In the aftermath of an economic recession, the class of 2003 and current fourth years face a drastically different job market than that of previous graduates -- students who found themselves pursued by a multitude of companies offering signing bonuses and high-level entry positions during the economic boom of the late 1990s.
Aaron Shen, a 2003 graduate, said his current position as a research assistant at the University hospital is not the career he envisioned when he began his job search the summer of 2002. With his solid GPA and economics and biology double-major, he anticipated little difficulty landing a job in finance.
After countless unacknowledged resumes and unreturned phone calls, Shen said he felt like a research job was one of the few options left.
"I got more desperate as the year progressed," Shen said. "If you applied to job postings online or in the paper, people would not even call you back."
Although the economic recession technically lasted only from March to November 2001, repercussions impacting employment remain, Economics Prof. Chris Otrok said.
"Firms tend to hold off on hiring people after a recession until they're certain of how robust the recovery is going to be," Otrok said.
Many students in this year's graduating class have heard stories like Shen's and are beginning their own job searches earlier in hopes of avoiding similar fates.
University Career Services has seen an unusually large influx of students since the semester began, according to Ladd Flock, director of career services for the College.
Workshops held last week drew twice as many students as similar events last year. Registration on the job search network HoosTRAK also is double that of last September, with 850 fourth years already using the system.
"A lot of them did internships last year and really saw how hard it's going to be to find a job," Flock said. "Last year's class learned later on
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