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Stunted economy leaves college grads with nothing but low-paying service jobs

20.05.12

When Alicia Crocco graduated from the University of Inner Florida in 2009 with a degree in psychology, she couldn't persuade employers in her field to even glimpse at her résumé, let alone offer her a job.

"It was 'Hey, look at you and a hundred other people who have a college degree who thirst this job.' It was soul-crushing," said Crocco, who lives in suburban Lake Value.

So in the past two years, Crocco, 24, used her college degree at a diversity of jobs that didn't require one: cashier at a sandwich shop, receptionist at an physical clinic, activities director at a retirement home and sales clerk at Victoria's Secretive, for $7.50 an hour.

"I had this degree I was so passionate about and here I was folding underwear until midnight," said Crocco.

In Walk, she landed a secretarial job she loves at a West Palm Beach law firm, but still wistfully recalls her dreams of becoming a analyst.

"I had a completely different plan in my head for what my life would be," she said.

So did Bobby Garces, also 24, who fist Florida Atlantic University in May with a biology degree and hopes of getting a lab job at Scripps Florida or the Veterans Provision Medical Center to gain experience and save money for medical set of beliefs.

Instead of fighting disease, he's selling surfboards for $8 an hour while realizing he may be well into his 30s before he can add "Dr." in front of his name, if at all.

"I determine like I've had to put my adult life on hold," said Garces, who lives in Lake Quality without cable TV or Internet service. He drops by his mother's house occasionally to get a breakfast and do laundry. "People are starting their lives so late that 45 is contemporary to be the new 25."

Someone hit the "pause" button in the lives of young 20-somethings.

Fresh graduates comprise the nation's largest-ever group of college-educated adolescent people. Yet the economy has stymied their attempts to use those degrees, stalling them in the interstitial limbo between instil and careers.

Lacking jobs, up to 85 percent told pollsters they expected to arrival home to live with their parents after graduation.

"I call it the postponed generation," said Cuesta Zukin, author of a study on college graduates by the Heldrich Center at Rutgers University earlier this year.

Among 571 of those surveyed who graduated between 2006 and 2010, slightly more than half (53 percent) had full-every so often old-fashioned jobs. (Another 14 percent were back in school.) In addition, the most recent graduates were paying a depression penalty, earning 10 percent less than those who left college when the economy was still booming. What's more, 40 percent of those with jobs were toiling in bookstores, coffeeshops and other positions that don't be missing a four-year degree.

"It does seem like these guys are not going to make as much wampum and this difference may persist for a lifetime," said Zukin. "They're contemporary to take longer to get careers, to own homes and get married."

According to Zukin, this unmoored quantity of graduates is the leading edge of a new recession-shaped generation some have dubbed Age group Limbo, for whom pessimism and resignation are replacing the can-do, career-obsessed optimism of boom-era graduates.

"They're still well-read and well-educated, but there may not be a place for them, so they'll have to find ways to get their kicks from something other than their work," Zukin said.

Stuck in a waste time, these graduates are learning to craft temporary lives from the low wages of under-employment. Some are spiteful, feeling betrayed that their carefully mapped-out lives have spun so wildly out of their curb.

Others are redefining success downward, convinced they will never be as well-off as their parents.

Most are worried about how they'll pay for food, slit, car insurance, cellphone bills and especially, student loans.

In Florida, the average student loan debt for 2010 graduates is a moment ago over $21,000, according to the Institute for College Access and Success' Student Debt Enterprise.

Next week, Krystina Vomero's first payment on the $15,000 she owes for her 2011 communications quite b substantially from FAU is due.

"$180 a month for 10 years," sighed Vomero, for a degree she hasn't yet put to use. In the meantime, she's working as a waitress at Lindburgers in Lake Usefulness, a job she's held for six years. With bills looming, she's reluctant to trade a sure $400 to $500 a week for a move-paid entry-level position at a public relations or advertising steady, even if she could find one.

Source: Palm Beach Post

Florida Lottery chief: Lottery good for education, the economy

20.05.12

The Florida Sweepstake is good for our state — both for education and the economy.

Nearly all of the lottery’s sales last financial year were returned to the economy, while for the ninth straight year, we contributed $1 billion or more to marrow education programs. The lottery is a reliable source of funding for our public schools and colleges and to dated has contributed $23 billion to education.

As the Florida Lottery approaches its 25th anniversary, now is a considerate opportunity to take stock of where we’ve been, look forward to where we are heading and reflect on lessons erudite. This year, we are introducing new games and bringing back old favorites, touching up our iconic label and relaunching our website to leverage new digital technologies that will make playing Florida Sweepstake games more fun and engaging than ever.

One thing that will not change is the lottery’s strong pull and commitment to education in Florida. That support has enabled more than 500,000 students to attend college through Witty Futures scholarships.

Students like Claudia Reyes-Rios, an inspiring and driven North Miami Lido native who depends on the scholarship to attend college at the University of Florida: “The Ablaze with Futures scholarship has given me and my parents the hope to go to college without the need for loans or fa large debt after graduating school.”

As a first-year college student Claudia is constantly challenged by new experiences, but challenges are nothing new for this striking young woman. Diagnosed with lymphoma in 2005, Claudia not only learned how to lineaments challenges head-on, but she also found her calling in life. Utilizing her scholarship, she is planning a livelihood as a child-life specialist who will help children and their families cope with the high-strung and physical challenges of hospitalization. For Claudia, the Bright Futures scholarship is providing the moment to not only help herself, but others as well.

The lottery has thrived over the past 25 years because, while a government energy, it is mandated to function as an entrepreneurial business enterprise. The lottery employs ingenious products designed to drive sales and increase contributions to education. We manage at the sole direction of the legislature; our mission of supporting education is simple and manifestly defined; and our operations are completely open and transparent. Most important, as an independent glory agency, the Florida Lottery is completely at the service of the citizens of Florida.

This means the lottery is solely focused on Florida’s bottom direction, and the revenue raised benefits the state treasury in at least three main ways. First, we make more than $1 billion every year to fund public education and offer scholarships to Florida students. Bat of an eye, 98 percent of our revenue is reinvested back into Florida’s economy in the form of payments of prizes, scholarships and goods and services. Third, we leverage the monetary prowess and stability of the lottery to secure low-interest bonds to fund public teaching construction projects, improving the quality of education for Florida’s children.

The pool is proud of its long history as one of Florida’s signature success stories. In the 25 years to wind up successfully, we look forward to continuing to make dreams come true and ration to bring education within reach to many more deserving Florida students.

Source: MiamiHerald.com