For 72% of college students, the stress and uncertainty surrounding the coronavirus pandemic has added to the difficulty of looking for a job, with 74% saying companies are unresponsive to job applications, new research shows.
RippleMatch’s report, “Navigating Entry-Level Jobs and Internships During COVID-19,” focused on the virus’ impact on college students trying to enter the workforce. Researchers surveyed 2,210 student participants from 367 institutions.
“This is an unprecedented time,” said Andrew Myers, founder and chief executive officer at RippleMatch. “From a historical perspective, that means it’s essential to collect data on how college students are navigating employment right now.”
Myers added that although there is data on the virus’ current economic impact, such as on unemployment rates, the information doesn’t show “how graduating seniors are faring as they begin their careers or how college juniors are grappling with adaptations to summer internship programs.”
Despite the complications caused by the coronavirus, 56% of respondents are still actively searching for a job or internship while 38% have secured one either during or prior to the start of the virus outbreak. Additionally, 6% of students have completely stopped their job search as they believe companies have no interest in hiring at this time, according to the survey.
“A year ago, the class of 2019 graduated into one of the best job markets in recent history,” said Myers. “Now, the class of 2020 faces an employment landscape tinged by economic uncertainty, which affects which jobs are available. That said, the job market for highly-educated college graduates is far from hopeless. There are many companies such as those in tech and healthcare that will need to increase their headcount to tackle the challenges that lie ahead. One of the biggest challenges students will face is finding these jobs, as they aren’t in highly visible industries such as entertainment or travel.”
A majority of companies and employers still remain committed to their new entry-level hires and interns, with 60% of internship programs set to continue. Of that number, 46% of programs will become remote while 14% will delay start dates or shorten internship programs, the report found.
