New Virginia Law to Publish Unemployment Rates of Recent College Grads

A new Virginia law that goes into effect next summer will publish the unemployment rates for recent graduates of the state’s colleges and universities. The law, which passed almost unanimously through both chambers of the Virginia state legislature and was signed into law by Gov. Bob McDonnell, was created after a study from Northeastern University found that 50% of recent college grads are unemployed or underemployed.

Data from Northeastern University and the Bureau of Labor Statistics show that 53.6% of Americans with a college degree, but under the age of 25, are unemployed or underemployed. According to a story from the Virginia Capital News Service, unemployment rates are even hitting college grads in traditionally “safe” fields.

Degrees in such fields as nursing, accounting or computer science used to be a ticket to a high-paying job. But now, even those degrees are vulnerable – and graduates who majored in the arts and humanities are really struggling, according to the data analysis, which was conducted for the Associated Press.

According to research from the Center for Immigration Studies, the unemployment rate for young adults have doubled since 2007.

Under the new Virginia law, employment rates and average salary for recent graduates of each institution for higher learning in the state will be published. The data, which will be published by the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia, will also show the amount of debt incurred by recent college grads to pay for their educations.

For more information, see the Smith Mountain Eagle.