With a new semester underway, many recent UNCW graduates who remain in the area find themselves without jobs. It is an unfortunate fact that Wilmington does not boast a gleaming economy or a promising job market. Complaints echo around town from graduates who like it here and wish to stay.

Wilmington’s economy has been on the downswing for the past two or three years, and shows little sign of improvement, according to Thom Rakes, director of Career Services. This downturn is a partial reflection of the state’s current economic condition.

Recent and soon-to-be graduates are frustrated with the job market they confront locally. “A lot of students want to stay here,” Rakes said. “We talk to a lot of alums who say ‘I spent one, two or three years here trying to get a decent job. Now it’s time to get on with my life.'”

“Getting on with life” in this sense, means having to move where there is a larger and more diverse job market, even if it means moving home with parents. Tara Singleton, a 2002 UNCW graduate, can relate. “After being jobless for about three months, I finally had to move back home. I got my real estate license, which is not what I originally intended as a Political Science major.”

Wilmington is not a city with a job market that is conducive to the range of professions many graduates seek. According to Rakes, the markets here are primarily service and tourist-based. “Other big ones are the jobs where professionals are always needed: Healthcare, K-12 education and business services such as accounting,” he said.

“I’m leaving because I can’t find a job. I’m just going to put my stuff in storage for a while, move in with my parents and hope for the best,” said Briana Sinclair, who graduated in May with an English degree.

“People who are turned down for jobs need to remember that it’s not a rejection of them as a person, but a reflection of the economy and Wilmington’s competitive labor pool,” Rakes said.

Those who are determined to remain in Wilmington after graduation are going to have to work much harder to find a job here than they would in Charlotte or Raleigh. Career Services is willing to help those people by showing them a realistic picture of what is available to them in the area. They help job-seekers target the organizations that need their skills.

“Helping them narrow the focus lets them concentrate on working really hard to get the jobs that are best for them,” Rakes said. “It’s going to take someone who will put energy into their search and is willing to knock on a lot of doors and put in a lot of face time.”

According to Rakes, the job seeker’s efforts must be distributed as follows: 60 percent of the time must be spent doing persistent, face-to-face networking; 30 percent must be spent on the phone and computer; and only 10 percent can be limited to contacting employers via mail.

Career Services makes daily postings of new internships and full- and part-time jobs. Students and alumni can access this information through a database on the Career Services website: http://www.uncw.edu/stuaff/career