Recent announcements of thousands of layoffs at companies such as Sprint Nextel (Stock Quote: S), Wyeth (Stock Quote: WYE), Caterpillar (Stock Quote: CAT) and Home Depot (Stock Quote: HD) is bad news for recent and upcoming college graduates.
This year's college grads are less confident than last year's that they will be able to find the jobs they want, according to the College
Graduate Career Confidence survey conducted by Philadelphia-based consultant Right Management.
In fact, nearly two-thirds of recent and soon-to-be college graduates the company surveyed expect to remain with their first employers for less than three years, which means they won’t be around long enough to vest in their company’s retirement savings plan or pension scheme when they finally do find work.
Start Saving Early
That’s why new and up-and-coming graduates will want to start a regular savings plan just as soon as possible, says Certified Financial Planner Vincent R. Barbera of TGS Financial Advisors in Radnor, Pa., whose quarterly newsletter to clients includes a “Young Money” piece devoted to young people interested in financial independence.
Only about 10% of the clients he works with are in their 20s, and they're the children or grandchildren of existing clients. He recommends that new grads look for 9 to 5 office positions—even it means starting out at a temp agency— and begin saving for a rainy day immediately, with the intention of expanding that to a broader savings scheme.
“Saving doesn’t come naturally. Spending does. So graduates need to get into the habit of saving just as soon as possible,” says Barbera.
