Class of '09 Enters Sour Job Market

May 10, 2009— -- At Syracuse University, commencement had all the usual pomp but the circumstances have definitely changed. Today Vice President Joe Biden acknowledged as much.

"You're walking across this stage without knowing exactly what's gonna be on the other side," said Biden.

"You are graduating into a world of anxiety and uncertainty, but these are the moments you can embrace. Throughout the span of history, only a handful of us ever get a chance to actually shape the course of history."

The Class of 2009 is already learning about disappointment. Two years ago, half the graduating class had a full-time job lined up by now. This year, less than 20 percent do.

Major U.S. industries are struggling during the economic recession and journalism -- which had problems even before the economy collapsed -- has been one of the hardest hit. Syracuse student Bill Palka majored in journalism, only to graduate in a year when one newspaper after another is going bust. The Rocky Mountain News shut down earlier this year, the Chicago Tribune and Kansas City Star have suffered deep staff cuts and even the Boston Globe's union representatives have been locked in a dispute with the New York Times Co. over concessions the Times says are needed to keep the Globe operating.

"It gets a little bit annoying after a while actually -- hearing it from family members, friends," said Palka. "And I just kind of wanna say, 'You know, I get it. I know I'm graduating at a bad time,' you know? This isn't really news to me."

Communications major Tori Hornstein has a job, but it wasn't her first choice. She'll teach Spanish for Teach for America in the Washington, D.C., public school system. Like many in the Class of 2009, Hornstein opted for community service in part because those she'd hoped to work for aren't hiring.

"It wasn't so much rejection letters," she said, "as it was really regretful people saying, 'We have a hiring freeze,' or 'at this point we can't do it.'"

College graduation is always a time for celebration. But there's also always a sense that the party's over. For the Class of 2009 that's especially true.

Students are graduating into the worst job market in a generation. After 16 consecutive months of jobs loss, unemployment stands at 8.9 percent, according to the latest Labor Department numbers released on Friday. The report said that 539,000 jobs were cut last month, but analysts actually were pleased the numbers weren't worse. There were fewer job cuts in April than in March, when 663,000 people were cut.