New grads face longer searches amid hiring drought

entry-level hiring – After months of applying, a 23-year-old MBA graduate says he’s stuck staring at an “impossible” job market. Across the economy, hiring for entry-level roles has slowed, underemployment for recent college grads remains elevated, and employers may pull back on y

For Cross Sierra, the job hunt has become less like a sprint and more like a test of stamina.

The 23-year-old has spent time accelerating toward a future with an MBA. running a nationwide search. and even crashing on friends’ couches. He wants to become a high school athletic director. Instead. he finds himself asking the question that has started to wear through his patience: “What more do I have to do?”.

His frustration lands in the same place many new graduates are discovering right now. Economists and workplace observers say the market for entry-level workers is tougher than it was a few years ago, and that difficulty is no longer confined to a single industry.

Hiring has slowed across much of the economy, leaving fewer openings and longer searches for many newcomers. In fields that tend to draw fresh grads—finance. professional and business services. and healthcare—hiring rates are about as low as they have been since the pandemic. according to Dante DeAntonio. senior director of economic research at Moody’s Analytics.

For job seekers, the implication is blunt: a strategy built only around big-name employers may not be enough. DeAntonio’s peers say applicants might need to widen their approach—looking at smaller employers. exploring accounting roles outside the traditional path to Big Four firms. and considering stepping stones like internships even when they are not the end goal.

“It’s going to help you understand how the company functions,” Priya Rathod, workplace trends editor at Indeed, said of those alternative routes. “It’s going to help you make connections within the company.”

That advice comes as the data shows the job market still has slack. even if it has improved from its worst point. The underemployment rate for recent college graduates edged down from its 2025 high of 42.4%, but it still sits at 41.5% in March. The figures are published by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and suggest some graduates are taking positions that don’t require their years of schooling.

Guy Berger, an economist, said the search can feel different depending on the era and the expectations it creates. In the hot post-pandemic labor market of 2022, Berger said job hunters could afford to be picky. If they didn’t like something, it was easy to move on. Now, he said, “it’s the kind of thing where you might have to bide your time more.”.

Berger also said both high school and college graduates should expect a longer job search and be flexible with offers. For him, the goal isn’t pretending any compromise is effortless—it’s that getting work can reduce pressure. “Once you have a job, it becomes much less stressful to look for another one.”.

The stress is not evenly distributed. Cory Stahle. senior economist at job platform Indeed. said healthcare and education jobs have clearer pathways that could make the search less onerous. “They’re going to have an easier time finding a job versus something that’s more kind of market-based. ” Stahle said.

Healthcare has been propping up the overall job market. It helped keep overall job growth positive in 2025 as hiring lagged in other industries.

But there’s another complication entering the conversation: AI. DeAntonio pointed to a pattern where some large companies are laying off workers while investing in technology. That push for efficiency. he said. could lead employers to cut back on hiring less-experienced workers in hopes AI can take on some of the work. DeAntonio described it as a first domino effect. saying. “The first domino to fall is likely to be a pullback in hiring amongst younger workers.”.

The anxiety around AI is spilling beyond hiring offices and into graduation ceremonies. Some students have booed speakers who mention the technology.

Rathod framed the shift in terms of how career paths may look. “Your career is going to be more like a lattice than a ladder,” she said. “So remember that even if you don’t have the perfect role right now, it doesn’t inhibit you from getting that perfect role down the road.”

That idea—build experience, then move—shows up in how demand is evolving for internships and temporary work. Rathod said contract work, temporary jobs, and internships can help build experience while the search continues for a permanent role. Postings on Indeed through April suggest demand for interns has been pretty strong, roughly in line with 2024 levels and above 2025.

Some internships, Rathod noted, are limited to enrolled students, but they can still lead to full-time offers.

Small businesses may also be a piece of the puzzle. Rathod pointed to the National Federation of Independent Business’s jobs report. which showed that about a third of small business owners had openings they couldn’t fill—the highest level since June 2025. In her view. that can make smaller employers more useful to graduates who need experience and mentors at the same time.

She said smaller firms can give graduates a wider range of experiences and “greater opportunities to build relationships with senior colleagues who could become mentors.” “It can help give you access to things that you wouldn’t be able to engage in or projects you wouldn’t be able to engage in at larger companies. ” Rathod added.

Even the way people search for jobs is shifting. Instead of relying only on job boards, job seekers are increasingly turning to social media.

Anya Roodnitsky, who attended Dartmouth College, landed a job after an Instagram video went viral. She described hitting “submit” on her 300th application and realizing. “This isn’t working. ” before deciding to create a funny presentation video. Someone who saw it flagged a job posting at an energy company. and she said the company’s recruiter reached out the next day.

For Sierra, the plan for now is built around momentum rather than certainty. He completed his MBA in May at a college in New Hampshire. He plans to stay with a friend and spend the summer coaching for a travel baseball club in Massachusetts. If that doesn’t turn into a full-time gig. he’ll continue searching—just as he has been for more than a year.

“I’ve just got to keep my head down and keep going,” Sierra said. “This too will end.”

entry-level hiring job market recent college graduates underemployment rate Moody's Analytics Moody's AI hiring internships small business hiring Indeed Federal Reserve Bank of New York career pivots