What Now? (2014)

"What Now? On the road with America's young, educated and unemployed" is a cross-country documentary project about the challenges recent graduates face as they enter the job market. One million students graduated from college in 2013. They leave school at a time when the unemployment rate for young adults is 11.8%. Many of these students have invested thousands of dollars in their education but hold degrees that won't guarantee them meaningful or even stable work. As the American economy struggles to recover from the 2008 recession - and as the cost of higher education continues to soar without an equivalent growth in the job market - students are being saddled with increasing amounts of debt. How will they pay it all back? What is their education really worth if it means years of financial insecurity? These are the kinds of questions I'll ask as I set off across the country this fall, looking for answers as my own loans come due. I plan to explore the issues facing young Americans by offering a personal look into the struggles that many endure. I'm interested in unemployment and under-employment, in the debate over student loan interest rates and in the rural "brain-drain," as educated youth head to cities to find work. By gathering stories from young Americans and knitting those into my own, I hope to deepen the discussion about the future of America's recent graduates as it relates to our country's economic and social prosperity.