As a student at Western University, student government leader and peer mentor Adam Smith could easily be described as dynamic, engaged, and dedicated.

But eight months after graduating with a double major in sociology and criminology he’s back living in his parent’s Ajax home, trying to avoid being defined by a whole new set of adjectives.

Young. Jobless. Disposable.

“I’m frankly embarrassed that I don’t have a job already,” he says. “I feel like I’m a good worker, I have a lot to offer companies. But because I haven’t been able to connect it yet, I feel personally embarrassed.”

With more than 20 per cent of young Torontonians unemployed, Smith is hardly alone. He hoped moving back to the GTA would help him find a job in Toronto that would match his project-management experience – or with anything that would help pay down his $30,000 student debt. He’s applied to up to 50 entry-level roles that fit his qualifications, but says the competition is so fierce that even snagging an interview is rare.

“People who are looking for their first jobs are also competing against people who already have jobs. There’s no jobs reserved for people right out of school other than internships,” he explains.

But Smith can’t afford to work for free, or live on the meager stipend paid to many interns.

“Transit alone is like $400 a month. Plus my student loan, there would be no way I’d be able to afford it.”

He tries to stay positive by compiling daily lists of jobs that interest him. But employers, he often feels, aren’t interested in hiring young people they see as over-confident and unreliable.

That millennial stigma is disheartening, says Smith, who is the first generation of his family to go to university and is proud of the skills he earned as a student leader.

And far from being flaky, Smith dreams of a role that would provide security.

“All I’ve seen are three-month contracts, six-month contracts,” he says. “It’s stressful at this point, because (I’m) put in a place where I’m not going to say no to a job. If someone offered me a two-month contract, I’ll take it because at this point it’s what you can get.

“Young people are willing to do whatever it takes to get a job,” he adds, “And I think sometimes we’re selling ourselves short.”

As for future goals, Smith admits it’s been a while since he thought about them.

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“I’ve been thinking so much in the short term,” he says.

“I think long term would be just general stability. And being able to sign a lease for more than one year.”