Greetings!,

This weekend kicks off the summer travel season and that quest for jobs as recent graduates look to start their careers.

I was fortunate enough to have spent a year as a student intern, so upon graduation I was already in place for a full-time job. According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), about 63% to 70% of interns are offered full-time positions by their employers. If an intern is lucky enough to get paid, the average intern salary in the US is roughly $20.33 per hour, which translates to about $4,500 per month or an annual average of around $35,400. Of course, compensation varies significantly depending on location, industry, and education level.

According to CNBC (May 4, 2026), this year's college seniors expect to be earning about $80,000 within a year of graduating. However, the average starting salary for new grads sits closer to $56,000… a perception gap of roughly $24,000. Said another way, the typical grad is about 30% wealthier in their head than on their first W-2.

Also, not all majors will pay equally. According to NACE, computer science majors in the Class of 2026 are projected to start at an average salary of $81,535, which is up 6.9% over last year and the highest-paid category in the bunch. Social sciences majors, by comparison, will see their average starting pay drop 1.7%... the first decline recorded in that category in years.

And it's not just expectations that are out of whack; it's whether the diploma opens the door that it once did in the past. For instance, as of the first quarter 2026, 41.5% of recent college graduates, ages 22 to 27, are "underemployed," meaning they're working in jobs that don't require their bachelor's degree. Their unemployment rate is 5.6%, well above the national average of 4.2% (Bloomberg, May 5, 2026).

What is often overlooked are jobs in the trade field. According to Indeed.com, the top 12 trade jobs have ranging from $58,000 to $138,000. Mike Rowe, host of Dirty Jobs and founder of the mikeroweWORKS Foundation, heavily advocates for trade schools over traditional four-year colleges. He argues that pushing college as the default path for everyone ignores the massive skills gap, burdens students with unsustainable debt, and devalues the high-paying opportunities in skilled trades. (YouTube.com)

If you would like to see more about high paying trades, click the link below:

12 High Paying Trades

ying Trades

As always, thanks for reading.



Bernie & Chad