Computer science/engineering grads had an employment advantage (see chart) that, since ChatGPT's release, has disappeared. Is A.I. to blame? Here's what the data say and what new grads (or anyone!) can do about it:

THE EMPLOYMENT LANDSCAPE
• NY Fed: unemployment for recent computer-science grads (22-27) sits at 7.0%, and computer engineering at 7.8% (roughly on par with fine arts and anthropology grads!)
• Compare that to ~5.8% for recent grads overall and ~4% for the whole US workforce.
• Eighteen-year-olds are voting with their feet: US undergrad CS enrolment fell 11% in 2025; computer programming fell a stunning 26%.
• Demand is shrinking too: Handshake postings are down ~50% from their 2022 peak, and Revelio Labs data suggest entry-level software and data-analysis postings have dropped as much as 67%.

IS A.I. TO BLAME?
• "Yes" camp: A 2025 Stanford University study found employment for 22-25-year-olds in A.I.-exposed jobs dropped 13% since 2022, while older workers held steady. The Dallas Fed replicated it... and the decline comes from juniors never being hired, not layoffs.
• "Not so fast" camp: Google economists found posting declines were just as steep for senior workers and predate ChatGPT. A Fed study of 1M+ firms found "null effects." Their take: high interest rates and a post-pandemic hangover, with A.I. as a convenient scapegoat.

WHAT YOU CAN DO:
1. Stop competing on raw code. The human edge is now system design, architecture and deciding what to build in the first place.

2. Pick a domain. "A.I. engineer" is a common résumé; "A.I. engineer who worked alongside a hospital team for two summer internships" is a short list.

3. Build a public portfolio. Substantive GitHub repos and a Kaggle project beat CVs sent into the void.

4. Get fluent with agentic tooling, e.g., RAG, model evaluation, multi-agent orchestration. PwC found A.I.-skilled workers earn a 56% wage premium (!!!)

5. Lean on your network. Referrals and warm intros are crushing mass (often GenAI-produced) applications in this market.

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