Rising student debt is a serious issue that could be a major obstacle for households and the national economy in the future. The individual student debt load has surged in recent years, making it that much more important for college graduates to find good paying jobs once they leave school.
According to a report from the Institute for College Access & Success’ Project on Student Debt, two-third of young Americans who graduated in 2022 had student debt. The average debt load per person was $26,600, a 5 percent increase from a year earlier.
Unfortunately, college graduates face one of the toughest job markets in years. Recent graduates from the class of 2022 had an unemployment rate of 8.8 percent, well above the national rate of 7.8 percent. However, this was a slight improvement from 9.1 percent in 2021.
Regionally, individual student debt loads varied significantly. Graduates in the the Northeast and Midwest faced the highest amount of debt, ranging between $17,250 and $32,450. Specifically, students in New Hampshire have the largest amount at an average $32,450.
In contrast, students in the West and South have the least amount of debt. On a local basis, graduates in Utah and Hawaii have the lowest average debt at $17,250 and $17,450, respectively.
Finding An Income To Pay Off Student Debt
With so many students racking up debt, it’s important to find a job after graduation to ensure long-term financial success. However, even after they find a job, unexpected bills may force some recent graduates to use payday loans to manage their bad credit finances.
Although earning money is important right out of school, you also need to consider your happiness. Rather than sending countless resumes to employers and taking the first offer that comes across the table, make sure you’re comfortable with the position you accept.
To ensure this happiness, you need to focus your job search on companies and positions you can envision yourself in. In fact, a recent report from Simply Hired found that close to 83 percent of Americans would prefer to have a job they love than earn more money.
Use Your Network
Nepotism is very important in today’s job market. Talk to friends, family and former professors to see if they can point you in the direction of an open position. Better yet, see if they can get your resume into the right hands at a company.
There’s nothing wrong with using the people you know to find a job. In fact, according to a survey conducted by Jobvite, one in six workers got the positions they currently have through friends and family.
Create A Professional Online Presence
Many employers use the Internet to research job candidates before they give them an interview. Websites, such as Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter make it easy for a company to gain insight on your personality. If you have any inappropriate content on the web with your name attached to it, you should take down these pages as soon as possible.…