Here’s How Many Recent Graduates Small Businesses Are Hiring

While many new college graduates are aiming for jobs at big-name companies, small businesses are ramping up hiring.

Small businesses with one to 49 employees are expected to hire about 974,000 new graduates ages 20 to 24 in 2026 — an increase from 962,000 last year, according to a recent report from payroll platform Gusto. Over two million people earned Bachelor’s degrees last year, and just over one million earned associate degrees, according to Education Data. 

Overall, hiring may look steady, but the kinds of jobs new graduates are landing are changing rapidly. The report found that roles that once dominated entry-level hiring, such as software engineer, recruiter, financial analyst and sales development representative, are taking up a smaller share of jobs. In their place, newer titles such as AI engineer are growing fast, alongside more hands-on roles like field manager and service technician, as demand shifts toward work that is harder to automate.

The report uncovered that small businesses are leaning into hiring young talent, even as large companies scale back entry-level roles. While big firms like McKinsey say AI can handle much of the work once done by junior employees, many small business owners disagree — and are looking for recent graduates specifically for their digital fluency and ability to build relationships, per the report. 

Small businesses open the doors to recent college graduates

One small business owner seeks out recent college graduates. Joe Watson, founder and chief strategist of Hey Joe Media, a Tucson-based communications shop that works with nonprofits on criminal justice reform, told CNBC that he deliberately targets younger candidates and plans to bring on three recent graduates this spring. 

In his view, even as AI reshapes offices and wipes out some entry-level jobs, criminal justice work depends on deep, person-to-person connections that AI cannot replicate. “The relationship is the product,” he told CNBC.

“I hope that more small businesses, rather than turning to AI exclusively, will continue to give these young folks — who may not have the experience on paper — an opportunity,” Watson told the outlet.

Why Mark Cuban says to work for small businesses

Investor Mark Cuban, who is worth $9.8 billion, advised job seekers in November to look for work at small businesses rather than large corporations — especially if they have AI skills that could benefit the business. 

Cuban said that in large corporations, AI skills can get lost in the crowd, with dedicated IT teams already well-versed in the technology. Smaller companies, by contrast, often lack that kind of in-house expertise and resources — creating an opening for new hires who know how to use AI and can help integrate it into the business. 

“They [small businesses] are typically entrepreneurially driven and don’t have the flexibility to have people research things,” Cuban told CNBC Make It. “Bringing on a new graduate to work on agentic AI projects is inexpensive for them and can get them immediate results.”

While many new college graduates are aiming for jobs at big-name companies, small businesses are ramping up hiring.

Small businesses with one to 49 employees are expected to hire about 974,000 new graduates ages 20 to 24 in 2026 — an increase from 962,000 last year, according to a recent report from payroll platform Gusto. Over two million people earned Bachelor’s degrees last year, and just over one million earned associate degrees, according to Education Data. 

Overall, hiring may look steady, but the kinds of jobs new graduates are landing are changing rapidly. The report found that roles that once dominated entry-level hiring, such as software engineer, recruiter, financial analyst and sales development representative, are taking up a smaller share of jobs. In their place, newer titles such as AI engineer are growing fast, alongside more hands-on roles like field manager and service technician, as demand shifts toward work that is harder to automate.