How to get a good job with a college degree: Predictors of job sources and fit

• In Event: Organizations, Occupations, and Work Section Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (90 minute): Table 11: Higher Education and Occupations

Abstract

To what extent do college students rely on pre-existing social ties or ties formed in college when seeking post-graduate employment? To explore this question, we analyzed a 3-wave panel survey of Spring 2017 college graduates at two universities, examining 466 reports of first job after graduation, 156 jobs held by these graduates in 2018, and 167 jobs held by these 2017 graduates in 2020. We explore how graduates found their jobs (“Job source”), whether those jobs fit their career plans (“Job fit”) and whether job source and fit varied by college experiences, demographic characteristics, and student loan amounts. We also examine the relationship of job sources to job fit. Internet job sources were the most common, but 22% of first jobs and 18% of 2020 jobs were found through college sources, while 17% of first jobs and 11% of 2020 jobs were found through pre-college social ties. Most jobs were related to career plans or major (“fit”). Job sources varied by major, college work experience, honors program participation, parents’ marital status, race, and gender. Job fit was better for first post-graduate jobs found through college sources, and varied by college experiences, loan amounts, and demographic characteristics.

Authors

• Arielle Kuperberg, University of Maryland, Baltimore County

• Joan Maya Mazelis, Rutgers University-Camden