As the national job market reaches its toughest point in five years, recent college graduates across the country are struggling to launch their careers. According to the 2025 Graduate Employability Report from Cengage Group, only 30% of new graduates have secured full-time jobs in their field of study. Even more concerning from this study, one in three graduates remain unemployed and actively seeking work.

At the same time, the World Economic Forum projects that nearly a quarter (22%) of jobs worldwide will be disrupted or transformed in the next five years due to technological advancements, demographic shifts, and global challenges. For graduates nationwide, these are daunting trends.

Yet at St. Norbert College, the story is strikingly different.

While national reports highlight uncertainty, SNC graduates are proving they are more than qualified for employment and prepared for success wherever their journeys take them.

• As of September 2025, 57% of May graduates report working and 26% are enrolled in graduate school. Survey results will continue through October.

• These numbers track closely with the Class of 2024, which finalized at 64% employed and 25% pursuing graduate study.

• Far from unprepared, SNC students are taking advantage of personalized career coaching and real-world opportunities. In the last academic year alone, 236 seniors met one-on-one with a career counselor, and the college saw a 38% increase in students completing internships for credit.

Even as national employers pull back, demand for SNC graduates remains strong.

• Ten organizations have returned as Employer Sponsors with our Academic Advising & Career Development Center.

• The upcoming Fall 2025 Career Fair will bring more than 70 employers and graduate schools to campus.

• Employers consistently praise SNC students:

“The students that I interacted with did a GREAT job! They were very prepared and very professional!”

“Students were excellent. Professional and engaged. Very impressed. You did a great job preparing them!”

“You have prepared the SNC students well. I have hired many SNC grads and couldn’t be happier.”

In an era when employers are reviving the college degree as a requirement, (71% now require a two- or four-year degree for entry-level jobs) St. Norbert graduates are not only prepared, they stand out.

They are career-ready, future-focused, and sought after by employers. They are the heart of the rising workforce.

Behind the numbers are stories of graduates who are already making a difference.

“I’ve had so many opportunities to collaborate with different teachers and professionals that I’ve been able to learn what I like and what I don’t like for my own classroom. I’ve been able to form my own identity as a teacher from everything I’ve experienced.”

Elementary education major from Howard, Wis., Geurts is now leading her own classroom.

“I’ve had so many opportunities to collaborate with different teachers and professionals that I’ve been able to learn what I like and what I don’t like for my own classroom. I’ve been able to form my own identity as a teacher from everything I’ve experienced."

Finance and political science double major from Hilbert, Wis., Jackson is now attending law school at Marquette University.