Nearly 60% Of Last Year’s Graduates Still Haven’t Landed Their First Job. 1 In 4 Gen Z Workers Regret Going To College

The toss of a graduation cap is supposed to mark the beginning of a career, not the start of a waiting game. Yet for nearly six in ten graduates from last year, the “real world” feels less like an open door and more like a crowded hallway, lined with unanswered applications and job postings asking for years of experience in “entry-level” roles.

If the college degree was once a golden ticket, today it’s starting to feel like a lottery slip costing tens of thousands of dollars with increasingly uncertain odds. One in four Gen Z workers now admits they regret going to college at all, questioning whether the path they were told would guarantee stability still leads anywhere. And still, this generation isn’t standing still. They’re rewriting what career success means, navigating a job market reshaped by technology, rising costs, and shifting values.

Graduation to Unemployment

For generations past, a college diploma acted like a boarding pass once you had it in hand, you could step confidently onto the career track. But for many of today’s graduates, that track feels broken before the journey even begins. A May 2025 Kickresume survey found that 58% of last year’s graduates are still searching for their first job, more than double the 25% of earlier graduates who reported the same struggle. Even before graduation day, the gap was apparent: only 12% had secured a full-time offer, compared to 39% of earlier grads.

The problem isn’t simply a lack of positions. Job listings labeled “entry-level” increasingly demand three to five years of prior experience, shutting out those whose only experience is internships or part-time work. The rapid evolution of technology, especially artificial intelligence, compounds the challenge. Skills that felt cutting-edge in the classroom can become outdated in the time it takes to frame a diploma. “Older generations lived in a market where their college degree was practically a get-a-job-free card,” career coach Kolby Goodman told Newsweek. “That card no longer exists.”

Even the job search process itself has shifted. Traditional job boards have been overtaken by professional networking platforms 57% of fresh grads now rely on LinkedIn as their main search tool, compared to just 29% of earlier graduates. Social media as a whole has become a bigger part of the hunt, with usage quadrupling across generations, from 7% to 26%. While these platforms open new doors, they also heighten competition, as candidates from across the globe vie for the same opportunities.

Beneath the resourcefulness lies a quieter truth: about a third of new graduates admit they fear they’re not “good enough” or qualified for the roles they pursue. Many cite résumé writing as their biggest stumbling block a deceptively small hurdle that often determines whether their application is ever seen by human eyes.

Shifting Job Search Tactics

With traditional hiring pipelines growing narrower, today’s graduates are rethinking how they approach the hunt. The era of simply uploading a résumé to a job board and waiting for a callback is fading fast. Instead, networking both digital and in person has become the lifeline for breaking into the workforce.

LinkedIn has emerged as the dominant tool, with 57% of recent graduates using it as their primary search platform, compared to just 29% of earlier graduates. Social media overall has quadrupled in importance for job seekers, rising from 7% to 26% between generations. The shift reflects more than just a change in tools it marks a recognition that connections and visibility often matter as much as qualifications.

But in a market where applicant pools can span continents, simply having a profile isn’t enough. Hiring managers are inundated with résumés, and breaking through requires creativity. Former Gen Z job seeker Basant Shenouda learned this firsthand. After six months of unanswered applications, she took a waitressing job at a marketing conference not for the paycheck, but for the networking potential. By sharing her cover letter with attendees, she eventually landed a role at LinkedIn itself. “When you’re a graduate, you think everyone’s going to say yes to you,” she later reflected. “It’s a matter of building up resilience… every no gets you closer to that next yes.”

The Growing Question: Was College Worth It?

For decades, higher education was marketed as the safest investment you could make in yourself a near-guaranteed route to stability, prosperity, and upward mobility. But for a significant share of Gen Z, that promise has frayed. A Resume Genius survey of 1,000 full-time Gen Z workers found that 23% regret going to college, and another 19% say their degree hasn’t helped their career at all.

The disillusionment is rooted in cold economics. According to the Education Data Initiative, the average annual cost of attending college in the U.S. now exceeds $38,000 more than double what it was at the turn of the century. This financial burden leaves many graduates with decades of debt, often for degrees that don’t directly translate into employable skills. Finance expert Michael Ryan doesn’t mince words: “College became this magical ticket that supposedly guaranteed success,” he told Newsweek. “But nobody mentioned the $60,000-a-year price tag… The math hasn’t worked since 2008, but we kept pretending it did.”

Field of study plays a major role in whether that math adds up. Graduates in STEM and healthcare see the strongest returns, with 87% reporting that their degree contributed to their career. In the arts and humanities, that figure drops to 77 still a majority, but a meaningful gap in a job market where wages often lag behind inflation. For some, the frustration comes from being steered into a narrow vision of success. “We convinced an entire generation that working with your hands was beneath them,” one finance expert noted. “Meanwhile, skilled trades are desperate for workers, and the pay reflects it.”

No Guaranteed Safe Paths

Not long ago, the advice for career security was clear: pursue a degree in business, technology, engineering, or healthcare, and you’d have a stable, well-paying job for life. But that safety net is fraying. Layoffs have swept through industries once considered bulletproof software engineering, marketing, and even parts of healthcare driven by corporate restructuring, shifting market demands, and the rapid integration of automation and AI.

This isn’t just a tech-sector issue; it’s a broader transformation in how careers are built. Roles that once promised decades of stability can now evolve or vanish within a few years. Employers are increasingly dropping degree requirements in favor of skills-based hiring, prioritizing adaptability, hands-on experience, and specialized certifications over traditional credentials. As career strategist Trevor Houston observes, “Job security after graduation doesn’t really exist.”

The disruption has opened unexpected opportunities for nontraditional career paths. Skilled trades such as plumbing, electrical work, and welding are facing worker shortages and offering competitive wages, sometimes exceeding what many degree holders earn. Finance expert Michael Ryan points out, “I’ve watched electricians out-earn lawyers and plumbers retire at 50 while college grads move back in with mom and dad.”

At the same time, certificate programs, apprenticeships, and micro-credentials are gaining traction, offering faster, more targeted routes into the workforce without the crushing debt of a four-year degree. For many in Gen Z, the appeal lies not just in cost savings, but in flexibility: the ability to pivot quickly, stack new skills, and adapt to shifting market conditions.

Gen Z’s New Definition of Career Success

If the traditional career ladder is wobbling, Gen Z isn’t trying to prop it up they’re building something entirely different. For this generation, success is less about prestige and permanence, and more about balance, purpose, and adaptability.

Surveys show a decisive shift in priorities. Work-life balance tops the list, with 91% of respondents in Kickresume and Resume Genius studies calling it “important” or “very important.” Close behind are job security (89%), a high salary (83%), and doing meaningful work (80%). In contrast, only 37% say working for a prestigious company matters to them a sharp departure from the status-driven career goals of previous decades.

Financial necessity is part of the equation, but not the whole story. More than half of Gen Z workers 58% already have a side hustle, and another 25% are considering one. These ventures range from freelance design to online retail to trade certifications, often blending income generation with skill-building and personal fulfillment. For many, they are more than “extra money”; they’re a way to explore passions, diversify income streams, and hedge against the instability of a single employer.

This approach represents a broader philosophical shift. Rather than climbing one corporate ladder, many young professionals are constructing career ecosystems a mix of roles, projects, and revenue streams that together create stability and creative freedom. Side hustles become safety nets, but also stepping stones toward entrepreneurial ventures or niche expertise.

In redefining success, Gen Z is rejecting the idea that career achievement means reaching a singular pinnacle. Instead, they’re crafting work lives that can bend without breaking careers designed to evolve as quickly as the world around them.

Practical Strategies for Today’s Graduates

The turbulence in today’s job market may be daunting, but it also opens the door to new ways of building a career. For graduates navigating this landscape, the path forward is less about waiting for opportunity and more about creating it.

1. Network with purpose.
Traditional résumés may get lost in applicant tracking systems, but relationships can open doors that algorithms overlook. Attend industry events, join online professional communities, and connect with alumni or mentors in your field. Even casual conversations can lead to leads or introductions just as they did for Basant Shenouda, who leveraged a chance encounter at a conference into a role at LinkedIn.

2. Stack and refresh your skills.
In an economy where job descriptions evolve quickly, adaptability is currency. Pursue short, targeted courses in high-demand areas such as AI literacy, data analysis, or digital marketing through platforms like Coursera, LinkedIn Learning, or industry-specific providers. Complement your core expertise with transferable skills like communication, problem-solving, and project management.

3. Explore alternative pathways.
Trade schools, apprenticeships, and certificate programs can offer quicker, more affordable entry into stable careers. Many trades now offer wages that rival or surpass traditional white-collar roles, often without the burden of student debt. Tech certifications from companies like Google, IBM, and Meta can also serve as direct pipelines into in-demand roles.

4. Build a portfolio, not just a résumé.
Whether you’re in design, marketing, software, or skilled trades, a portfolio of tangible work samples can prove your value far more effectively than bullet points. Document your projects, freelance work, and even self-initiated learning to show what you can do not just what you’ve studied.

5. Cultivate resilience.
Rejection is part of the process, but it’s also a feedback loop. Review your approach after each setback tweak your résumé, adjust your networking strategy, refine your interview skills. As one career strategist put it, “Every no gets you closer to that next yes.”

Rewriting the Rules

The old equation degree plus hard work equals stability has cracked under the weight of economic shifts, technological disruption, and evolving cultural values. For today’s graduates, this isn’t just a setback; it’s a turning point.

Yes, the market is tougher, and yes, the return on a traditional degree is no longer guaranteed. But in that uncertainty lies the freedom to redefine success on your own terms. You are not limited to a single career ladder you can build bridges between industries, stack skills from different fields, and create a work life that reflects your values as much as your résumé.

The path forward will require curiosity, adaptability, and resilience. It will also require letting go of outdated measures of worth, such as company prestige or rigid career timelines. What matters is how well your work supports the life you want to lead financially, creatively, and personally.

Gen Z isn’t just reacting to a difficult job market; they are reshaping it. In challenging the old rules, they are creating a future where careers are less about following a set route and more about navigating with purpose. And that’s a future worth stepping into even if the map looks different from the one you were given.