Missoula graduates weigh job options as Montana unemployment holds

MISSOULA, Mont. — Montana’s unemployment rate held at 3.6 percent as University of Montana graduation moved forward this week and many students looked ahead to the job market.

State officials said Montana’s push to grow workforce participation and connect people with careers helped support the economy.

Officials also reported apprenticeship programs doubled the size of Montana’s workforce in the last decade. They said those programs gave people a path to jobs while helping them avoid student debt.

Sarah Swanson, commissioner of Labor of Industry, pointed to apprenticeships as a key part of that effort.

“Registered apprenticeship, it's one of the most effective workforce tools that we have. And the key is those earn and learn opportunities, that ability to continue to earn a wage and a paycheck while you're learning your skill, obtaining your credential and building a career that can continue to give you mobility and increased wages throughout your lifetime,” said Swanson.

In Missoula, Isaiah Ruiz spoke with students as graduates prepared to enter the workforce.

For University of Montana marketing graduate Dom Demario, support from school went beyond classroom instruction. He said education, experience and connections all helped him move toward a job after college.

“It definitely played a huge part into me landing this role, you know, without the, you know, the education first and foremost, but also the experience and opportunities that the college of Business has offered me. While, you know, I've been here has helped tremendously and I wouldn't have landed the job without, you know, internships that I've learned in through the College of Business professors and networks that I made through the College of Business as well. So I'd say it played a pretty huge impact,” said Demario.

People looking for apprenticeship programs, jobs or candidates could learn more through the state’s apprenticeship website at www.apprenticeship.mt.gov.