Oregon’s unemployment rate has reached 9 percent, nearly 2 percent above the national average, creating new challenges for students facing graduation.
The Oregon Employment Department reports that 69,966 more Oregonians are jobless than one year ago.
Deb Chereck, director of the University Career Center, said this statistic has an immediate effect on the job market for students, but she urges students to not feel discouraged and instead pursue options they may not have considered.

During the past 12 months, unemployment in Oregon climbed a steep incline from 5.4 percent in December 2007 to 9 percent in December 2008.
“Normally, I tell students to immerse themselves in news and to read journals that relate to their goals,” Chereck said. “But this is the one time I say, don’t look at those numbers.”
State labor economist Art Ayre said young people, particularly those ages 20 to 24, experience substantially higher unemployment in a recession, as companies cut positions, lay off and stop hiring.
“It’s well known that when we’re in a recession, it’s rather difficult for college graduates to get their careers started,” Ayre said. “And that difficulty can put them more or less behind the curve permanently.”
Graduates’ inability to find jobs in their desired career field sometimes forces them to take jobs that are lower-paid and unrelated to their interests, he said, making it harder for them to gain entry into better jobs when the market changes.
Chereck and Ayre said unemployment affects students by not only creating a shortage of jobs, but also by encouraging more people to compete for jobs.
“Unemployment gives people who have a lot more flexibility and time on their hands to slide into jobs that students might normally take,” Chereck said.
Although some students might be tempted to continue on to graduate school in lieu of entering an unstable job market, Chereck said that unless a graduate degree is required for their job aspirations, students should look into first gaining marketable experience.
“I get concerned, especially when the average indebtedness of a UO grad is $23,000,” she said. “It’s possible that students could be $75,000 in the hole with their master’s degree and no job experience.”
Chereck said that with businesses down-sizing, laying off employees and closing, students might face more competition for jobs, but they are not necessarily at a disadvantage competing against more experienced workers.
“Seasoned employees are not viable for entry-level positions because (employers) know that the minute things change, they’ll be gone,” she said. “Organizations have not typically been comfortable changing people’s career tracks and sending them backwards.”
Ayre said recent college graduates might have something else over more experienced employees: more exposure to newer technology.
“There may be some fields where new degrees have the advantage,” he said. “Some degrees age very quickly, like those in computer technology.”
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