Overeducated & Underemployed: The Dilemma of the Millenials

2009 University of Florida Graduate, Bachelor of Science in Psychology with a Minor in Spanish, Summa Cum Laude



Everyone told you that higher education was the key to a bright future. What they failed to tell us that the economy would plummet, and a college degree wouldn't guarantee employment.

So while I once again find myself in the post-grad limbo, right smack in between college and the real world, I've discussed with several friends of mine the reasons why my peers and I have taken the time to soul search; to find our passion in life. What factors have afforded this luxury?

1. Blame Our Parents
We were spoiled.. as a generation. Our parents acted out of survival. They did things because they had to. Then, after they fulfilled their basic needs, they just got more. They gave us more. What parent doesn't want their child to have more they had? Every parents wants a better life for their children, providing them with things they could only dream of when they were a child. So they did. They gave us what we needed, and then some. They provided us with the essentials: food, water, shelter. And once those needs are met, what comes after? Happiness. No longer working for survival, we then seek a self-fulfillment.

Older generations hate us for this. They think we're have a sense of entitlement, as if to say, "We did all the work. Why do they get to be happy?" Well, sorry, dude. We're happy with having enough. We've learned from your mistakes and you're miserable. It ain't all about the money.

2. This Economy Blows
We go to college. We graduate. The economy sucks. All the people that were supposed to retire, don't. Consequently, no jobs open up. As a result, we return to school. Or Teach for America. Anything to postpone our entrance into the real world. We hoped that by the time either are over, two things would happen: (1) We become a more desirable candidate, and (2) the job market will have improved.

And in the mean time, all that gave us was time-- time to think about what we want to do with our lives. We were raised to believe that we could grow up to be anything we want to be. (Well, since a month ago, apparently anything but an astronaut.) So it wasn't a matter of what can I do. It became a matter of what do I want to do.


So it's not our fault we have these crazy ideas, and then follow them. What do we got to lose? We have too much time on our hands. Too much time to think. And we think, yanno. Critically. We have degrees to prove it. Just not jobs.