Like many 2025 college graduates, Jayda Hurtado is hoping to land a dream job soon but is quickly learning the challenges involved with entering today’s job market.
“I’m actually terrified. I probably have a good cry session about it maybe every two weeks,” Hurtado said.
She’s applied to jobs but hasn’t landed an interview yet. She plans to keep searching over the next month and hopes to have something in place before graduation.
“If not, then it’s a matter of having something to get me by before I get a big girl job,” Hurtado said. “I also know the economy is in a weird place.”
Overall, 2025 graduates are confident they will find a job. Monster’s 2025 State of the Graduate Report found 83% think it’ll happen shortly after graduation, with 37% predicting it’ll happen within four to six months. Only 5% said they think it’ll take them a year or longer to secure a job.
Most graduates feel confident their skills match those required for entry-level roles, and 20% reported feeling overqualified for an entry-level position.
Hurtado majored in advertising and earned a certificate in music business during her time at the University of Georgia. She currently works as a server and bartender but dreams of doing marketing for a record label or something similar. But she said she’s realistic and that’s why she’s also applying for standard advertising jobs as well.
She’s not alone. Some 48% of 2025 graduates think they will not be able to find a job at an organization they prefer, according to the report.
“It’s a hard world out there for a lot of people who are not just highly educated, but have built these careers and have a trusted resume of previous experience. It’s hard for them to get a job,” said Emily Levine, executive vice president at recruitment firm Career Group Companies. “If you want to get a job somewhat quickly and start contributing and earning money, it most likely won’t be your dream job. And that’s okay.”
More: Workers say it’s a ‘tough’ time to find jobs with hiring rates below prepandemic levels
This year’s college graduates have long wish lists for their future employers.
The report found less than two in five graduates said they would be willing to accept working in office, down 7% from 2024. At 42%, a sizable portion said they would never accept a job at a company that doesn’t offer flexible or hybrid work schedules.
“Remote work or hybrid work is no longer a nice-to-have,” said Vicki Salemi, a career expert at Monster. “For these grads, it’s a must-have.”
Most new graduates are also unwilling to work for free, with only 12% saying they’d accept an unpaid internship and 62% reporting the most important aspect of a job is a good salary.
Aside from money, 2025 graduates want a supportive work environment and a team that aligns with their values. Some 91% said it’s important they feel comfortable discussing mental wellness at work and 71% said they wouldn’t work for a company that openly supports a political issue or candidate they don’t, up 4% from last year.
This year’s graduates appear to disagree with the conventional wisdom that the first few years of a career should involve paying dues and working overtime to get ahead. At 56%, more than half said they would never accept a job that doesn’t offer work-life balance.
Another deal breaker for new graduates is a stagnant workplace. Some 54% said they would never accept a job with an employer that doesn’t offer growth opportunities.
At the end of the day, it does come back to money for some survey respondents. Among them, 49% said they would never accept a job that doesn’t come with a competitive salary and benefits, up 5% from last year.
Levine said getting a job right after graduation can be tricky, as employers sometimes rely on interns during the summer and by the time the internships end, companies enter the fourth quarter when they may have already spent their hiring budget for the year.
“Then you find yourself in 2026 but you’re a 2025 grad and you still haven’t found a job. That’s usually when these recent college grads become a little bit more flexible or open minded or humble to this process,” Levine said. “They think about the things that originally they scoffed at.”
New graduates tend to think a traditional work week is a thing of the past. Some 67% said a ‘9 to 5’ schedule is outdated, up 12% from last year. At 64%, most also think the 5-day work week is antiquated, up 10% from 2024.
In general, 59% think working full time in an office and the concept of having to relocate for a job are outdated.
Younger generations of graduates are also throwing off stigmas around job hopping and pay transparency, Salemi said. She credited young people with pushing employers to include things like salary and remote flexibility in job descriptions even if the law in their states does not require them to.
“They’re looking at work and saying, ‘Wait a minute. Previous generations got it wrong and here’s how we can correct it.’ That’s commendable,” Salemi said. “And some (older) employees are saying, ‘Wait a minute. They have a point.’”
Reach Rachel Barber at rbarber@usatoday.com and follow her on X @rachelbarber_
New grads want remote, high-paying jobs that align with their values. Is that possible? – USA Today
