College graduation day is probably one of the most difficult yet rewarding days of anyone's college career. Finally, all the assignments are finished, tests are taken and grades are calculated. Time to say goodbye to friends, move on, move out and move up. But what exactly does that mean? Time to find a job? Time to travel? Or time for a break?

Graduates of 2009 face difficult questions when it comes to starting out on their own and looking for new beginnings. Some choose to take jobs in faraway cities while others choose to stay here in Manhattan.

Several students who graduated in spring 2009 currently reside in Manhattan and work full-time jobs.

Their reasons for staying local are numerous, but the poor job market is mainly what keeps them here. Survey after survey tells the same story: a weaker job market and a down-turned economy forces employers to check their numbers in terms of hiring graduates of 2009.

Austin Apple is a spring 2009 graduate in social science and international studies. He is employed by the Westloop Dillons in Manhattan.

"Dillons is sort of my ‘pay bills' plan, but it's really not easy to find a job," Apple said. "For the immediate future, I am going to be staying right here in Manhattan."

When asked what his future plans are, he said he wants to go overseas and teach English in China.

"Unfortunately, and to my disappointment, that application process fell through almost a week before I planned on graduating, so it turns out I have to wait here for awhile," Apple said. "It's a little scary, but luckily my parents help out a little."

Apple said it is still "weird" to be living here and not trekking off to campus every day, going to class and taking the time to study.

"It is funny not to have any homework or tests anymore," he said. "It is really funky because I still live with some friends of mine who still go to school everyday, but it is nice because I just go to work and come home and don't have any work to do."

The job situation is a little different for Jenna Vorndran, spring 2009 graduate in biology, who also still lives in Manhattan.

"I plan on going to graduate school in June, but until then I am just going to stay here," Vorndran said.

She pointed out that the job market is a lot tougher than it was a few years ago, and said she knows of several graduates who are having difficulty finding a job.

"Yeah, I know of a few people who actually moved back home, and I know that they are all having trouble finding jobs," she said.

When asked how she felt now that she graduated, Vorndran said it is not very different since she works for Hale Library.

"I'm on campus everyday anyway, so it's not all that different," she said. "I like living here still because I know where everything is, and I know plenty of people around town. ... I really don't think that it is too scary to be out of school though, since I have been independent for some time."

According to a February study conducted by the National Association of Colleges and Employers, employers are expected to hire 22 percent fewer college graduates than last year. However, the downward job market is only temporary and is expected to take an upswing very soon.