Chicago — April 27

CareerBuilder’s annual college job forecast finds that employers are gradually hiring more recent college graduates this year. Forty-six percent of employers said they plan to hire recent college graduates in 2011, up from 44 percent in 2010 and 43 percent in 2009. Of those who plan to hire recent college graduates, 26 percent reported they will offer higher starting salaries than they did in 2010, an improvement from 16 percent who said the same in last year’s survey and 11 percent in 2009. 

Thirty-one percent of employers plan to offer recent college graduates starting salaries ranging between $30,000 and $40,000. An additional 21 percent will offer between $40,000 and $50,000, and 24 percent will offer $50,000 or more. Twenty-four percent will offer less than $30,000.  

“Employers are more optimistic overall, and as a result, are looking to bring in entry-level workers to build their workforce for the future,” said Brent Rasmussen, President of CareerBuilder North America. “Companies are adding jobs in a variety of areas and need fresh, educated talent to fill those roles. Our survey found that they will recruit college grads primarily for IT, customer service, sales, finance, accounting and marketing jobs this year.” 

n addition to specific areas that employers will be recruiting college graduates for, they shared the overall skill sets they are looking for from new grads, including:

• Strong written and verbal communications – 69 percent
• Technical skills – 57 percent
• Project management – 44 percent
• Research – 30 percent
• Math – 31 percent 
• Knowledge of using mobile applications and technologies – 21 percent
• Public speaking – 20 percent
• Basic accounting skills – 21 percent
• Adept at using social media – 16 percent
• Bilingual – 15 percent

The survey also revealed that while work experience is one of the most influential factors in their decision to hire recent college graduates, employers reported that other activities qualify as relevant experience:
• Internships – 68 percent
• Part-time jobs in another area or field – 51 percent
• Volunteer work – 41 percent
• Class work – 34 percent
• Involvement in school organizations – 33 percent 
• Involvement in managing activities for sororities and fraternities – 20 percent
• Participation in sports – 12 percent