dfb- sorry my post was not clear. I’m not talking about the academic job market- which I agree is objectively terrible by ANY measure. I’m talking about kids with a BA who claim they have to go to grad school because otherwise they’d be unemployed forever.
The job market was objectively terrible for kids graduating in 2009 and 2010. It has gotten progressively better since then, and there are signs that we are moving back to a “War for Talent” situation this hiring year. A new grad with a Bachelor’s degree, fluent in English, who can write a coherent sentence, and has either a Green card or an American passport is only unemployed right now if they are absolutely unwilling to launch.
Agree with you about PhDs. But I think the point that Belmom is making is that kids “end up” with a Master’s or PhD because they couldn’t stand to “sit around” so grad school seemed like the better option. Yes if someone wants an MSW, CPA, PT, Speech, or one of the vocational master’s degrees which are required for certification. An emphatic NO for a Masters in an academic subject… which most of the time is just going to add debt and prolong the agony.