In July of 2008 men between ages 18-26 had an unemployment rate of 15% and young women had a rate of 12.8%. In July of 2009 young men had an employment rate of 19.7 % and young women had a rate of 17.3% (according to the United States Bureau of Labor).

                Teens and unemployment are going hand in hand more frequently due to the current low hiring rate of many companies and businesses.

                Since the economy has taken a downturn, teens are suffering a lot. Employers are now able to be more selective in who they hire, since more people are applying for jobs. This causes a disadvantage for inexperienced teens.

                Even some summer jobs suffered this year. Unless teens already had jobs or had been hired before the summer, getting employed was a grueling task.

                For one unlucky Dunbar student, the job hunt is not making any progress. Senior Mency Zhu has been searching since the end of June to find a job that works with her after school activities and around school itself.

                When she applied to stores or other businesses, she did not hear from any of them for a few weeks. She decided to take matters into her own hands and called the managers to ask about her application.

                Unfortunately they all gave the same reply: “We have many qualified applicants in our system at this time. Try resubmitting an application in a few weeks.” A few weeks later, Zhu got almost the same response after resubmitting her application and calling the managers.

                Zhu, a very good student, is involved in extra-curricular activities and community service. She is an all-around responsible teen, the kind that employers used to love to hire. So why hasn’t she found a job?

                Zhu believes the economy’s flip has caused everyone to value higher levels of education over just being a good person. There are many more people in the job pool, and teens are the ones drowning. 

                A past Dunbar student, who worked at Chick-Fil-A and the Palomar clubhouse in high school, said, “It was not really hard to find a job.”

                He would fill out two to three applications and hear back from at least one place within two weeks. To him, it was easy because many places were hiring. Almost all his friends had jobs that worked around their after school activities and were not stressful or less than they wanted.

                For present students, maybe the sights are set too high. Starting with high expectations and little experience does not work out well.

                The best way to get the job you want is to start somewhere lower and build your way up. If anyone is looking for jobs to help pay for college or any other important reason, don’t expect to get the best job that offers the most money right off the bat.

                Try working somewhere for a few months and then switching up.

                The counselors and the guidance office post jobs on the bulletin board beside the front office when they become available.

                Talk to your counselor if you really need a job and can’t seem to get one anywhere. Check ads and ask friends to keep an eye or ear out for you.  You never know when someone could be looking for an employee just like you.