Graduation season in the US has lost its usual shine. In Washington Square Park New York City, the sea of purple gowns that marks New York University’s ceremonies this month feels different. The smiles are smaller. The photos are being taken, but the cheers feel hollow. Julie Patel knows why. She just finished a master’s in public health, a field where government funding cuts have gutted job openings. “I thought I’d have a job lined up by now,” she told Al Jazeera. “Instead, I’m watching every listing get fewer hits and the pay offers keep shrinking.” Patel’s story is one of 2.1 million this spring. The class of 2024 is walking into the worst job market for new grads in a decade, and the reasons are piling up faster than anyone expected.

Hiring has crashed for entry-level roles

Across the US, employers posted 23% fewer entry-level jobs in the first five months of 2024 than they did last year, according to LinkedIn data. The cuts hit hardest in the industries that used to guarantee a first job: healthcare, education, and government. Patel’s public health degree was supposed to open doors in city clinics or nonprofits. Now, those doors are closing. “Every week, another posting disappears or the salary drops by $10,000,” she said. “It’s like watching your future get smaller in real time.”

Funds for jobs evaporated overnight

The US government slashed $18 billion from discretionary spending in March, much of it targeting health and education programs that hire recent grads. Hospitals cut internships. Schools furloughed support staff. Community clinics, already stretched thin, stopped posting entry-level roles entirely. In Ohio, the state university system froze 400 staff positions, many of them aimed at new grads. “We used to have 20 roles open for public health grads each semester,” said a hiring manager at a Cleveland hospital who asked not to be named. “This year, we have three, and they’re part-time.”

AI is eating the jobs no one talks about

New grads used to land work processing data, writing reports, or handling customer inquiries—tasks that entry-level hires did for years. Now, AI tools like Jasper and Copy.ai do those jobs faster and cheaper. A recent McKinsey analysis found that 30% of entry-level tasks in business and healthcare can now be automated. That means fewer roles for grads with no experience. “We see resumes from kids with perfect GPAs and internships, but we can’t justify hiring them when AI can do the work for half the cost,” said a recruiter at a Chicago logistics firm.

Tariffs raised the price of hiring

The trade war with China hasn’t cooled down—it’s gotten worse. New tariffs on Chinese goods added $120 billion in costs for US companies in the first quarter of 2024. Many responded by slashing budgets, including hiring. Small businesses that used to take on interns now can’t afford the extra $5,000 a month it costs to train someone. “We used to hire two grads each summer to help with orders,” said a furniture maker in North Carolina. “This year, we laid off two veteran employees instead.”

Wars far away are making hiring freeze here

The wars in Ukraine and Gaza disrupted global supply chains, increasing costs for US manufacturers and retailers. Companies that survived the pandemic now face higher shipping bills and lower profits. That means no new hires. In March, US manufacturing jobs dropped by 14,000, the biggest single-month decline since 2020. “We were planning to add 50 entry-level roles this year,” said the CEO of a Michigan auto parts supplier. “Now we’re freezing all non-essential spending.”

What happens next? Patel is applying to 50 jobs a week, tailoring each resume. She’s taking a part-time gig at a café to pay rent while she waits. “I keep thinking, ‘Maybe next cycle will be better,’” she said. But the data suggests otherwise. The US economy added just 140,000 jobs in April—the weakest growth in two years. For grads like Patel, the message is clear: adapt now, or keep waiting.

What You Need to Know

  • Source: Al Jazeera
  • Published: May 17, 2026 at 15:41 UTC
  • Category: World
  • Topics: #aljazeera · #world-news · #middle-east · #war · #conflict · #us-college-graduates-job-market-2024

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Curated by GlobalBR News · May 17, 2026

🇧🇷 Resumo em Português

Os recém-formados universitários nos Estados Unidos enfrentam um dos piores cenários de empregabilidade dos últimos anos, com vagas cada vez mais escassas, cortes salariais e a inteligência artificial assumindo postos que antes eram porta de entrada para jovens profissionais. A economia americana, que já dá sinais de desaceleração, agora joga contra quem busca o primeiro emprego, deixando milhares de brasileiros que estudam ou planejam estudar nos EUA em alerta sobre o futuro profissional no exterior.

O problema não é apenas conjuntural: a combinação de inflação persistente, políticas monetárias restritivas do Federal Reserve e o avanço acelerado da automação está redefinindo o mercado de trabalho. Setores como tecnologia, finanças e consultoria, tradicionalmente receptivos a recém-formados, agora priorizam contratações enxutas e habilidades específicas, muitas vezes substituíveis por ferramentas de IA. Para o Brasil, essa tendência pode significar menos oportunidades para quem busca experiência internacional ou até mesmo um recuo na popularidade do ensino superior nos EUA entre estudantes brasileiros, em um momento em que o país precisa fortalecer sua própria mão de obra qualificada.

A situação deve se agravar até o final de 2024, com especialistas recomendando que os jovens brasileiros avaliem alternativas como estágios remotos ou cursos voltados para áreas menos suscetíveis à automação.

🇪🇸 Resumen en Español

La generación que salió este año de las universidades estadounidenses se topa con el mercado laboral más hostil en décadas, donde la escasez de ofertas, los recortes salariales y la automatización están cerrando las puertas que antes abrían sin esfuerzo. Las cifras revelan un retroceso alarmante: menos prácticas remuneradas, puestos junior copados por inteligencia artificial y salarios que, en muchos casos, no alcanzan para cubrir el alquiler de una habitación en una ciudad mediana.

La causa principal es el enfriamiento de la economía, agravado por la incertidumbre geopolítica y una política monetaria restrictiva que ha frenado la contratación en sectores clave como la tecnología y los servicios. Para los hispanohablantes, este fenómeno tiene un impacto doble: por un lado, muchos jóvenes latinos, que tradicionalmente han recurrido a empleos en hostelería o construcción con salarios bajos pero accesibles, ven cómo esas alternativas se reducen; por otro, la competencia por trabajos cualificados —ahora más escasos— se vuelve feroz, especialmente para quienes no dominan el inglés con fluidez o carecen de redes profesionales sólidas. La pregunta que flota es si este será el nuevo normal o solo un bache pasajero en un mercado laboral cada vez más polarizado.