Outlook for College Grads

Chairman, Trump University

All over America, new college graduates are heading out into the real world. It looks like members of the Class of 2006 are an optimistic group. They don't seem too worried about the economy or the job market.

According to a number of recent surveys, most of this year's graduates admit that they haven't actually started to look for a full-time job yet. Yet, more than half of them say that when they do start looking, they only expect to interview with between two and five companies before they get the right job offer. They think the entire process should take no more than three months.

When it comes to starting salaries, about two-thirds of graduates expect to make between $20,000 and $50,000 a year. About 20 percent of them hope to be paid between $50,000 and $70,000. The vast majority said they expected to start at the bottom and work their way up.

They had better work their way up quickly. The average college graduate owes somewhere between $15,000 and $25,000 in student loans. That's a big financial handicap as they make their way in the world.

Here's my advice. Get a job you love even if it doesn't pay a lot at first. Just make sure you love it. If you do, you'll go right to the top. You'll make plenty of money, and you'll pay off that loan in no time.

Congratulations, graduates. Great job!