Govt. Labor Survey Predicts More Jobs for College Grads

Harvard seniors hunting for jobs this year may have more employment opportunities than graduates of past years, the regional commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics said yesterday.

Employers' renewed confidence in the future of the economy resulted in a 10 per cent increase in job openings, Commissioner Wendell D. MacDonald '31 said.

Robert J. Ginn, Jr., associate director of the Office of Career Services and Off-Campus Learning, agreed yesterday with the bureau's statement but questioned the survey's relevance for Harvard students who enter fields that require post graduate study not included in the survey.

The availability of management training programs in the finance industry has lessened the plight of liberal arts graduates, but most job hunters with a Harvard degree are not looking for positions in personnel or sales management, Ginn added.

The 10 per cent increase in job openings only applies to more technical fields, Ginn said.

The need for industrial research and development of energy resources increases the demand for graduates possessing a degree in chemical or mechanical engineering, MacDonald said.

At the other end of the spectrum are the education graduates whose poor prospects for teaching posts force them to seek employment in other fields of work, he said.

Business and public health graduates can also expect favorable job opportunities. The complexity of government tax laws gives accounting majors a slight edge in the job market, MacDonald said.

Science degree holders not planning to go into medicine will have a rough time securing employment, he added.

Freshmen contacted yesterday said they were preoccupied with the question of future employment opportunities and the marketability of their diplomas when they filed their plans of study last Friday.

John D. McInnis '80, an anthropology major, said yesterday he is reconsidering anthropology as a major because of the scarcity of jobs in the field.

He said he decided to fulfill his pre-med requirements because medical school presents more of a guarantee that he "will not be driving a taxi cab after investing $7000 a year in a college education."