Local Government Job

In the mail today, I received a ‘availability survey’ from the local government. I thought that I was getting a survey for a full-time job that would pay well. But little to my surprise, the position paid only $7.25/hr. and was part-time. Now, in order to receive this survey, I had to take the tests for the state. I thought that after taking this tests I would be able to find a better paying job.
When I read the survey and the description of the job, I couldnt’ believe it. It upset me that the job paid slightly over $7.00. Many jobs today pay the same or almost the same and that’s for jobs that don’t require a college degree or state testing. Why is that?
I would have marked the column that read ‘I am available for this job,” but didn’t because with the description above and the distance I would have to travel to get there, it wouldn’t be worth it. Perhaps, if the position was a little closer to home, there might not be a problem. I could deal with the low pay and if hired, work there and recieve some experience.
My main problem is, it’s hard to find a job out of the area due to gas expenses and living expenses. I simply cannot afford it. What do other college graduates do when they hardly have any money and his/her family isn’t able to help with the costs?