Business Education

When the path to a first job isn’t straight

By Mitchell Brown 

When advisors warned Jade Bramwell about job struggles after college, she wasn’t worried. A year later, that changed.

“You come out of college with a lot of expectations,” Bramwell said. “But I didn’t really understand how bad things were until it’s slapping you in the face.” 

Many recent journalism graduates, including aspiring TV news reporters, fear they have fewer chances in full-time employment. As their confidence in the job market declines, more graduates are adapting to a changing industry. 

The number of jobs for news analysts and journalists is projected to drop 4% between 2024 and 2034, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. With fewer jobs available, the class of 2025’s Bramwell, a Penn State grad, is chasing every opportunity.

“The job I really wanted rejected me after I’d been interviewing with them for about two months,” said Bramwell, of a digital news fellowship. “It put me in a major mental spiral, and I’m still dealing with it now.”

To stay afloat, Bramwell turned to freelance work, as many other journalists are now doing. Two years ago, the Pew Research Center found that 34% of journalists surveyed worked freelance or were self-employed.

Freelancing is a good way to start a career and build connections early, according to Sylvan Solloway Carrera, the director of career services at NYU’s Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute. 

“Saying, ‘Oh, it’s a tough job market and we need to be scared of it’ automatically sets up a bias that could negatively impact your job search,” Carrera said. “It’s not the end of everything; there are jobs. The question then is: How do you get those jobs that are available?”

Kiera Baker listened when some veteran journalists suggested she go to graduate school. Baker starts her master’s degree in specialized journalism at the University of Southern California this summer.

“My decision to go was mainly about continuing to sharpen my skills as a journalist,” Baker said. “Being in school will give me more time to explore sports jobs and research what I want for my future.” 

Whether it’s disappointing job hunts or considering a master’s degree, new journalists are adapting to an uncertain future by staying flexible in tough times. Despite less confidence in the job market, they remain determined to tell stories.

“I know today’s job market will require a lot of patience, persistence, and faith,” Baker said. “Things may not always go the way I want, but I trust that everything will work out.”