So is a plague of laziness responsible for the unemployment numbers?

[HappySqurriel]

Chairman-Mao said:

richardhutnik said:

Chairman-Mao said:

These people aren't lazy. They're just holding out for management positions.

If you have been management, and then try to apply for something not management, it is hard to get into.  Go too far down, and you get "overqualified".  In my case, I have a Masters degree.  Sure, I might be able to land seasonal employment, where you are gone in January.  But for more permanent things?  Well, it is a real challenge.

I'm only 19 and in my undergrad program so I can't speak at all about job hunting or whatever, but I can't see it as being too hard to find a job with a masters degree. Now I understand the whole "overqualified" issue but it can't be that big of a drawback can it?

As a general guideline, a master's degree makes you more attractive for a few positions and no more attractive for most positions within a field than a bachelor's degree would. In some ways it is a negative because the extra couple of years experience you could have gotten instead of a master's degree is valued far more than the master's degree is. My job market is relatively healthy, and my field within my market has very low unemployment, so this isn't the case at the moment but (in the past) I have seen people with Master's degrees and PHD's struggle because of this. If an employeer can put up a posting and find countless people who have 3 to 5 years experience in a very similar position with strong references it will be very difficult for a new graduate of a master's or PHD program without real world experience to find a job.