If you want to get an understanding of what the job market is like for young, freshly graduated Americans right now, simply ask them to describe the job search in one word. “Draining”, “suffocating”, and “discouraging” are some of the responses that you may receive. Some may even cheat, and give you two: “emotionally taxing”. 

One glance through recent job numbers proves that these post-grads aren’t speaking hyperbolically, either. According to federal data, the unemployment rate for “new entrants”, a group that includes recent college grads and others trying to break into the full-time workforce, has hit a nine-year peak. Other studies have reported that the entry-level job market is the toughest it’s been in years, with only 30 per cent of 2025 graduates finding jobs in their fields. And, with the exception of the pandemic years (notably, the time many of these applicants were in college), the unemployment rate for recent college graduates aged 22 to 27 is, in fact, the highest it’s been since 2015. 

Those numbers, coupled with the rise of AI, threats of a recession and general government turmoil, paint an undeniably grim picture of young people’s current prospects. For those in industries such as music, media and film, the opportunities appear to be scarcer. Landing a creative job straight out of college has never been easy, but in 2025, pursuing a creative career can mean moving home, pivoting to freelance work and picking up odd jobs (or multiple part-time jobs at once) to cope with the current slim pickings.

To get an understanding of today’s tumultuous job market, we asked young Americans in creative fields at various stages of the search process to share their experiences.

BINA, 22, WASHINGTON

“Even before I graduated, I was looking for jobs. After I graduated, I stayed in Los Angeles, where I went to school, so that I could hopefully live there and look for work. I was applying to jobs every day, reformatting my resume, and going to all these networking events. But I just wasn’t hearing back, or the places that I was looking at weren’t hiring. Eventually, I moved back home and got a part-time job at a church doing creative direction for them.

“At first, my job search strategy was just going on LinkedIn and looking at the jobs that were available for graphic designers. But then, I’d see that a job posted five minutes ago would already have 200 applicants, and it was like that for every job. It felt like it was pretty oversaturated. 

“I had this expectation that once I graduate, I’ll move on to this next phase, and all these things will be available for me. But that wasn’t the case, and I had to adjust my expectations, recognise my reality, and move home.”

CORDELL, 22, FLORIDA 

“I’ve been cold emailing about five to 10 people a week, applying to two to three jobs a day. It’s been a bit depressing. At times, while looking for jobs, I think, ‘Well, I have a skillset. I feel like I can do these things.’ But there aren’t too many journalism opportunities for me to apply for. It’s definitely even more competitive. Now, people who are freshly [entering] the industry are looking for jobs, while people who are tenured are also looking for those same exact jobs. 

“You can’t really secure a job. The jobs that you can secure are probably not going to be enough to pay the bills, or pay enough to live sustainably without having to pick up something else. Our generation is not really one to overwork ourselves for little to nothing, but that’s what’s available right now.”

I’m seeing all these people that I really admire lose their jobs to corporate restructures or AI. It’s very emotionally challenging

SERI, 22, CALIFORNIA

“I probably applied to around 200 jobs. I kept track of everything. Most were in social media marketing, marketing and event planning. I even applied to executive assistant jobs, to try and get my foot in the door anywhere. I interviewed at some, sent out a ton of applications and would hear back from a small number, if I was lucky.

“A lot of the time, these jobs were given to people who had more experience than me, even though they were labelled as entry-level. That was super discouraging because I thought, ‘How am I supposed to find experience and have experience when no one is hiring straight out of college?’ After I made it to the final round interview for four different jobs and didn’t get any of them, I took it as a sign to take a break and start freelancing. 

“I knew it wouldn't be easy to find a job, based on what people were saying about the economy and the job market, but I didn’t expect it to be this difficult. When I came out of school, I was super involved. I had multiple jobs, multiple internships. I thought I was qualified.”

STARR, 23, CALIFORNIA

“In journalism specifically right now, every time you hop on LinkedIn, more layoffs are happening. The most recent case was that Teen Vogue is no longer. Hopping on LinkedIn and seeing the ‘I got laid off’ posts over and over again is very discouraging after going to years of [journalism] college. I went to school during Covid, too, so that had some challenges, but I made it out. Now that I’ve graduated, I’m seeing all these people that I really admire lose their jobs to corporate restructures or AI. It’s very emotionally challenging.

“I’m doing remote work now by freelancing, but I was expecting to have a lot more bylines, a lot more work coming in, or just a lot more happening. I have one consistent freelance job right now, and I’m grateful to have that. But I was just expecting a lot more.”

I’d spend probably around 10 hours a week applying to jobs, which just feels like throwing a rock into the ocean

VICTORIA, 24, WASHINGTON

“A lot of new grads are unemployed right now, especially in film and entertainment, and I feel like the job search process can get dehumanising at times. When I first graduated, I’d spend so long on my job applications, even though I knew they’d probably just hire internally, and I’d get a rejection less than 24 hours later. 

“The cost of living has made it really hard, too. It’s gone up so much, and yet a lot of jobs don’t pay the salary you need to live. There aren’t as many jobs as there used to be in entertainment, and there are a lot of factors that are just making it really bad for everyone.”

HEATHER, 22, VIRGINIA

“Everyone is super gatekeeper-y, and it affects the social climate as well. Everyone’s job hunting, so you hear, ‘Oh my god, so and so got a job here, so and so got a job here.’ At school, I was applying for jobs much more intensely because I didn’t know what I was going to do. I’d spend probably around 10 hours a week applying to jobs, which just feels like throwing a rock into the ocean.”

SAVANNAH, 22, PENNSYLVANIA

“I do a lot. Sometimes, I think, ‘I’m doing so much, how are my skills or my qualifications not being recognised?’ At times, I just sit back and reevaluate how I am going about showing my skills, because obviously, what I’m doing isn’t working. I just keep thinking, ‘Whatever job I’m supposed to have, I’ll have it whenever I’m supposed to.’ But that’s been the most taxing thing – the fact that I do so much and sometimes, I’m not even getting interviews to even talk about what I’ve been doing.

“In marketing, especially, it’s a super-saturated market. Companies are also putting a halt to external hiring, so if you’re trying to get a job externally, you’re out of luck.”