A Solid Industry for Millennial Graduates

I started my career as a public relations and marketing coordinator for FreightCenter in May 2015. Back then I was fresh out of school with no experience in the industry. I didn’t know what a third party logistics company (3PL) was or did, and I knew even less about freight transportation. With the help of some great mentors, I’ve learned and continue to learn so much about the freight world. Everything I learn helps me market FreightCenter, a leading 3PL in the freight shipping industry.

When I graduated with a bachelor’s in mass communications in 2014, I never expected to be working in the transportation industry.  After a year of being turned down for not having enough experience just as often as I was turned down for being too qualified, I was ready to try anything.     

While the national unemployment rate has continued to decrease since the end of the recession in 2009, the same can’t be said for young college graduates.  The millennial unemployment rate in 2015 was 7.2 percent (compared with 5.5 percent in 2007) and the underemployment rate was 14.9 percent (compared with 9.6 percent in 2007.)

The underemployed rate – the number of employed recent college graduates that are over qualified for their positions – is rising just as quickly as the unemployment rate. This shows that the issue isn’t that young adults lack proper education or skills. Instead, there’s just not enough demand for goods and services and therefore less demand for new positions.

All of this can be very disheartening, especially for recent graduates faced with loans. It’s important to realize that there are industries continuing to grow. That’s why I was confident in starting my public relations career at FreightCenter.  The company is constantly growing and always has positions to fulfill.

The freight transportation industry isn’t going anywhere. In fact, it’s estimated that there will be a 74.5 percent increase in freight revenues by 2026, bringing the $700.4 billion industry close to $2 trillion. I’d say that’s pretty impressive. Especially considering that 3PLs are the fastest growing sector in that market. 3PLs are expected to expand the most over the next 10 years at two to three times faster than the global GDP growth, according to William Blair research.

With such large growth expected over the next couple of decades, freight transportation is a solid choice for recent graduates looking to start a career in a stable and growing industry.