Fewer jobs but higher pay for college grads, Monster says

There's good news and bad news on the job front for this year's crop of college graduates, according to an survey of employers and students by MonsterTRAK, the student division of the job search and recruiting firm Monster.com.

First, the bad news: With the economy slumping, only 59 percent of employers surveyed plan to hire 2008 graduates in the spring or summer; that compares with 76 percent of employers last year, MonsterTRAK said.

The good news? Roughly a third of employers with hiring plans said they will increase their starting salaries; the anticipated average starting salary for 2008 graduates is $39,500, up from last year's average of $36,000, MonsterTRAK said.

One survey finding may give parents pause; 48 percent of the students surveyed said they expect to spend some time living with their parents after graduation, MonsterTRAK said, and 43 percent of 2007 graduates are still living with their parents, mostly because of limited financial resources.

Monster, which has much of its operations in Maynard, is the flagship brand of Monster Worldwide Inc., a New York communications and technology company.

The New York Times Co., the corporate parent of The Boston Globe and Boston.com, has an alliance with Monster to sell help-wanted advertising.
(By Chris Reidy, Globe staff)