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Comment by tom_rath | Hacker News Reader

Meh. Those of us who entered the workforce during the last real recession in the early 90s (not the hiccup some techies wet themselves over in 2001) did just fine, thanks.

Look, if you're planning to graduate over the next while, things are going to suck. Not "will I be able to get a job at cuulCmpny.com" suck, but "will I be able to both pay rent and eat" suck. Nasty, soul-crushing stuff that'll make you wonder if you were really as smart as you thought you were all this time.

Just keep your head and you'll come out of it fine. Your character will be stronger, you'll have superb perspective and your long-term earnings will be spiffy.

Don't waste energy worrying about whether or not you'll have a few more bucks on your paystub in 20 years. There are a whole ton of other factors which can affect that a lot more than the birth-sign of your economic zodiac.

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Point duly taken, but he said "on average". Like you said, there are many more important factors (like your effort, luck, smarts, etc) that affect long term earning.

But all else equal, it's probably better to enter the workforce in good times rather than bad.

My comment was more concerned with the decision to graduate or stick around in grad school. The data suggests that you may be better off in the long term if you spend the recession earning another degree instead of cowering in a cubicle.

Well, for my own small sample of peers, those I know who took their chances in the workforce came out of the recession better than those who earned another degree (particularly if it was just 'something to do until things got better').

If you're planning to spend your life cowering, it really won't matter whether your choice is a cubicle or a classroom.

Which recession? The last one (2002-2003) is a bad example, since many of the people who worked through it went crazy buying crap (i.e. houses, cars, granite countertops) with the flood of cheap credit that was used to "stimulate" the economy out of trouble.

I spent that period in grad school, and while I don't have houses and cars, I also have no debt. I suspect I will end up better off in the long run -- we're just not there yet.

I suspect the stats may be more biased by people who 'take what they can get' in the recession time, and then don't actually look to find more career progressing opportunities when the markets strengthen. (I've got a couple of friends that did that in the 2001 hiccup and despite my harassing still haven't left the jobs they compromised to take.)

If that is the case it's more important you recognise when times have improved, than to delay your entry by another x years.

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