by Ethan Wolbach, reporter
OMAHA – With unemployment for college graduates with a bachelor’s degree currently at 4.8 percent, two UNO graduates have felt the effects of the struggling job market due to COVID-19.
According to a report by the job and recruiting website Glassdoor, 2020 College graduates saw a 68 percent decrease in jobs listings containing “entry level” or “new grad” positions.
2019 UNO graduate, Ben Phillips, was furloughed by his company in response to the COVID-19 crisis.
“I got a call saying, ‘Ben were going to have to furlough you’ and just hearing that, like, that basically threw a massive curveball into my, my career plan,” Phillips said.
While working side jobs and even jobs not in his career field, Phillips continued to search for a full-time job. But as he found out, not every employer was ready to hire.
“Like one day a week I would try to apply for five or six different jobs. And most of the time, it was the generic thanks for applying but we’re gonna move on to other candidates,” Phillips said.
Knowing the struggles of searching for employment, Phillips had a few words of advice for graduating seniors entering the job market.
“Even when you graduate. You’re still learning, you’re learning for the rest of your life,” Phillips said.
Maya Solarana graduated from UNO in May of 2020, and was shocked when she began her job search even before graduation.
“I started panicking a little bit. I had started my job search in March, so right as the pandemic started,” Solarana said.
Despite finding success at UNO through PRSSA and The Gateway, Solarana failed to immediately find a job after graduation but remained open minded.
“Trying to keep a positive attitude and seeing like all these different people get those jobs I’ve applied for with the companies, I’ve really wanted to work with,” Solarana said.
Through the stress and struggles, Solarana saw a positive side of the situation she found herself in. “I’ve learned so much knowledge, these past couple months, not only about myself but about the real world and finding a job,” Solarana said.
