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I'm unemployed and hopeless

There's only so much rejection a person can take. Meet 5 unemployed Americans who want to work, but are beyond fed up with the weak job market and feel hopeless.

Buying time in grad school

  • Name: Nico Meyering, 24
  • Hometown: Vestal, New York

I graduated in 2010 with a bachelor's degree in history, and I also went through an education program, to be certified to teach high school social studies.

But I never found a teaching job because the market is so saturated. My friends who were in the program with me can hardly find anything either. One works at Macy's, and another is a substitute teacher at a day care.

At first, I went to work at a grocery store bakery. The next best job I could find was being a receptionist. I was so discouraged, I gave up on the job market to go to graduate school instead.

I'm earning my masters in public administration. Because I spent about a year and a half in the real world, I have the ambition to go all out in my studies and internships, but still I realize there's no promise of a job.

I hold no illusions about how difficult it's going to be. I come from a blue-collar hometown and I see people I went to high school with got vocational degrees and are making $40,000 to $50,000 a year. Sometimes I think I should have done that instead.

I also took out the full amount in student loans, and I'm very worried about that. But basically, I had to make a choice between hard times now or hard times later. I feel most students are having to make that choice these days.

  @AnnalynKurtz - Last updated January 10 2013 05:55 AM ET

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