Interestingly, fewer 2009 graduates sought out jobs than their predecessors. Approximately 64 percent of the Class of 2007 and two-thirds of the Class of 2008 had started looking for a job by this time. In comparison, "just 59 percent of this year's class has started the job search," says Marilyn Mackes, NACE executive director.

This may be due, in part, to considerable attention to the increase in nationwide unemployment, the global financial crisis of recent months, and the impact of these developments on the recruitment and hiring of new graduates by specific industries.

Data indicate that among specific majors, engineering and accounting graduates are more likely both to have started their job search and to have a job in hand. They are also more likely to accept an offer they received. Additionally, the study shows that liberal arts majors were more likely to turn down the job offers they received.

Salary may have played a role in acceptance of job offers. "On average, engineering graduates expect to earn an annual starting salary of approximately $62,000, while accounting majors expect to earn an average of about $45,000," says Mackes. Those expectations match up fairly well with the reality. In a separate survey, NACE has found that salary offers to engineering graduates average more than $58,000, while the average offer to accounting graduates exceeds $48,000.

Despite the lack of jobs, "most respondents say they expect to enter the job market. Surprisingly, at this time we do not see a strong indication of increases in the number of students planning to go to graduate school," says Mackes. Approximately 24 percent of Class of 2008 graduates reported plans to forego the job market in favor of graduate school, while approximately 27 percent of those graduating in 2009 report such plans.