Results of a recent study suggest that attending university is still “good employment insurance,” according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
During the global recession in 2009, university graduates between the ages of 25 and 64 experienced an unemployment rate of just 4.4 per cent in wealthier countries such as Canada, the study revealed. Those who didn’t complete high school faced unemployment rates of 11.5 per cent that same year, up from 8.7 per cent in 2008.
Matt Lerch, a first-year architecture student at Carleton, said attending university has significantly eased his concerns about finding a job once he graduates, thanks to the many resources universities offer.
“Basically, my confidence of getting hired after university is 100 per cent because of the co-op program,” he said. “You’re being trained every single year that you do co-op so later, it’s easier to get work because you have work experience . . . Personally, my money is being well spent.”
The study also showed, however, that this summer was a difficult one for current university students in Canada who were seeking employment. For returning students, as well as those between the ages of 15 and 24, the average unemployment rate was 17.2 per cent between May and August, an increase from 16.9 per cent in the summer of 2010, Statistics Canada reported. From 2006 to 2008, the summer unemployment rate for this same demographic never exceeded 14 per cent.
