VCU grads facing dismal market

It is no secret that the economy is down right now in the United States. Numerous business school graduates talked about entering a job market that is slowly crumbling to the ground.

By Taylor Howsmon

Graduates of Virginia Commonwealth University’s School of Business are beginning to worry about their future in the job market.

In a failing economy, how else are these students to react to entering a race they are already behind in? It’s a question that very few graduates have had to answer in the past.

“Expectations are the same, but the competition is so much greater,” Dr. Annie Stith-Willis, a VCU business professor, said. “Now … You need a greater edge then you needed 30 years ago.

The competition has always been there, but with the U.S. economy in trouble, as it is now, it will be even tougher for students to enter the market.

With companies such as Circuit City and Citibank either going bankrupt or failing, there is even less jobs available. Although strong competition is still alive.

“It will be incredibly difficult. I know people who are graduating with finance majors above a 3.5 (G.P.A) and are getting bartending jobs,” senior marketing major John Argiropoulos said.

It is becoming clearer as the years go on that a graduate must work in a part-time field until having a chance to work in their dream job. Some even seek graduate school as a means to boost their resume.

“If I can’t find a job in my field, I don’t want to just take anything. I’ll be working part time anyway, so I can kind of do both; get my foot in the door and advance my education,” senior business major Glenn Pierce said.

It has been said that anything you can do to boost your resume is a good thing. Experts say that these students have to do whatever they can to stand out to employers.

A masters or even doctorate degree can help according to Stith-Willis, but even with multiple degrees, it is getting more and more difficult.

But despite the drop in the value of a college degree, business schools have seen a rise in application, according to U.S. News.

The University of Washington in Seattle said that they have received five times the normal amount of calls from people asking for MBA applications.

So it is clear that there are more students for positions, and fewer positions to fill, But what about the actual students?

According to Nora Baldacci, an assistant director in the Business and Engineering career center, students are becoming more aware.

“The experience here has been many students asking, ‘are there really jobs out there?’ … I know it is a concern,” Baldacci said.

Not only has the economic shift been large, but it has also been quick. According to Patricia Laborta, a senior in the business school, jobs and salaries have gone down since she was a freshman.

For the students of the VCU the current and projected future of the failing economy does not seem optimistic. Both students and teachers alike hope that jobs will open back up sooner rather than later.