{"id":27364,"date":"2026-04-08T04:58:01","date_gmt":"2026-04-08T04:58:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/finderica.com\/?p=27364"},"modified":"2026-04-08T04:58:01","modified_gmt":"2026-04-08T04:58:01","slug":"new-college-graduates-face-a-tough-job-market-money-moves-to-help","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/finderica.com\/?p=27364","title":{"rendered":"New college graduates face a tough job market: Money moves to help"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"RegularArticle-ArticleBody-5\" data-module=\"ArticleBody\" data-test=\"articleBody-2\" data-analytics=\"RegularArticle-articleBody-5-2\"><span class=\"HighlightShare-hidden\" style=\"top:0;left:0\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"InlineImage-imageEmbed\" id=\"ArticleBody-InlineImage-108285594\" data-test=\"InlineImage\">\n<div class=\"InlineImage-wrapper\">\n<div>\n<p>Chuck Savage | The Image Bank | Getty Images<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<div class=\"RelatedContent-relatedContent\" id=\"RegularArticle-RelatedContent-1\">\n<div class=\"RelatedContent-container\">\n<div class=\"RelatedContent-nonCollapsibleContent\">\n<h2 class=\"RelatedContent-header\">Read more CNBC personal finance coverage<\/h2>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<ul>\n<li>Average tax refund is up $350 compared to last year as IRS deadline nears<\/li>\n<li>Robinhood, BNY to build Trump accounts app<\/li>\n<li>New college grads face a tough job market \u2014 why unemployment hits them harder<\/li>\n<li>AI has a big problem when it comes to financial advice, MIT professor says<\/li>\n<li>Older Americans can find free tax filing help as big changes hit this season<\/li>\n<li>As 401(k) balances swell, financial experts warn of retirement planning pitfalls<\/li>\n<li>Teen sports betting raises concerns in schools, and a financial literacy push<\/li>\n<li>Market volatility poses a serious risk for new retirees. Here&#8217;s how to prepare<\/li>\n<li>Trump&#8217;s overtime deduction is a &#8216;home run,&#8217; Treasury says. How it could change<\/li>\n<li>Stock market is in for &#8216;choppy, bumpy ride,&#8217; strategist says. Here&#8217;s how to play it<\/li>\n<li>Parents with student loans have limited time to secure forgiveness, affordable bills<\/li>\n<li>Social Security needs more money. The question is, who will pay?<\/li>\n<li>Should you &#8216;buy the dip&#8217; amid the latest stock market volatility? What experts say<\/li>\n<li>Boston Fed: Credit card APRs have &#8216;economically meaningful&#8217; impact on spending<\/li>\n<li>CNBC&#8217;s Financial Advisor 100: Best financial advisors, top firms ranked<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<p>&#8220;For young people early in their career, unemployment can be particularly harsh,&#8221; said Michele Evermore, a\u00a0senior fellow at the National Academy of Social Insurance, a nonprofit that focuses on the country&#8217;s safety net. &#8220;They have had less time to pull together a reasonable amount of emergency savings and are far more likely to carry college debt.&#8221; <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h2 class=\"ArticleBody-subtitle\"><a id=\"headline0\"><\/a>Staying on parents&#8217; health plan is &#8216;least costly&#8217; option <\/h2>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<p>Many college graduates have some time before they need to figure out their own health insurance coverage. Young adults can typically stay on a parent&#8217;s private plan until age 26, said Joel Cantor, a professor at Rutgers University and the founding director of the\u00a0Center for State Health Policy. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nj.gov\/dobi\/division_consumers\/du31.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Some states<\/a> even allow dependents to stay on longer than that.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;This will commonly be the least costly option,&#8221; Cantor said. <\/p>\n<p>But not all recent graduates will have this option. Medicare, for example, doesn&#8217;t allow coverage of dependents, and so if your parents are insured under the program, you&#8217;ll need to find your own insurance, Cantor said. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<blockquote data-test=\"Pullquote\">\n<div class=\"Pullquote-pullquote\" style=\"border-top-color:#002f6c\">\n<div>\n<p>For young people early in their career, unemployment can be particularly harsh. <\/p>\n<div class=\"Pullquote-sourceWrapper\">\n<p>Michele Evermore <\/p>\n<p>a\u00a0senior fellow at the National Academy of Social Insurance<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<p>&#8220;Students who have low incomes may be eligible for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.medicaid.gov\/about-us\/where-can-people-get-help-medicaid-chip\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Medicaid<\/a>,&#8221; Cantor said, &#8220;which is comprehensive coverage and typically has no premium.&#8221; <\/p>\n<p>Students without other options can also look for coverage on the Affordable Care Act marketplace. &#8220;Depending on their income, they may be eligible [for] subsidies,&#8221; Cantor said. <\/p>\n<p>Keep in mind: Most college health insurance plans end at graduation or shortly after the semester ends, said Lisa Bercu, the senior director of health policy at the National Consumers League, an advocacy group. <\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Some colleges provide coverage for 30 to 90 days after graduation as a temporary bridge, but they&#8217;re not substitutes for long-term coverage,&#8221; Bercu said. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h2 class=\"ArticleBody-subtitle\"><a id=\"headline1\"><\/a>Unemployment benefits may not be an option <\/h2>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<p>To be eligible for state unemployment benefits, you usually need to have four quarters of earnings behind you \u2014 a requirement that many new college graduates, of course, won&#8217;t meet, Evermore said. Still, she said, &#8220;I always tell people that regardless of whether they think they qualify, they should check with their state unemployment agency to be sure.&#8221; <\/p>\n<p>Some new graduates will have a work history, Evermore said. In fact, about 40% of full-time undergraduate students work, with 10% working full time, said higher education expert Mark Kantrowitz.  <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<p>&#8220;People don&#8217;t necessarily have to have worked full time to qualify,&#8221; Evermore said. &#8220;They just have to hit an earnings qualification, which is generally not very high.&#8221; <\/p>\n<p>Unfortunately, any work study as part of your financial aid package doesn&#8217;t count as qualifying earnings, she added.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h2 class=\"ArticleBody-subtitle\"><a id=\"headline2\"><\/a>Look into state job placement services<\/h2>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<p>Even if you don&#8217;t qualify for jobless benefits, you might still be able to access your state&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/urldefense.com\/v3\/__https:\/www.careeronestop.org\/LocalHelp\/AmericanJobCenters\/american-job-centers.aspx__;!!HqJSLGM!tNY7Ij2cuaUFXARxQX4tJII-xZfOLL4qgCH3GG9WRPItr6kKBXVm6FgCnTtA68vGrSaDMw5WKSVGKZeSbUiPhA%24\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">job placement assistance services<\/a>, Evermore said. <\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s actually how I got my first temp job right out of college,&#8221; she said. <\/p>\n<p>While you&#8217;re trying to land a job in your preferred field, it&#8217;s a good idea to accept some form of employment even if it&#8217;s a different industry, said\u00a0Carolyn McClanahan, a certified financial planner and founder of Life Planning Partners in Jacksonville, Florida.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;You are getting some money in the door,&#8221; said McClanahan, who is a member of\u00a0CNBC&#8217;s Financial Advisor Council. Plus, she said, &#8220;it&#8217;s easier to get a job when you have a job because employers don&#8217;t like to see a long unemployment history, and it shows you are motivated.&#8221; <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h2 class=\"ArticleBody-subtitle\"><a id=\"headline3\"><\/a>Food benefits may be available <\/h2>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<p>It&#8217;s worth checking to see if you qualify for benefits under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, said Dottie Rosenbaum, senior fellow and director of federal SNAP policy at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a left-leaning think tank. <\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Most recent graduates with no income can qualify for a little under $300 a month in SNAP if they live alone or live with others but buy and prepare food separately,&#8221; Rosenbaum said. <\/p>\n<p>However, most young people will only qualify for three months of benefits if they aren&#8217;t working at least part time or exempt because of a physical condition, she added.  <\/p>\n<p>If you live with your parents, you&#8217;ll need to apply for the benefits as a household \u2014 and your parents&#8217; income will count, &#8220;unless, again, they buy and prepare food separately,&#8221; Rosenbaum said. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h2 class=\"ArticleBody-subtitle\"><a id=\"headline4\"><\/a>Mind the student loan grace period<\/h2>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<p>In most cases, you likely won&#8217;t have to make your first student loan payment until six months after you graduate, thanks to the federal government&#8217;s\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/studentaid.gov\/help-center\/answers\/article\/how-long-is-my-grace-period\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">grace period<\/a>, Kantrowitz said. Those with federal Perkins Loans can get\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/studentaid.gov\/understand-aid\/types\/loans\/perkins\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">up to nine months<\/a>, he added.<\/p>\n<p>If your loans are subsidized, the government will pay the interest on your loans during that period, Kantrowitz said. Meanwhile, interest will accrue on unsubsidized loans.<\/p>\n<p>The federal government has many options for borrowers who, come that time, are worried about affording their bills. Its\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/studentaid.gov\/manage-loans\/repayment\/plans\/income-driven\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">income-driven repayment, or IDR, plans<\/a> cap your monthly payment at a share of your discretionary income and culminate in student loan forgiveness. Some borrowers can wind up with a $0 or $10 monthly payment and will begin their progress toward loan cancellation. <\/p>\n<p>Borrowers\u00a0who need to prolong their grace period can request deferments and forbearances, including ones for those who are\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/studentaid.gov\/sites\/default\/files\/UnemploymentDeferment.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">unemployed<\/a> \u2014 but interest may continue to accrue. In the first quarter of 2026, 160,000 student loan borrowers were enrolled in the unemployment deferment, according to Kantrowitz. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ArticleBody-googlePreferredSourceContainer\" data-module=\"GooglePreferredSource\" data-id=\"RegularArticle-GooglePreferredSource-5\">Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/04\/06\/college-graduates-job-market-unemployment.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Chuck Savage | The Image Bank | Getty Images Read more CNBC personal finance coverage Average tax refund is up $350 compared to last year as IRS deadline nears Robinhood, BNY to build Trump accounts app New college grads face a tough job market \u2014 why unemployment hits them harder AI has a big problem<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":27365,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rank_math_lock_modified_date":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[196],"tags":[436,3180,2452,1015,94,104,72,3247],"class_list":{"0":"post-27364","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-finance-news","8":"tag-college","9":"tag-face","10":"tag-graduates","11":"tag-job","12":"tag-market","13":"tag-money","14":"tag-moves","15":"tag-tough"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/finderica.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27364","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/finderica.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/finderica.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/finderica.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/finderica.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=27364"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/finderica.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27364\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/finderica.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/27365"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/finderica.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=27364"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/finderica.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=27364"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/finderica.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=27364"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}