30% of 2025 graduates have secured full-time jobs in their field.
That’s down from 41% in 2024 says Nietzel, and nearly half of grads today say they feel unprepared to even apply to jobs. Some of them may find themselves to be unprepared by today’s standards, with 71% of employers now requiring a two- or four-year degree for entry-level roles, says the report, which is much higher than the 55% in 2024.
DISCONNECT BETWEEN ACADEMICS AND INDUSTRY
Employers seem to be tightening the reins on hiring, and Nietzel says what’s happening here is in part a mix of a widening skills gap, shifting hiring priorities, economic struggles, and a labor market reshaped by AI.
He also points to an overall disconnect between what employers want and what educators teach. Employers are prioritizing those with job-specific technical skills, while educators lean into soft skills like critical thinking and communication.
All-in-all, nearly 9 in 10 instructors believe their students are workforce-ready, says the report, but almost half of grads disagree with this statement.
In reality, many grads think that personal referrals, internships, and interview skills matter more than the degree itself when landing a job – yet 20% of students felt their programs didn’t help them build those networks. Over a third said they wished their schools had offered more employer partnerships.
Newsweek reporter Suzanne Blake agrees these gaps are a problem. She says that this lack of career-relevant training and support is leaving many grads underemployed, delaying their career trajectories and complicating student debt repayment.
In Blake’s interview with Kevin Thompson, the CEO of 9i Capital Group and the host of the 9innings podcast, another variable working against recent graduates is the length of post-secondary education itself.
“The job market is moving faster than ever,” Thompson tells Newsweek. “You can go to school in 2021 for a coding degree, graduate in 2025, and suddenly realize the jobs you trained for are already out of style. The labor market that once felt tight has loosened up—supply of workers is outweighing demand. Add in AI and automation, and those entry-level roles that used to be plentiful are harder to come by.”
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