What the Class of 2024 Is Looking For In Their First Job 

Today, college seniors start their job search earlier than ever before. According to the Society of Human Resources Management, 26% start looking for a full-time position three to five months before graduation, and 23% start looking six to nine months before graduation.

Earlier this week on the blog, we covered why hiring recent graduates is valuable for organizations everywhere. Included in that list were things like increased digital proficiency, improved engagement, realized diversity goals, and cost efficiencies, among other benefits. Check out the rest of the list here. 

However, between an ongoing labor shortage creating increased competition for valuable new graduates and the unique tastes, attitudes, and behaviors of the class of 2024, employers will need to shift their tactics to attract, recruit, and retain employees just starting their careers. 

What New Grads Want 

According to a recent survey conducted by Handshake, a free online career hub that gives

all students access to job and internship postings, career fairs and employer events, employer pages with peer reviews, (and more), the Class of 2024 has three major priorities when it comes to looking for their first job out of college.  

• A place where they can flex (and improve) their digital skills
  Gen Z grew up with much of the technology that most employers use to power their businesses, and beyond being digitally native, they also went to school and completed other programs online during the pandemic. Add to that the fact that the vast majority of this year’s seniors are familiar with tools like ChatGPT and DALL-E, and 50% plan to build new skills in light of the emergence of generative AI. They want to work for companies with advanced, modern tech ecosystems that make their lives easier and open the door for new learning—and they’ll drop out of the hiring process early if they notice a company doesn’t even have that for recruiting. 
• Financial security
  More than half of next year’s college graduates expect to have student loan debt after graduation. Within that group, almost 70% say their debt will influence the jobs they consider after graduation, according to the same Handshake report that surveyed 1,148 students in the class of 2024. Many say they’ll take on fractional or gig work to supplement the income from their full-time job to afford the cost of living. 
• Work-life balance
  Today, we know that workplace stress and burnout have a very real negative effect on employee well-being—resulting in real implications for retention, productivity, and engagement. In fact, in 2019, the World Health Organization officially recognized it as a syndrome in the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11). Eighty percent of the class of 2024 have felt burned out as undergrads, and many are worried about burnout in their careers. As such, a majority believe it’s important that their future employer offer work-life balance and mental health support.

Knowing that recent grads are prioritizing these three concerns in their job search can help employers adjust their recruiting tactics and employer brand to appeal to young talent. Here’s how. 

Improve Your Tech Stack—Especially In Recruiting 

To attract recent grads, employers need to meet them where they are—online and on their phones. A recent study by leading recruiting platform Top Echelon reports that 40% of young candidates reject offers because another company made an offer faster. A similar Employ Inc. study shows that nearly 50% of workers would not apply to a company again if they had a bad candidate experience. Great mobile-first technology can positively improve the candidate experience for Gen Z, making them more likely to continue on and more likely to believe that the organization will support the kind of advanced, tech-enabled learning they’re looking for in their career (especially for the class of 2024 whose most popular majors include computer science and data science). 

Compensate Generously 

According to Handshake, 77% of 2024 graduates are more likely to apply to a company that offers job stability; 70% would be more likely to apply to a job with a high starting salary. To catch the eye of top young talent, HR professionals and employers should figure out how to increase starting salaries for entry-level positions and clarify how employees can advance their careers within the organization to unlock bonuses and promotions during the recruiting process. Some companies are marketing their favorable pay policies by participating in pay transparency trends (listing the salary range right on the job description)—some companies don’t have a choice due to state laws. 

Provide Flexible Work Options

Most Gen Z went to school, attended college, and completed other programs remotely and online during the pandemic—a transition that was likely easier on their generation due to their unparalleled digital competency. But the pandemic and remote school also set a precedent in their lives that work can be done successfully from anywhere. Unsurprisingly, 41% are more likely to apply to a hybrid job, and 22% are more likely to apply to a fully remote job. Sixty-nine percent are more likely to apply for a job with a flexible schedule. As a result, employers should consider offering more flexible work options—and advertise it on their career site—to stay competitive when it comes to attracting the best from the class of 2024. 

For more ideas on how to prepare for a younger, more Gen Z workforce, click here.