A Vox reader asks: Maybe it’s because I am a new grad, graduating with my bachelor’s in May yippee! But it seems everyone is super pessimistic about the job market these days. Has it been harder to get a job for people in recent years, or am I just finally shedding my childhood naïveté and being forced to wake up to the way the job market has always been?

Congratulations on your graduation! That’s a genuine achievement worth celebrating, even amid job market concerns.

The short answer to your question is that, unfortunately, the economic data does confirm what you’re sensing: The job market really is more challenging for new graduates right now, and it’s not just your childhood optimism fading away.

You and your peers have faced uniquely tough circumstances. You started college during a pandemic, and now you’re entering a job market that’s shifting beneath your feet in ways that can feel discouraging, even though they’re driven by much larger economic and technological forces.

This isn’t the first time graduates have faced a difficult transition. The Great Recession in 2008 led to hiring freezes and layoffs that blocked new workers from landing entry-level jobs. The labor market took time to heal after unemployment peaked in 2009, but improved steadily until the pandemic disrupted that progress.

What new grads are facing

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