youth employment

After earning her master’s degree in architecture from Florida International University in 2025, Alexandra Lacayo expected the next step to be clear: apply, interview, and begin her career. Instead, she found herself stuck in a cycle of applications and silence.

Florida Republican gubernatorial candidate James Fishback has focused much of his campaign on the concerns of his biggest supporters: young voters. We found no evidence that U.S. youth underemployment is in the vicinity of 70%. The most reliable data shows the rate is about 42%, with no significant swings in the last several years.

"To get out and explore more things," is how Rochnel Jean-Baptiste described her desire to eventually leave Miami after she finishes school. Jean-Baptiste…