Building A New Path:
The 2026 Graduate Report
Overview of key findings
The Market
Today’s grads face steeper competition than in past years, as entry-level postings make up a smaller share of available jobs and attract more interest
Recent grads are landing jobs faster (77.2% within 3 months) through determination and adaptability: submitting more applications, applying for different types of roles, and taking on different kinds of work to get a foothold
Grads fear AI is limiting entry-level jobs, and most schools aren't preparing them for it
Breaking In
Working during college more than doubles grads’ odds of landing a job
Internships and apprenticeships are some of the clearest on-ramps into the workforce
With more challenges in securing their first job, most grads are exploring non-corporate work, and over a third are considering entrepreneurship
Priorities and Payoffs
Grads want employers who prioritize their well-being
Nursing leads in pay and job placement; liberal arts grads are most likely to have regrets
After the Offer
Despite working harder and securing roles faster, only 1 in 4 grads is on their dream career path
Women enter the workforce earning 80 cents to every man's dollar
The Market
Today’s grads face steeper competition than their predecessors
As the labor market has remained stalled for much of the last year, the entry-level job market is tightening. These roles are harder to find and more competitive right now than more senior positions. ZipRecruiter’s data shows that more job seekers are competing for entry-level positions, while fewer of the available jobs are actually entry-level. This means emerging talent faces more competition to get their foot in the door.
As entry-level opportunities become harder to come by, ZipRecruiter’s survey of recent and rising grads, along with public data, shows young job seekers and students are feeling the pain across every part of the job search.
Despite the challenging conditions, the share of recent grads who landed a role within three months of graduating rose from 63.3% a year ago to 77.2% today, reflecting the work they’re putting in to break into the labor market. Grads are submitting more applications, receiving fewer offers, and having less say in where they end up than their peers from just a year prior. Data from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York shows that while the job market presents challenges for younger workers, a college degree appears to mitigate some difficulties for recent graduates. As of December 2025, young college graduates faced a 5.6% unemployment rate, higher than the 3.1% for all college-educated workers, but lower than the 7.8% rate for their same-aged peers overall. While youth and inexperience can be hurdles, a degree offers a distinct advantage. But that doesn’t mean today’s grads have it easy.
Current students are feeling these market challenges even more acutely.
Among all rising grads, 9.8% changed their major due to economic conditions — more than double the 4.8% of all recent grads who did the same, suggesting anxiety is accelerating in real time.
And when the bridge to professional life looks uncertain, more are choosing to wait to enter the workforce. Nearly half (48.5%) of rising grads are considering furthering their education with grad school as an alternative to finding a traditional job.
And more than half (56.3%) of recent grads are considering the same after testing the waters of the current labor market.
Graduate school could be functioning as a hedge against a tough market as college grads look to buy more time before entering the traditional workforce.
Grads fear AI is limiting entry-level jobs — but most schools aren't yet preparing them for it
While businesses turn their focus to senior-level positions in the rise of artificial intelligence, educators are taking steps to prepare the up-and-coming workforce with the skills needed to succeed. But the training is uneven, and the preparation of grads in this space is lacking. Grads and students feel the acute pain of a shifting labor market, and many pin the changes on AI.
Only 29% of rising grads and 23% of recent grads say their school provided extensive AI training for professional use. The gap between concern and readiness is wide, and it is not closing on its own. The burden of that gap is falling disproportionately on women.
Only 18.7% of recent female grads report having any AI training integrated into their curriculum, versus 28.6% of their male peers.
On the other hand, 13.9% of recent female graduates say their school focused only on the risks of AI without covering professional use cases — more than double the 5.9% rate reported by male graduates.
Risk assessment and training should go hand in hand, but data shows they do not. There is a gender divide in how the information is shared. The issue isn't just how many women are receiving AI training, but what kind. Men are more likely to learn how to apply AI professionally. Women are more likely to learn only why to be cautious about it. One of those directly prepares you for the workforce, while the other doesn't.
Breaking In
Working during college more than doubles grads’ odds of landing a job
In a tougher market, outcomes are not random. More competition for entry-level roles means employers can be more selective about who they choose to fill them. Data shows that the single strongest predictor of post-graduation employment is whether a student worked in any capacity during college. It takes experience to make experience.
The advantage of work experience compounds. Working during school builds a resume, but more importantly, it accelerates the entire job search timeline.
Students with work experience were far more likely to have started their search before graduation (73.4% vs. 43.7%)
Work experience made grads nearly twice as likely to have landed a role before receiving their diploma (20.8% vs. 12.7%)
Experience also leads to feeling more prepared: only 6.4% of grads with experience reported feeling underqualified for roles they applied to, compared to 17% of those without it.
Networking is part of this equation, too. The vast majority (87.8%) of employed recent grads say networking was important in securing their first job. One place grads were getting connected is right on campus, as 1 in 5 recent grads made a meaningful connection or secured an interview at an on-campus career fair. Current students are picking up on the value of a network: the share of rising grads who view networking as "very important" spiked almost nine percentage points year-over-year, rising from 55.3% in 2025 to 64.1% in 2026.
For students currently enrolled, the message is simple: any professional involvement—whether a part-time job, active participation in a student organization with tangible results, or keeping up those industry connections—does double duty. It builds their network and kicks their career into gear sooner.
Internships and apprenticeships are some of the clearest on-ramps into the workforce
Any work experience on a resume helps land that first job out of school, but some experiences shape recent grads’ careers more than others. As traditional entry-level roles become harder to access, internships and apprenticeships are the clearest on-ramps into the workforce.
Internships:
40.3% of recent grads completed a formal internship.
Students who completed an internship were more likely to land an offer before graduation (24.7%) compared to employed recent grads overall (20.3%).
Recent grads with internship experience are the most likely to describe their current job as a stepping stone—something that is not the dream job or path, but provides the necessary experience they need to get there (56.2% vs 51.2% for recent grads overall). This illustrates that interns are learning the practical steps needed to get where they want to go.
Apprenticeships:
Apprenticeships produce an even more direct path for the few (5.3% of recent grads) who complete them.
32.9% of recent grads with apprenticeship experience say they’re already on their dream career path – and unlike many of their peers, none report being in roles misaligned with where they want to end up.
With more challenges in securing their first job, most grads are exploring non-corporate work, and over a third are considering turning to entrepreneurship
Faced with credential gaps, a competitive market, and roles that don't always match their qualifications, recent grads are expanding their definition of what a career start looks like. The vast majority (72.7%) are actively considering alternative employment options alongside or instead of traditional roles.
37.5% are considering starting their own business.
32.5% are considering gig work, such as delivery or data annotation.
28.1% are exploring freelance work.
11.4% are considering skilled trades.
For many, options outside of work entirely are on their radar. Most (88.4%) recent grads are considering an alternative to a job entirely, like furthering their education or skill building, in addition to work, while they figure out the start of their careers.
The financial pressure of early career life is pushing grads toward alternative solutions. The labor market's response to that creativity will shape individual trajectories and workforce composition in the years ahead. This report shows that work experience is one of the strongest predictors of who ends up ahead. But with shifting demographics, fewer grads with experience means a smaller labor pool. Policymakers and employers can work together to address young talent challenges and create new pipelines for experience building to shape tomorrow’s workforce.
Priorities and Payoffs
Grads want employers who prioritize their well-being
Even with the challenges of a tighter labor market, new grads start out with a sharp sense of what they want in an employer; however, real‑world experience reshapes their priorities.
76.2% of recent grads prioritize employee well-being as a marker of a good employer, compared to 63.3% of rising grads who say the same.
Both groups rank well-being above ethics, social equity, and environmental impact — but the weight it carries grows once grads have actually experienced a workplace.
46.8% of recent grads say they would trade the prestige of a large company for a smaller one with higher social impact.
On flexibility, the data is more nuanced than common narratives suggest. Both recent and rising grads lean toward in-person or hybrid work rather than preferring remote, reflecting changing perceptions and expectations about work among the younger generations.
34% of recent grads prefer in-person, and only 18.8% prefer fully remote.
Rising grads hold harder lines before experiencing the market: 11.2% say they would quit over a full-time office mandate, compared to 6.4% of recent grads.
Experience, it seems, softens the ultimatums.
Nursing leads in pay and job placement; liberal arts grads are most likely to have regrets
While experience matters for employment rates, what a grad studies matters for where they will land. Data on pay, regret, and employment by field of study tells a clear story about which major choices are paying off.
Nursing leads in nearly every positive dimension.
Nursing grads landed the highest median pay at $70,000.
Nursing grads are also one of only two groups to land above their pay expectations, earning 16.7% more than current students anticipate.
And nearly a third (31.8%) have a job secured before graduation.
While only 5.4% of recent grads studied nursing, the high salary and streamlined job placement has 15.2% wishing they had this as their chosen major.
With healthcare driving much of the labor market growth over the last year, more plentiful job opportunities await those who choose this field of study.
Aside from nursing, the highest starting salaries are concentrated in professional and technical fields.
Not all majors lead to better-than-expected outcomes. Some recent grads had a rude awakening when hitting the job market, finding lower salaries than expected, and taking longer to find a job.
While overall regret is slightly decreasing—20.5% of recent grads regret their major, down from 21.5% the prior year—it remains highest among liberal arts graduates, many of whom wish they had pursued more scientific or quantitative fields.
But the reason behind shifting majors is changing as economic conditions remain a challenge. Enrollment is already responding: twice as many rising grads report studying nursing as recent grads - 10.8% vs 5.4%. And more rising grads report studying engineering than recent grads - 8.1% vs 7.5%.
Career prospects are the primary factor influencing rising grads' major decisions, while interest and passion play less of a role.
41.4% of major-changers cited career prospects as their reason for the change.
Only 51.3% of major-changing rising grads cited changing interests and passions as a reason for the change, down from 61% of recent grads.
Along with the higher likelihood of changing due to economic conditions, today’s students are more likely to decide their major based on data, and less on passion.
About the Offer
Despite working harder and securing roles faster, only 26% of grads are in their dream career path
Landing a job and landing the right job are different, and for most recent grads, a meaningful gap remains between the two.
Only 26% of recent grads describe themselves as currently in their ideal career path. Over half of recent grads, 51.2%, see their current role as a stepping stone, and 18.7% are in bridge jobs — roles taken primarily to cover expenses while continuing to search. With job opportunities scarce, 20.1% of employed grads say they are overqualified for their current position, and 18.3% intentionally applied below their level just to get a foothold.
The barriers grads identify are specific and actionable:
66.8% cite lack of experience as their biggest obstacle.
48.2% need additional credentials or certifications.
39.5% don't know the right people.
33.4% say their specific field is too competitive or stagnant.
Only 12% cite geography as a barrier — suggesting their willingness to move is high, or they are making do with where they choose to live.
And grads are prepared to act to achieve their dream careers.
While 76.2% of recent grads prioritize employee well-being as a marker of a good employer, once they realize the challenges of actually getting hired, they seem more willing to bend on those priorities, as 44.5% say they would accept a worse work-life balance to reach their dream career.
40.3% would relocate to a less desirable city.
39.9% would take lower pay in exchange for better experience.
Only 6.4% expect to arrive at their dream job without giving something up.
Despite persistent narratives about young workers being unwilling to put in the effort and a tough market, most remain incredibly optimistic about their future: 80.3% expect to reach their dream career within five years.
Women enter the workforce earning 80 cents to every man's dollar — and the gap is worse than they expected
Even when graduates choose the right major and end up in high-paying fields, not everyone benefits equally. While major selection shapes starting salaries, gender shapes them further. The gap young women encounter in their first paycheck is wider than many of them anticipated.
Median starting pay—representing 80 cents on the dollar compared to their male peers, who earn $60,000.
Median expeced pay—a narrower 92-cent gap was anticipated while in school, with male rising grads expecting $65,000.
Optimism fades after graduation: While 73.7% of rising female graduates believe their major will be very useful for their career, only 50.3% still feel that way after graduating and entering the workforce.
Today's grads aren't waiting to be handed a path — they're building their own
The throughline is this: today's graduates are not passive. They are recalibrating their expectations, expanding their options, making real sacrifices, and building their own paths when traditional ones are closed. What they need most from employers, educators, and policymakers is simple: preparation that matches their ambition, and opportunity that rewards it. Work experience, fair access to AI skill-building, and clear early-career pathways will determine who leads the workforce of tomorrow.
Additional insights
Methodology
ZipRecruiter, partnering with PureSpectrum, surveyed a nationally representative sample of 1,500 recent graduates (class of 2025, graduated within the prior 12 months) and 1,500 rising graduates (class of 2026, expected to graduate within 6–12 months), conducted between January 30 and March 16, 2026. All participants reside in the United States and are between the ages of 20 and 29.