Recent data shows that the share of people who have completed tertiary education and are now employed remains broadly in line with major European trends, with Spain experiencing a notable recovery since the downturn that followed the 2008 financial crisis. That period, marked by a sharp contraction in job opportunities for graduates, prompted many young workers to seek opportunities abroad, following the paths taken by earlier generations. National and international firms, as well as public administration, drew talent from across Europe, including countries like Germany, the United Kingdom, and France, in search of roles that might not have been readily available at home.
As the situation evolved, the concept of international mobility for job-seeking graduates shifted from a euphemistic label used by policymakers to a measurable factor in the labor market. The latest employment-rate statistics for recent graduates indicate a rate around 79 percent, slightly below the European average and near a 15-year high. These figures are calculated by Eurostat and reflect the proportion of individuals who completed tertiary studies within the last three years and are currently employed.
The housing market collapse and its aftermath hit the generation entering the workforce especially hard. In the early post-crisis years, a significant portion of recent graduates faced underemployment or long job searches. In 2013, the share of graduates who were employed dropped to a record low, while long-term prospects for the most educated cohort were challenged by a period of semi-permanent layoffs in some sectors.
Unemployment trends among younger workers also reflected the toll of the downturn. For those under 34 years old—the age group most often used in Eurostat analyses of new graduates—the peak unemployment rate during the crisis reached over 35 percent. Narrowing the lens to those under 25, the rate approached 56 percent at the height of the downturn. In more recent years, the unemployment rate for under-34s has fallen to about 16.5 percent, and under-25s around 28 percent, indicating a meaningful improvement while remaining above pre-crisis levels.
With reforms implemented in the wake of the crisis, particularly the labor-market changes enacted in 2021, temporary employment among young workers has moderated. At the peak of the Great Recession, temporary roles for those under 30 approached 47 percent; current data place it around 32 percent, signaling greater stability for many graduates entering the workforce.
There has been a broader narrative of rising stability and better employment prospects for newcomers, which in turn has contributed to a positive cycle for consumption and overall economic momentum. A recent Bank of Spain report notes that lower-income households and younger workers tend to contribute more to total spending when fear of layoffs is reduced and precautionary savings decline.
Far from Germany, just like France
Spain has been edging its employment rate for recent graduates closer to the European average, with a figure around the low eighties for 2022. Germany, by comparison, shows a higher rate and a robust labor market in which a very small share remains unemployed—the result of a strong economy and structural demand for skilled workers. Even when Germany faced a technical recession, its overall unemployment rate remained distinctly low, reflecting a resilient labor market.
Looking at the broader continental picture, the situation in France and northern European nations shows higher employment rates for graduates than in southern Europe, with Spain sometimes positioned mid-range. In several of these economies, graduate employment levels are captured as a reflection of ongoing structural differences, sectoral demand, and the pace of post-crisis recovery.