Employers responding to NACE’s Job Outlook 2010 Fall Preview survey expect to trim college hiring again this year, following significant cutbacks in hiring that affected the Class of 2009. The Class of 2009 saw employer hiring plans change almost overnight from a 6.1 percent increase to an decrease of more than 21 percent, thanks to the meltdown of the financial sector last fall. (See Figure 1.)

Among employers responding to the 2010 survey, 40 percent anticipate cutbacks and just 17 percent anticipate increasing their hiring. However, the largest group—43 percent—plan to maintain their college hiring at 2009 levels.

Not surprisingly, the primary reason that employers gave for decreasing their new college hiring was the economy.

“Traditionally, employers tend to be conservative about their college hiring when the economy is in flux,” says Marilyn Mackes, NACE executive director. “Although employers anticipate doing most of their recruiting in the fall, we are seeing some movement to recruit in the spring. This is likely due to anticipation that the economic recovery will be underway by then.”

For the 2009-10 academic year, employers expect to conduct 60 percent of their recruiting in the fall and 40 percent in the spring. That’s a slight change from the 2008-09 academic year, when employers reported conducting 63 percent of their hiring in the fall and 37 percent in the spring.

By region, the outlook is positive only in the Northeast, where employers report plans to increase hiring by 5.6 percent. All other regions report decreases: Midwest (-3.2 percent); Southeast (-9.9 percent); West (-36.8 percent).

NACE monitors the job market for new college graduates throughout the academic year with a variety of surveys. NACE will issue a report on employer hiring activity in November and its first report on starting salary offers for the Class of 2010 in January.

Figure 1: Employer hiring projections, Fall 2009 versus Fall 2010

Source: Job Outlook 2010 Fall Preview, National Association of Colleges and Employers