College Grads Could See Improved Job Market in 2011

Timing is everything. College grads entering the job market in 1999 often found a multitude of offers from businesses flush with cash and rapidly growing. Needless to say, that's not so much the case these days.

But there may be hope for the current crop of college seniors. The Michigan State University's 2010-11 Recruiting Trends report projects a slightly better job market next year. Many large corporations are expected to end hiring freezes and small, fast-growth companies continue helping reshape the economy, researchers say.

Overall hiring is expected to increase three percent, with bachelor's-level and MBA-level hiring both surging 10 percent, said Phil Gardner, director of MSU's Collegiate Employment Research Institute, which conducted the survey of some 4,600 employers.

Geographically, the Great Lakes region, which took the brunt of the recession, will see a robust 13 percent increase in bachelor's-level hiring, which is tops in the nation, Gardner predicts. The region consists of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin.

But the good news should be taken with a word of caution, Gardner adds. An up-tick in job growth is simply the first step out of a very deep hole, and hardly represents a return to the heady economic days of the late 1990s and early 2000s.

"The national economy is certainly not returning to its previous high production base, Gardner said. "And even though the economy has shown early signs of sustained recovery, the overall job market has remained relatively anemic.

Who's doing the hiring?

From an industry perspective, hiring will be driven by a core group of employers in manufacturing, professional services, large commercial banking and the federal government, the annual survey found.

Gardner said smaller banks that didn't receive federal bailout money will continue closing their doors and slashing positions. And unlike the projected growth in federal government hiring, state governments and colleges and universities could see a drastic reduction in hiring, he said.

While mid-size companies, with 500 to 3,999 employees, will continue shedding positions, Gardner said large companies plan to hire 114 bachelor-level employers per company next year.

That's good news for graduates - but only if they are prepared and start working toward a position early in their college careers, said Kelley Bishop, MSU's career services director. That means making inroads with a potential employer while still in school.

Typically, Bishop said, large corporations now hire about 50 percent to 75 percent of new employees from their own intern pool.

Among the fast-growth companies (nine to 100 employees), hiring is expected to increase 19 percent, the survey said.

The new economy

"These fast-growth companies in many ways represent the new economy - that bold employer that can adjust quickly, that sees a niche and runs with it, Bishop said. "This is an important group for our students getting jobs.

Other details of the report:

• Hiring is expected to decline for those with associate, master and professional degrees, with professional-degree hiring seeing the biggest drop at 13 percent. The professional category includes law, medical and veterinary degrees.
  
• Ph.D.-level hiring, on the other hand, is expected to increase 5 percent.
  
• Hiring of engineering majors appears sluggish, with the exception of computer science and information technology students. Demand should be very strong for IT workers.
  
• The Northeast, Southeast and Pacific Northwest could see a much weaker expansion of jobs than the Midwest.
  
• For the past two years, starting salaries have remained stagnant for college graduates.

"Remember the words 'signing bonus?' Gardner asked. "Don't expect to hear them again anytime soon.

Some 36 percent of all companies said they'd consider any major for a position - an all-time high.