Eddie (Anh Dang)

ENG 101

Mar 7, 2019

Recession, Reality and Survive

“Tough Job Outlook for College Grads”, an opinion piece by Catherine Rampell, an

economics writer for The New York Times, features in Spectrum II. The author reveals difficult

jobs situation for college graduates and how they are dealing with it. Even the outlook is bleak,

and many people doubt the value of the college degree, Rampell persuades college graduates

that having college degree is still important. Her article is effective in that she uses many

examples and statistic from many credible sources to support her opinion.

First, Rampell describes the bleak outlook for college graduates. She begins building the

image of the situation by revealing the issue that not only employment rates have decreased

sharply because of recession but also half of the jobs don’t require a college degree. This

description is effective because Rampell uses many examples and statistics to support it. For

example, the author quotes a 2009 graduate of the University of Pittsburgh who has spent the

last two years working a job that does not require a college degree nor relate to his major: “I

have friends with the same degree as me… worse school… because of who they knew… they’re

in much better jobs. It’s more about luck than anything else.” This example helps create a sense

of reality because the quote is from a college graduate who is dealing with the situation.

Rampell also does a good job of using statistics to support her opinion. She uses a study by the

John J. Heldrich Center for Workforce Development at Rutgers University which shows a decline
of 10 percent of median starting salary for students graduating from four-year colleges.

Rampell uses another example to show how difficult the situation college graduates are dealing

with. The author mentions that not only the salary but also the employment rates are declined

by saying “Among the members of the class of 2010, just 56 percent had held at least one job

by the spring.” Rampell could have been more effective by using another example or statistic to

support her opinion which states that only half of college graduates’ job required a college

degree.

After revealing the bleak outlook, Rampell shows us how the situation affects other

people. She continues to use an analysis by a credible source as the New York Times of Labor

Department which states that the number of workers employed in jobs without a degree had

risen 17 percent in 2009 from 2008. This piece not only supports her first idea which doubts the

value of a college degree but also reveals another problem: the displacement of less educated

workers. The author also notes that unemployment rates for high school graduates and

dropouts are always much higher than those for college graduates. Even though Rampell

provides the readers with a good example to support her idea, she loses their attention. Talking

about how the situation has an impact on less educated workers does not necessarily relate to

the topic, which leads to the inconsistency of the article, because Rampell should focus more

on college graduates.

Even those examples and statistic above make the essay inconsistent, they help reveal a

bit of how college graduates are dealing with the situation, which is what Rampell tries to show

us. She continues to use another quote from the Pittsburgh graduate to emphasize the harsh

reality: “It looks bad to have all these short-term jobs on your résumé, but you do have to pay
the bills.” The author also notes that this graduate’s student loan debt was over $70,000.

Rampell also uses an example from a 2010 graduate of California State University, Fullerton.

The author states that this graduate is working a job which has nothing to do with his degree

because it helps pay his rent and tuition. By using all the examples above, Rampell is trying to

say that college graduates will take whatever job is offering in order to meet daily needs. The

article would have been better if the author had used an emotional anecdote to raise the

reader’s emotion and balance out the bland figures.

Then, Rampell proposes ways that college graduates can survive the harsh situation. By

stating that “Going back to school does offer the possibility of joining the labor force when the

economy is better”, the author implies that a college degree is still important. She does a good

job of supporting her opinion. She states that people with advanced schooling are more likely

to have a job. Moreover, Rampell also says that those who do not go back to school will be paid

lower. The author has a good point; however, without a precise figure, her plain logic is not

enough to support it. Early in the essay, Rampell notes that “The choice of major is quite

important.” She uses an analysis by an economist at Northeastern University, which states that

certain majors had a better chance to find a job that required a college degree, to support her

opinion. Furthermore, Rampell says that education and teaching or engineering majors were

more likely to find a job requiring a college degree with 71.1 percent, while area studies or

humanities majors were least likely to do so with 44.7 percent. The author successfully supports

her opinion by using strong evidence with the statistic.

Overall, despite its inconsistency because of bad organization such as the order of

paragraphs, Rampell’s article is an effective piece. The author successfully informs the readers
of a bleak job market that has a large impact on college graduates and reveal how they are

coping with the situation. By using many examples and statistic from credible sources, Rampell

reinforces her thesis so that her readers believe in it. However, if the author could have used a

way to balance out all those bland statistics such as emotional anecdote, the articles would

catch the readers’ attention. One thing that makes this article effective is its conclusion.

Rampell concludes her article, which is about how college graduates are dealing with a difficult

job situation, by reminding the readers not to stop fighting. The author, again, quotes an

economist at Columbia, Till von Wachter “If you don’t move within five years of graduating, for

some reason you get stuck where you are.” And by that, she implies that college graduates

have to be active in looking for a better job before they settle down in life.