There has been much discussion about whether a degree is necessary for every job. The answer is “no.” About half of employers responding to NACE’s Job Outlook 2025 Spring Update survey said their organization has positions that are flexible in terms of degree.

Almost two-thirds of employers responding to NACE’s Job Outlook 2025 Spring Update survey reported using skills-based hiring to help them identify candidates with potential.

Although overall hiring projections are up just 0.6% from last year, nearly 90% of employers anticipate increasing or maintaining hiring for the college Class of 2025, according to NACE’s Job Outlook 2025 Spring Update.

NACE surveyed early career talent—those who graduated in 2021, 2022, and 2023—to determine if (and how) experiential learning impacted their careers once they had graduated and landed in their first job. The results showed that those who took part in experiential learning while in college had higher rates of career satisfaction and a higher average salary than those who did not engage in experiential learning.

Nearly 85% of Class of 2023 bachelor’s degree graduates and nearly 90% of master’s degree graduates were employed or engaged in further education within six months of graduation.

Graduating students weighing job offers heavily consider the cost of living in each job’s location when making their decision, according to NACE’s 2024 Student Survey report.

Career fairs are relatively effective means for students to convert connections into jobs, according to NACE’s 2024 Student Survey report.

The percent of graduating seniors who participated in an internship is the highest that NACE has recorded in the past six years, according to results of NACE’s 2024 Student Survey.

Nearly 90% of the college Class of 2024 indicated that their institution prepared them for the next step in their career, according to results of NACE’s 2024 Student Survey.

While nearly 20% of employers that responded to NACE’s Job Outlook 2024 Spring Update survey have had discussions about removing the college degree as a key requirement for entry-level positions, nearly 80% of respondents expect that there will be no change in the next two years.

Despite the Supreme Court’s 2023 ruling overturning affirmative action, the decision appears to be having little to no impact on employers’ DEI recruiting priorities.

Hiring for internships is expected to remain stable this year, according to NACE’s 2024 Internship and Co-op Report. Overall, eight out of 10 employers taking part in NACE’s annual benchmark report expect to maintain (47.2%) or increase (32.2%) the number of interns they bring in for 2023-24 compared to the 2022-23 academic year.

Nearly 83% of employers responding to NACE’s Job Outlook 2024 Spring Update survey anticipate increasing or maintaining hiring for the Class of 2024. This leaves just 17.4% of respondents planning to decrease hires, but their planned cuts mean overall hiring projections are down 5.8% from last year.

After two relatively down years connected with the COVID-19 pandemic, the outcomes rate for Class of 2022 bachelor’s degree graduates returned to pre-pandemic levels.

The small dip in college hiring revealed by NACE’s Job Outlook 2024 survey is down from the last two years, when the college job market experienced brisk growth that, in 2022, reached record levels.

The research suggests that, long term, we will likely work in and out of the office. Research from the National Association of Colleges and Employers shows that new college graduates want to be in person at least part of the time, but also want the flexibility to work remotely some of the time.

Projections in the Job Outlook 2023 Spring Update show that employers are planning to hire 3.9% more graduates from the Class of 2023 than they did from the Class of 2022.

NACE has conducted research that identifies important trends and unearths key insights that can help members enhance or adjust their operations to meet challenges and demands.

Employers plan to hire 14.7% more new college graduates from the Class of 2023 than they did from the Class of 2022, according to NACE’s Job Outlook 2023 report.

Economic uncertainty often causes employers to amend their expectations of new hires. The 2008 economic recession and the unexpected events of COVID-19 are two examples where mindsets around recruiting shifted, and the entry-level employment landscape yielded unexpected results.

Most entry-level hires will start their careers in the office—at least for part of the time—according to results of NACE’s 2023 Job Outlook Spring Update Survey.

Although college hiring has indeed been hard hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, steps employers have taken have allowed them, at least to this point, to blunt its potential full impact.

Employers were more likely to make changes to their recruiting methods than they were to their recruiting schedule for the 2020-21 academic year.

Even though the job search environment has undergone substantial shifts over the last five years—accelerated more recently by the COVID-19 pandemic—core aspects are intact.

College hiring appears to have rebounded from the fall as employers now expect to hire 7.2% more new graduates from the Class of 2021 than they did from the Class of 2020.

Just 56.6% of employers are using GPA to screen college graduates from the Class of 2021 for open positions.

Over the course of the week-long NACE21 conference, it became clear that several topics—such as the new normal, professionalism, and career readiness—weighed most heavily on attendees.

Employers plan to hire 26.6% more new graduates from the Class of 2022 than they did from the Class of 2021, which is in line with job opening trends in general.

Research indicates that there are detrimental effects for on hiring for students graduating during a recession from a less-selective university.

Over the next few years, $7.4 billion will be spent to bolster the underfunded, understaffed local, state, tribal, and territorial health departments around the United States. As a result, there are new career opportunities for every major and degree level, ranging from associate degree graduates to Ph.D.s.

College hiring continues to surge as employers plan to hire 31.6% more new college graduates from the Class of 2022 than they hired from the Class of 2021.

Many employers plan to operate in a hybrid modality, blending in-person and remote work to give their employees and new hires the best of both worlds.

Fall 2022 recruiting looks extremely positive as almost 90% of employers report that they will be hiring for both full-time and intern/co-op positions at that time.