The job landscape for college graduates in 2026 appears to have taken a turn for the worse, with reports indicating that hiring plans from employers have stagnated, job market values have decreased, and competition has intensified due to automation and visa work programs.
A report from the Wall Street Journal, which draws on data from the National Association of College and University Executives (NACE), reveals that employers anticipate the job market for upcoming graduates to be the weakest it has been in five years.
In a survey of 183 companies conducted from August 7 to September 22, 51% of those surveyed described the job market for new graduates as either “poor” or “fair”—sentiments not observed since the COVID-19 recession of 2020-2021. Just 2% rated it as “excellent.”
This slowdown in hiring follows significant layoffs at major companies like Amazon, UPS, and Verizon, the last of which is reportedly planning to reduce its workforce by 15,000 jobs, marking a historic layoff for the company.
Overall, hiring for the Class of 2026 is expected to incrementally rise by 1.6%. However, this represents a noticeable decrease from prior expectations for the Class of 2025. Historical patterns indicate that spring hiring often fails to meet early projections. For instance, plans from spring 2022 suggested nearly a 30% increase compared to 2021, but forecasts have since declined, including a drop in anticipated hiring for the Class of 2024.
According to recruitment platform Handshake, full-time job openings decreased by over 16% in August compared to the same month the previous year. Meanwhile, applications per job surged by 26%. Over 60% of surveyed graduates from 2026 expressed skepticism regarding their career prospects. Giavanna Vega, a former recruiter dismissed from Automation Anywhere in 2023, noted that, amidst uncertainties related to AI and tariffs, companies “don’t know where to invest.” She commented on the lack of training for many new graduates, who often find themselves in positions previously occupied by mid-career workers who were laid off.
The unemployment rate for recent graduates hit 4.8% in June, marking the highest level in four years and exceeding the national average. Now, new graduates face competition not only from their peers but also from recently laid-off employees and international graduates entering the U.S. job market through visa schemes.
With increasing scrutiny of visa programs such as H-1B and Optional Practical Training (OPT), hundreds of thousands of foreign graduates are poised to take jobs in the U.S. that might have gone to American graduates. The Department of Justice, under the leadership of Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon, has promised to enforce existing visa regulations more strictly to address what they term the systematic overshadowing of domestic talent.
Eric Sell, a senior attorney in the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, emphasized the administration’s commitment to holding companies responsible for their treatment of American workers. He expressed that advancements in technology would not serve as justification for neglecting the workforce that built the country and warned that those exploiting unchecked growth for corporate profits would face repercussions.
Public discontent is on the rise. A new Cygnal poll found that 44% of likely voters believe companies are abusing the H-1B system, with 43% of swing voters agreeing. Notably, opposition to these visa programs is particularly strong among working-class Americans and those without college degrees, which could become a significant factor in the 2026 midterm elections.
In 2024 alone, the Biden administration approved work permits for around 400,000 foreign college graduates through the OPT program, a 45% increase compared to levels under President Trump in 2020. Former U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Secretary Joe Edlow and others from the Trump administration warned that such programs are driving down wages and sidelining American graduates, particularly in high-demand fields like STEM and business.
The path from international students to U.S. employment often starts at the entry level. Rich Kay, an opinion contributor for Breitbart News, raised a concern about public universities increasingly admitting international students, who later switch their F-1 visas for work permits. He pointed out that as public universities fill their programs with F-1 students in high-demand sectors, the pressure on H-1B allocations increases in areas where American students are supposed to be trained.
This pressure is already felt. Freshman Nalin Haley remarked that many of his peers struggle to find jobs. “It’s been a year and a half, and not one of them has a job. Not a single one,” he said. “I’m frustrated because my parents found jobs right after high school, and now I have to help my friends look for work.”
