Once upon a time, earning a degree was sold as the golden ticket to a stable future. Now, for many students preparing to graduate, it is a fast pass to unemployment/underemployment, casual contracts, and rejection emails.
The brutal reality is that, despite working harder, studying longer, and juggling unpaid internships just to stay competitive, many students are stepping out of university and straight into an economy that feels like it is falling apart.
Even though a national unemployment rate of 4.1% was observed as of March 2025, the underemployment rate remains at 5.9%, indicating that many individuals are working fewer hours than they desire or are in roles that do not fully utilize their skills. It’s noted that for every entry-level job advertised, there are 26 job seekers competing for it. Of those 26, a staggering 18 are classified as long-term unemployed, meaning they have been out of work for over a year.
The challenges in the job market have led many graduates to take on multiple casual jobs to make ends meet. This trend, often referred to as ‘poly-employment,’ is becoming more common among young Australians. A report noted that job growth for 18-24-year-olds increased by 4.7%, but the hours worked per job dropped by 13.7%, leading many to take on multiple jobs to achieve adequate income.
While the overall unemployment rate has declined, the number of Australians struggling to return to work has barely shifted in the past eight years. The proportion of people on income support for over five years has more than doubled, rising from 9% in 2013 to 24% (5.0 million people) in 2024.
In other words, the glossy headlines about falling unemployment do not reflect the reality facing fresh graduates and others at the start of their careers. Entry-level jobs are scarce, competition is fierce, and even highly educated young people are being squeezed into casual or precarious work just to survive.
Why Does It Feel More Hopeless Than Ever?
There are three major reasons this wave of job market anxiety feels different for today’s students:
Living Costs Are Smothering Us – It’s not just about finding a job. It is about finding a job that can pay $400 a week for a shoebox room in Brisbane, cover skyrocketing grocery bills, and leave enough left over for basic survival. Brisbane’s median weekly rent hit $647 in early 2024, a 9.5% annual increase. Combine that with inflation pushing up the cost of food, transport, and utilities, and many students and fresh graduates are being crushed before they even get their first full-time pay cheque.
The Gig Economy Has Shifted the Goalposts – For graduates entering the workforce, the definition of employment has changed. Full-time secure jobs are no longer the standard first step after university. Instead, many are funnelled into gig work, casual contracts, and short-term projects. The Australian Bureau of Statistics reported that multiple job-holding is at its highest rate ever, with over 950,000 Australians now working two or more jobs to make ends meet
Rather than stepping into clear career paths, many graduates are stitching together incomes through tutoring, rideshare driving, retail shifts, and freelance work. These roles often offer no sick leave, no superannuation contributions, and no guarantee of stability. Instead of building careers, students are simply building survival plans.
AI and Automation Are Changing Entry-Level Roles – Technology was supposed to open more doors for graduates. Instead, it is shutting many of them before they can even knock.
AI is reshaping industries that once welcomed large numbers of entry-level workers. Routine tasks like data entry, content writing, and scheduling have been heavily automated, and now graduates are expected to arrive job-ready with advanced digital skills, AI literacy, and real-world project experience.
According to Deloitte Access Economics, 30% of Australian jobs are at high risk of automation by 2030. Entry-level positions, which historically offered a learning curve, are being cut or transformed into highly technical roles that demand experience new graduates simply do not have yet.
Students are being asked to adapt faster than universities can revise their curriculums, leaving a massive skill gap between the classroom and the job market
Is this really the future we studied for?
Why are students being made to feel like failures for an economy that failed us first?
And how long can we keep pretending that this is just a rite of passage and not a systemic crisis?
