For decades, a college degree was seen as a near-guarantee of better job prospects and economic security. But new analysis from Goldman Sachs reveals a striking reversal: The labor market for recent college graduates has weakened to the point where their traditional edge over non-degree peers is at historic lows.
The team led by Goldman’s chief economist Jan Hatzius asked themselves: Are recent college graduates having a hard time finding jobs? Well, yes: “Recent data suggests that the labor market for recent college graduates has weakened at a time when the broader labor market has appeared healthy.” The team was able to draw out three long-term trends by comparing college grads’ job-market performance to non-college grads, with suggestive findings about the so-called “safety premium” of higher education.
