A tale of two recessions: comparing the great recession to the pandemic for impacts on college graduates

The last couple years have created a challenge for graduating and current students. The recent COVID-19 pandemic has limited the options available for job and internship seekers. The changing economic circumstances renew the importance for students to know how a recession stands to impact them while in college and as they enter the workforce. This paper compares the impacts of the last two recessions, the pandemic and the Great Recession. It analyzes the results of recent Bureau of Labor Statistics surveys and compares them to traditional knowledge of recessions to find the similarities and differences. Through this, opportunities and setbacks that graduates may face are identified.