How is this affecting your lives? Have any of you experienced layoffs, or do you know people who have? Are you worried about job security, or getting jobs, or paying off college loans?
Not at all. My income is guaranteed by the University and the government for the next 4 years and after that, the recession has nothing to do with the next steps I’ll be following or the income I’ll generate with it.
Hasn’t really affected me much. Gas is finally down to below $1.60 where I’m at. And I’m good as far a job goes for the moment.
My parents, on the other hand…they’ve lost quite a bit of money in the stock market.
Still living at home, contributing what I can. Dad’s an accountant, one of those jobs that’s always needed even in economic troubles - maybe even moreso - so he’s always got work. still a college student, looking for an apprenticeship, and after that, we’ll see what happens.
A restaurant across the street from where I live that I was planning on going to last Thursday night was apparently shut down prior to Thursday night. Fortunately there are still over a dozen other restaurants, joints, dives, drive-thrus and so on within a mile’s distance so I went to one of those instead.
Otherwise I’m well insulated from the crisis (unless Bambi comes back to finish my old man off. Fucking Deer!).
I’m incredibly lucky to have a law firm job lined up. Firms have made job offers to 2nd-year students at NYU, and <i>revoked them because of the economy</i>. These students are ineffably screwed over. You can’t get a good firm job after about November. If you don’t get a good firm job 2nd year, it’ll be twice as hard afterward. Also, many students didn’t get offers in the first place, due to the economy, and they’re in the same situation. This is not supposed to happen at NYU.
It sucks far more if you’re at a Tier 2 school like my girlfriend. Unless you’re in the top 10% of the class and on your school’s Law Review, you can kiss a NYC firm job goodbye. If you’re at a Tier 3-4 school and outside the top 25%, <i>anything</i> in NYC or a firm job anywhere is just out of the question. It’s a shitty time to be a law student.
As for the economy’s effects on me: 1) I’m considering entering bankruptcy law; 2) I am leery about investment law; and 3) a $60k loan I took out at interest rate 8% is now at 3%. Again, I’ve been lucky.
That’s helpful to hear. I had sort of(sort of meaning, only in pure fantasy), thought about applying to law school, before I forced myself to admit I absolutely hate having to do research. I’m applying to a few education grad schools instead in a few weeks. Ideally I’d like to work at a community college, but with the economy the way it is now, I’ll take what I can get. But out of curiosity, does anyone have a general sense of what the opportunities for community college teaching, or even secondary ed. teaching, are like right now?
It hasn’t given me any trouble so far, but I’m always living like I have far less money to spare than I actually do.
I don’t have a job now, but I’ve gotten several interviews so I know I’m good at writing application letters at least, heh. 
Though I am worried that it’ll be tougher getting a job. I’m going to apply for a master’s course to become a librarian this spring though, and if I get that I’ll be studying for two more years and then have better chances at jobs (30% or so of the librarians here are hitting retirement within the next five years).
I’m in the military and we have 2 major wars going on right now. Plus, I’m an officer and the Army is short many officers, with the shortage expected to grow, so I’m pretty secure. Plus, I’ve got at least 9 more years, before I have to really work at getting promoted. By that time I’ll be about 4 or 5 years from retirement, so I’ve got it pretty easy and won’t feel any affects from the economy.
Foul luck finding a job. To be expected at this time, though. Tiding over doing oddjobs and parttime.
Thank God I have a pretty stable job in IT. My investments have taken a pretty hefty plunge, but luckily most of them are long-term so I’m pretty confident they’ll eventually come back up. The only thing that really bugs me is the huge drop in the Canadian dollar, so buying stuff from the States is now about 30% more expensive than it used to be. 8-\
Less contracts for us but not notably so. Our main source of work at my office is from Europe (Ubisoft, Mindscape, and a few others), and they weren’t affected as badly.
I was actually more affected earlier this year, when the job market started to shrink. Fortunately, I’m working at Wal-Mart, pretty much the only retailer to make a profit anymore, and as long as I don’t screw up too badly, I’ll be all right. Besides that, I’m almost done with my accounting certificate; after that, I’ll be aiming to find an actual career rather than a job. I’m also living at home, where the rent is far less than an actual apartment, until I can finish my certificate, get a real job, and move out. I really want to get out of my parents’ hair as quickly as possible.
…God, I’m pissed that teaching didn’t work out.
Can’t find a job worth crap, food is expensive…entertainment moreso. I’m seeing a good deal of small businesses closing up all over, too.
Couldn’t be better for me. The worse things get, the more jobs they send to China -> thus more contracts for our company. It’s kind of sick and twisted, but I guess these are the realities you have to deal with if you want to be a professional capitalist.
I’m OK for now (Network Security Analyst), if I get laid off I’ll get a 6 month severance package, so that should be plenty of time. But I’d probably have to relocate.
My father was laid off a couple months ago, and he hasn’t been able to find anything (IT Mgmt, 30 yrs telecom experience). But I think that’s mostly because he hasn’t looked very much - he’s been expecting his god to “open a door” or something. His religious friends he thought would hire him didn’t, and now he’s about to run into some trouble.
I got a mohawk and started wearing way more leather. I also ciphon gas professionally, and lost the ability to speak. Really, my only worry are littly kids with mullets.
I have to bring my own staplers and paper to exams now.
Yeah, my college is broke, hurray!
My contract is ending in a couple months and everything I’ve applied for is asking for more experience than I’ve got. The last interviewer told me not to restrict myself to programming jobs, which is good advice, but it means I’ll be working entry level as an analyst or some other related position. Not that I’m complaining, it’s just that I have no idea how my skills will transfer over.
I lost a few $$$ on the stock market. I’ll make it back, no big deal.