WSJ’s: The Curse of the Class of 2009

Economic research shows that the consequences of graduating in a downturn are long-lasting. They include lower earnings, a slower climb up the occupational ladder and a widening gap between the least- and most-successful grads.

In short, luck matters. The damage can linger up to 15 years, says Lisa Kahn, a Yale School of Management economist. She used the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, a government data base, to track wages of white men who graduated before, during and after the deep 1980s recession.

Ouch. As Class of 2010, this news stings as well. I imagine that this year’s on campus recruiting class will go ape-shit to land the dwindling number of sexy consulting and finance jobs and internships.

That being said, I’m worried about how this would affect the academic decisions of those in the younger years of college. Does this mean fewer Classics concentrators and more Economics concentrators? Does this mean that the pre-business clubs and organizations will see an influx of weary-eyed freshmen already plotting their post-graduation job courses?

I hope that freshmen will remain freshmen, but that might be too much to hope for. Any thoughts?

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