Older generations could be forgiven for harbouring deep jealousy towards this year's Leaving Certificate set.

Yes they have endured the teachers' strike and have lost valuable class time as a result, but they do not face the grim certainties of the dole queue or the emigrant trail, which faced many graduates in previous decades.

The overall outlook for the class of 2001 is very heartening. The latest statistics from the Higher Education Authority (HEA) show that only 1.5 per cent of third-level graduates are unemployed after leaving college.

Their sample is taken between six and nine months after people graduate, so it is a reasonably safe indicator.

Earlier this decade, the figure was 8 per cent and in certain areas graduates were still finding it hard to gain any foothold on the career ladder. Now all is changed - utterly.

For those lucky enough to be entering college this September, it is no longer a case of will there be jobs, but what job do you want?

Almost 46 per cent of graduates gained employment last year, with another 42 per cent opting for further study to prepare them for their desired job. For example, almost 80 per cent of postgraduate diploma holders gained employment in Ireland or overseas last year. Most of the remainder were prolonging their stay in college for a further academic qualification.

Ironically, the booming economy has meant some people are staying longer in college than they might normally. One possible reason is as the economy fragments and becomes more sectoral, employers are looking for graduates who have special, rather than general skills.

Some employers, for example, will find a commerce graduate with a postgraduate qualification more attractive than a commerce graduate without one.

This is not a general rule of course, but it does explain this year's increase in the numbers staying on in college for further study, which has risen to 42 per cent.

To put it another way, the competition a few years ago was between people with different degrees or diplomas, now it is between those with postgraduate qualifications.

Historically, most people will recognise this trend. Back in the 1960s, the big gap was between those with Leaving Certificates and those without.

Now over 80 per cent of secondary school pupils make it to Leaving Certificate level and employers are not particularly moved by the feat of passing the exam.

However, the rich temptations of the labour market will probably keep the lid on any huge expansion in post-graduate numbers, particularly when students look at the modest allowances available to them during the year (or years) of post-graduate slog.

Yet, according to the HEA, it is not necessarily true that the longer you stay in college the greater your chances of getting full-time work in Ireland.

For example, almost 25 per cent of students with one-year certificates gained full-time employment in 1999, compared to 21 per cent of those doing certificates over longer periods.

Many one-year certificates are vocational by nature and they prepare students to enter the workplace immediately, which makes such graduates appealing to employers. In addition, their courses often have direct links with local employers.

Despite this, diploma holders still have a better chance of getting a job than those graduating with a certificate. For example, 25 per cent of one-year certificate holders gained full-time employment in Ireland, compared to 32.9 per cent of diploma graduates.

One notable and alarming trend for those doing one-year certificate courses was that 5.5 per cent of female graduates were unemployed afterwards. There was virtually no male unemployment and one has to wonder about the discrepancy.

Unfortunately the HEA (at the time of writing) was unable to shed any further light on this conspicuous pattern.