graduated a year ago, still can't get hired

A reader writes:

I graduated from college last spring in June of 2008 and have been searching for employment since then but unfortunately I haven't been able to find a job. I have even looked at minimum wage jobs outside of my field as a dishwasher, custodian, painter etc. I was in competition for those jobs with people who were laid off with mba's and regular blue collar workers. It was a rather interesting experience, almost like something out of a twilight zone episode.

The advice I've continually gotten from employers was that I should try to attend graduate school. I can understand where they're coming from but I honestly don't think that's the best idea to do, to hide out in graduate school and accumulate more debt. I realized something was wrong when I was speaking with some of my friends about student loans. We were all talking about how much we owed, you know the usual numbers came out 50k, 30k, 90k and then when it came to me I said 5k. I knew something was horribly wrong being that I can't even get a measly job that will help me pay off 5k of debt.

I'm no stranger to working menial jobs, that's how I paid most of my way through college, earning skills from graphic design to driving forklifts, yet I still can't find employment. I sometimes wonder is it me? Or is it that I have just been brainwashed into thinking this piece of paper (bachelors degree) that I bought would actually help me to gain some footing? I keep updating and changing my resume and cover letter but sometimes I feel as if I'm making paper airplanes over and over again. I just would like to know if you have some advice for me or any other people like myself having difficulties.

I'm sorry. That sucks. You're not alone, and because you're not alone, it's even harder -- all those other job searchers are making it even harder. Simply put, there are more job searchers than there are jobs right now. That means that an awful lot of people are going through this. And it's even harder for recent grads without an established work history. I linked to this scary article the other day, showing that only 19% of recent grads have found work so far.

So yeah, it's kind of crappy right now.

Of course, it could still be you. Without seeing your resume and cover letter and knowing how you come across in interviews, I can't say that it's not you, in addition to the economy. It could be -- and if it is, frankly that's good news, because it means you can change it. There is a ton of advice available on how to write a good resume and cover letter and do well in an interview -- are you reading it and living it? Slog through the archives here and at other similar blogs and see if any of that helps.

Aside from making sure you're coming across as a good candidate, consider all the usual advice about volunteering, networking the hell out of everyone you know, blah blah. Here's a recent post that covers this more extensively: advice for a recent grad

As for graduate school, I think these people might be advising it because it's an easy answer. But unless you want to go into a field that requires a graduate degree, it's a very expensive and unnecessary way to just put off the day of reckoning.

Hang in there.