The era of coveted tech jobs ends this month with the Class of 2024. These software engineer positions were what millennials dreamed of, representing a more casual or fun style of work, as well as a path to financial stability and comfort. . But the other shoe business casual sneakers— has hit Silicon Valley, and Generation Z is picking up the pieces.
Graduates are less focused on getting that shiny tech job and are instead looking at the old tried-and-true field of government jobs. This is what recent events show survey over 2,600 students from Handshake, a student recruitment company. As tech jobs dwindle, interest in Gen Zers is dwindling as they seek less chaos in their career prospects. And government jobs are known as one of the most consistently hiring and recession-resistant fields.
Young people slowly but surely turn their heads. Only 21% of applications from the Class of 2024 went to a technology company this year, compared to 23% in 2023. Interest in a location also indicates a changing situation. While New York and Washington, D.C. are reportedly becoming increasingly popular destinations, interest in jobs in the famed tech hubs of California and Texas has dropped significantly.
It’s no coincidence that Capitol is trending. Instead of looking to the West, Generation Z is seeking more government jobs. The number of job applications filed in the sector increased from 5.5% in 2023 to 7.4% in 2024, according to Handshake. claims to public employers more than doubled between 2021 and 2023.
As the first generation to lack memories of a world without the Internet, Generation Z has come of age with a growing technology community. “The Class of 2024 has truly grown with the tech industry, watching companies rapidly scale, innovate, and introduce products that have changed their daily lives,” says Christine Cruzvergara, director of education strategy at Handshake. Luck. Naturally, this influenced their career goals, giving a sense of respect and “special appeal” to the world of technology, she adds.
New graduates are simply taking hints from recent headlines. Layoffs, hiring freezes and changes to Silicon Valley’s supposed era of casual, collaborative culture in the 2010s are pushing Gen Z into other areas. The upheavals of the past few years have meant that “the appeal for a lot of students has really started to fade,” Cruzvergara explains, adding that as a result, many have sought more stable jobs in government, manufacturing and healthcare.
Given economic uncertainty, the pandemic and recent layoffs in the tech world, the Class of 2024 is prioritizing consistency. Job security is the top priority for Gen Z when hiring, among 76% of Handshake respondents. Their desire for a stable paycheck is further fueled by their financial vulnerability, as more than a third of students are reportedly worried about paying off their student loans, and half of students are worried about providing for basic necessities after graduation. Debt is an indicator of this class; Cruzvergara was struck by how much this group was affected by their loans. All this means the tides are shifting from the Pacific Ocean as students can’t afford to ride out the instability of a California tech company.
While many are confident in their ability to find work, a growing number of graduates are pessimistic about the economy they are entering. Noting that “the Class of 2024 has proven to be an incredibly resilient group,” Cruzvergara says they are still trying to stick to their values. She describes these young people as “cautiously optimistic.”
It’s a little surprising that a generation known to distrust the man is keen to join politics. Among institutions polled, young people have the lowest levels of trust in the president, Congress, and news and technology companies, according to a 2023 Gallup survey. vote.
Called the “generation of bummers” Axios, the class of 2024 has experienced cycles of instability in just four years. Of course, their experience was capped by campus protests against calls to secede from Israel amid a war in Palestine that lasted eight months and claimed the lives of 35,000 Palestinians and 1,500 Israelis. Tensions mounted as Columbia University found itself in the spotlight when the school asked its students to remove peaceful protesters from encampments on campus, in violation of the school’s own co-governance agreement with students and faculty.
As a voting bloc, they are marked by disillusionment more than previous generations, according to Wall Street Magazine. Research shows that they are more liberal groupGeneration Z started step back from Democratic candidate President Biden due to his stance on Israel and Palestine.
Perhaps Gen Z is getting involved in local politics, or perhaps this frustration has motivated them to push the system from within. Those vying for public office may not even be the ones who are so upset by current events. Either way, it looks like the tech jobs and Google playgrounds are long gone for Gen Z, and in their place is the Oval Office.