With more than 50,000 jobs lost in B.C. since last fall, and an unemployment rate for young people looking for their first job hovering around 14 per cent, the outlook is bleak for the graduating class of 2009.

After four years of school and a social sciences degree, University of Victoria student Lauren Verdec is faced with no job and very few leads.

"You finish school and you're really excited to finish and get a job and you find there are no jobs so it's a stressful process," Lauren said.

And she isn't alone. Thousands of students are graduating this spring into an economy much worse than they ever imagined.

"I'm a little bit nervous, definitely," student Chantal Orr said. "A lot of students right now are trying to find co-op positions and it's a real struggle."

An economic downturn means many aren't finding a job in their fields - and are facing a grim reality.

"A lot of my friends in biology are working at Rogers Video and other minimum wage jobs. I think it is really tough," Jill Doucette said.

"I would go back to working in a restaurant," Verdec said. "Tips are good so I can make money that way until I find something that I can use with my degree."

The sudden turnaround is an unwelcome surprise for the graduating class.

"I didn't really expect the idea of an epic recession hitting the day I graduated," Chris Anctil said.

Leslie Liggett, the career program manager at the University of Victoria, says they are well aware of the heightened student anxiety on campus.

"We're not denying that so we've added services to help students applying for their positions," Liggett said.

Career counselling has helped many students find work in some of the employment bright spots, like health care.

Human resources consultant Christine Stoneman warns a passive approach to finding a job won't cut it anymore.

"In this current climate, you need to be the one selling yourself," Stoneman said. "You need to be the one that understands that the employers are in the driver's seat now and not you."

With a report from CTV British Columbia's Jim Beatty