Whether the class of 2020 will face long-term consequences depends on a range of factors, including the length of the pandemic and the severity of the recession that seems certain to follow. But it doesn’t look good.

“I’m worried for them,” said Lisa Kahn, an economist who has studied how recessions affect college graduates. “If they’re graduating into a large recession, they’re going to suffer some pretty severe short-term consequences. And that’s probably going to stay with them for almost the next decade.”

At her home near Houston, Caroline Carlson, an agricultural economics major at Texas A&M University, has grown increasingly concerned about her chances of landing a job working on sustainability issues at a food company. Her mother has tried to spin news footage of people panic-shopping at grocery stores as a positive — a reminder that there will always be a market for food. Ms. Carlson remains pessimistic.

“I don’t think companies are really going to be looking to bring on more corporate positions or go through the steps of training someone,” she said.

“I get emails from Glassdoor daily — like, ‘You’d be a great fit for Walmart cashier,’” she continued. “Thank you so much, that’s really what I want my bachelor’s degree to go toward.”

A severe downturn could also jeopardize the career prospects of students who graduate later this year or in 2021.

Martin Lang, Jr., who is set to finish business school at the University of Detroit Mercy in December, got an email last week saying his internship at Urban Outfitters’ corporate office in Philadelphia was canceled. An aspiring stylist, Mr. Lang had hoped to stay at the company long term. “It would have given me fashion experience and credibility in an industry I want to be in,” he said. “Now I’ll go a year without working in a corporate environment.”