Over on Rob Port’s blog, we get confirmation of what we’ve been hearing anecdotally: according to the BLS, 48% of recent college graduates are in jobs requiring less than a four-year degree. Rob then cites a Forbes article:

In 2011, 1.5 million, or 53.6% of college grads under age 25 were out of work or underemployed, according to a 2012 Associated Press story that used an analysis of the U.S. government’s 2011 Current Population Survey data by Northeastern University researchers, plus material from Drexel University economist Paul Harrington, and analysis from liberal Washington, D.C. think tank, the Economic Policy Institute.

Rob points out that enrollment has surged over the past 25 years, as have costs and administrative jobs:

“Over the last 25 years, the universities’ enrollments have collectively grown by 26 percent, while the ranks of full-time administrators have risen 75 percent, not only at private universities but also at some public ones,” the center reports. “During the same 25-year period, tuition at four-year universities nationwide has increased an inflation-adjusted 85 percent, federal figures show.