Millenials' Failure to Launch

I read an article recently called "Nostalgic ‘90s television offers escape for college students," which talked about the recent return of television shows that defined the ‘90s. Last July, Nickelodeon started airing a show called "The 90s Are All That," featuring "All That," "Kenan and Kel," "Clarissa Explains It All," and "Doug." Since TeenNick (emphasis on the "teen") brought the shows back, they've averaged a 50% ratings increase among viewers our age and older.

The article then reported on May 2011 Emory University graduate Matt Margolis, who "packed up his belongings from his room in his fraternity's house, and like many students across the nation, moved back in with his parents." Margolis said the adjustment was tough at first, "but now it's not so bad." He also said, "It's nice to have someone who wants to make breakfast for you or hear about your day."

According to Margolis, the best part of moving back home is, after a long day at work, winding down and watching many of the ‘90s television shows he grew up with, since they bring him to a state of nostalgia: "to a time when nothing mattered but homework and flirting with girls."

According to the article, Millennials (if you were born after 1980 and before 2000, you're a Millennial), who are "often accused of being lazy and spoiled, are now facing unemployment (even though most are well-educated and highly qualified for positions) and high stress levels." Apparently, in these rough times, we as Millennials find these shows comforting.

Then I realized: we're a bunch of losers.

We're called the Millennials, but we're also called the "Boomerang Generation." Why? Because once we graduate from college, we boomerang back to our parents' homes. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, a growing number of men and women, ages 24 to 34, are choosing to live with their parents post-college.

This has to do with the economy and also with student debt.

The Huffington Post published an article last summer called "2011 College Grads Moving Home In Record Numbers, Saddled With Historic Levels Of Student Loan Debt," which summarized a study conducted by Twentysomething Inc., a consultant firm specializing in young adults. A major issue facing recent college graduates is student loan debt – an average of $27,000. 85% of last year's graduating class will be forced to move back home because of this. 85 is a huge percentage.

Andrew Sum, professor of economics at Northeastern University, reported that 50% of college graduates under 25 are "underutilized, meaning they're either working no job at all, working a part-time job or working a job outside of the college labor market." Experts believe "debt at graduation is outpacing starting salaries."

Michael Hais, author of "Millennial Momentum: How a New Generation Is Remaking America," described the number of young adults moving back home as "historically unprecedented." Sum said, "This is our country and this is our future and we're failing them." He believes recent graduates are "not only delaying the formation of their own households, but consequently unable to achieve a desirable standard of living." Graduates are returning home because they cannot afford to live on their own.

If you've seen Failure to Launch, a movie about a 35-year-old bachelor named Tripp who still lives with his parents, you'll understand. Tripp's parents go so far as to hire an interventionist to play his girlfriend in hopes she will convince their son to move out. The movie pokes fun at what the world sees as our generation's issue.

I think we all agree a college education is needed, otherwise we wouldn't be here. I think we all agree, too, that our nickname, the "Boomerang Generation" needs to go. Maybe our 90s nostalgia is a mask; we're avoiding life. Whether we move back home for financial reasons or because we're craving the nostalgia of childhood, it can hinder our growth as adults. The trend surely has negative effects on our financial and social independence. It also surely allows us to be passive in our job searches if we prolong our financial dependence on our parents. It's time to break free from the comfort-ability of "Kenan and Kel" reruns and kick the name the "Boomerang Generation."