Undergraduate Blog / Career Development

Bleak Picture, Yes, but Help IS Still Wanted

“Recent reports — unemployment at a 25-year high, hundreds of thousands of jobs lost every month — are enough to make many job seekers want to hide under the covers.

Consider that in March, nearly 700,000 jobs disappeared. But now consider this: At the end of March, there were 2.7 million job openings. What tends to get lost in the data picture is that just as some companies are laying off workers, other companies are hiring. In fact, the business world is changing at such a dizzying rate that some companies are cutting and hiring workers at the same time.

It’s true that the number of openings has been falling, and that means more competition for jobs. What does it mean for job seekers? That the people with the best résumés and cover letters, the best networking and interviewing skills and the best ability to adapt to a changing market have a serious shot at the available jobs — and a serious advantage over those who cower under the covers.”

PHYLLIS KORKKI (New York Times, May 23, 2009)