National Association Of Colleges And Employers Hiring Index Shows Increase In Jobs For College Grads

Following a salary survey that gave accounting students something to cheer about, the National Association of Colleges and Employers has some good news for the rest of the class of 2011 -- February data shows that entry-level hiring is on the rise.

NACE's college hiring index -- scaled from 0 to 200, with 100 as a base indicating no change from the previous month -- revealed that from January to December 112 employer organizations reported what amounted to a jump in entry-level hiring from 120.9 to 126.3. This is the largest increase the NACE index has reported so far.

NACE further notes that 53.3 percent of survey respondents said they plan on hiring more college grads than they did last year, and that students should expect more aggressive on-campus recruiting.

And Beyond.com's Fourth Quarter 2010 Career Trend Analysis Report found that 78 percent of online classifieds are for positions that require less than one year of experience -- which, according to Bnet.com, might make entry-level jobs positions an area of growth following the 2008 recession.

The NACE index shows, however, that the 126.3 February figure still falls short of November 2010s reported hiring index, which weighed in at 127.7.

Are you optimistic about job prospects? Let us know how you feel in the comments section.

Comments

[EliSpark]

01:07 PM on 03/03/2011

On the rise is not the same as back to where we were pre-recession. The outlook is still pretty bleak. This is a good change though.

[Kristin Talbott]

09:32 PM on 03/02/2011

Just what a college grad with $20,000 (or often far more) in student loans needs - an entry level position.

It's good news, but only for the corporations that are able to funnel college graduates into jobs that don't actually require anything that would be beyond the ability of your average 8th-grader.

[Kalie]

10:35 PM on 03/02/2011

I've been out of work for a few years, with a masters degree. It seems that all that is out there now is ten dollar/hr jobs. Fight for workers rights in your spare time.

[Rachael Crawley]

11:35 PM on 03/02/2011

An entry level position is better than no job at all. I hope it will get better- this generation is going to miss out on work skills, delay career growth and financial independence until much later, and have trouble finding enough security to build any kind of life on. As a college student, I am very worried about the future.

[EliSpark]

01:08 PM on 03/03/2011

I'm worried too.