Joshua Holmstead is a junior at BYU-Idaho. He is off track this semester, and his schedule is wide open. Holmstead is known as a hard worker and has years of work experience. Although he is a highly qualified engineering student, he is willing to except any employment, menial or otherwise. Still, Holmstead is unemployed.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the national unemployment rate rose from 9.8 to 10.2 percent in October 2009.
To some students, the unemployment rate once meant next to nothing; now a 0.4 percent jump is a crippling blow to many students trying to imagine a career in post-academic life.
The Economic Policy Institute recently reported that the unemployment level of college graduates surpasses that of high school dropouts.
“Things fell apart really fast last year, but it looks like the job market for graduates has hit a bottom,” said Phil Gardner, director of MSU’s Collegiate Employment Research Institute.
Since October 2008, the unemployment rate for men and women, age 16 to 20, has gone up by almost 4 percent. Many college students find it next to impossible to find a job while in school.
BYU–Idaho students have found the quest especially tiresome.
Although unemployment rate in Rexburg is lower than the national unemployment rate, students find it almost impossible to find employment. The opportunities are scarce and the competition is fierce.
While unemployed, Holmstead applied to Melaleuca, Craigo’s, Broulim’s and many other local Rexburg locations, but to no avail.
He eventually found work at a local temporary agency, but the hours are unstable and unpredictable. Luckily, between savings and scholarships, Holmstead has been able to stay afloat; however not all students are as lucky.
Sophomore Courtney Gopp searched for the first month of the semester, but eventually just gave up.
“It took more time away from my studies to find a job then to actually have one,” Gopp said.
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