Journalist's Resource (Harvard Kennedy School)
RSS FeedFor recent college grads, there are reasons bigger than AI that some are not finding jobs
Original Published: September 16, 2026
🎯 Impact Sentiment: Positive
📋 Summary
- Expert commentary published by Harvard Kennedy School's Journalist's Resource argues the popular narrative blaming AI for the weak graduate job market is largely incorrect, noting the deterioration traces back to the Great Recession that ended in mid-2009 — long before generative AI reached workplaces.
- A 2026 Handshake report shows employers increasingly want AI skills: as of March 2026 more than 10% of active internship postings mentioned AI-related keywords, and the share of full-time postings mentioning AI nearly doubled year over year to 4.2%.
- The Strada Institute for the Future of Work surveyed nearly 1,500 executives and senior talent leaders and found employers were 2.7 times more likely to expect AI to increase entry-level hiring this year than to decrease it — though AI is clearly changing the task mix, cutting routine administrative work while raising analytical and judgement-based responsibilities.
- Strada found work experience was the strongest indicator of career readiness among the factors examined, and the commentary identifies remote work — which makes employers reluctant to hire and mentor inexperienced staff — as a major driver of weak early-career prospects.
💡 JR Insights
- 💼 Implication: Employers are not retreating from entry-level hiring because of AI — demand for AI-literate juniors is rising, so the opportunity is real for candidates who can prove they can work with these tools.
- 🚨 Risk: The bar has shifted from credentials to demonstrated experience: if remote-first employers will not train inexperienced hires, graduates without internships or project work face the steepest barrier, whatever their grades.
- ✨ Takeaway: Prioritise getting real workplace experience — internships, co-ops, project-based learning — over collecting more coursework, and pair it with visible AI fluency plus the critical thinking and communication skills employers still rank highest.