The future appears bright for upcoming college graduates, who can look forward to employers increasing the number new hires at their firms. According to a new report, U.S. operations plan to hire 11 percent more new applicants from the Class of 2016.

According to the results of the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) Job Outlook 2016 survey published October 21, there was a slight increase in the number new hires taken on by employers during spring 2015. Not only are recent graduates faring better, but their outlook and perception of the job market is also on the incline. Additionally, end-of-year hiring increased nearly ten percent for Class of 2015 grads.

National Center for Education Statistics published a report in 2008, which predicted between 2005 and 2016 college enrollment rates would increase 45 percent for Hispanic students, compared to just 8 percent of non-Hispanic white. In 2014, Pew Research confirmed predictions about young Hispanics and their big gains in college enrollment. Thus, it's likely that a large fraction of the Class of 2016 will be Hispanic, barring changes in graduation requirements, student financial aid, personal circumstances or finances.

Approximately 42 percent of surveyed employers described the job market for the Class of 2016 as "very good" or "excellent." Two years ago, just 18 percent of respondents said the same of Class of 2014 graduates. Overall, college hiring has increased across the U.S., hinting at positive shifts in the job market.

However, the hiring plans of surveyed employers revealed they're more cautious than they were just one year ago. While 46.4 percent of surveyed employers indicated they plan to increase hiring numbers, just slightly more than 40 percent said the same this year. Nonetheless, most employers are planning to maintain their hiring numbers, although the number of firms planning to decrease hiring rose from 7.7 percent last year to 13 percent this year.

Nearly 42 percent of firms planning to decrease hiring allude to lower oil prices as the reason why they're doing so. The dip in oil prices has negatively impacted the overall gas and oil industry. Unfortunately, the projected hiring decrease for the oil and industry is expected to be as high as 57.9 percent. Since Class of 2014 petroleum engineering graduates reported their wages last year, the starting salary for petroleum engineers has dropped to $14,000.

Company restructuring and reorganization, and reduced company growth and budgets were also cited as reasons for decreased hiring. Conversely, company growth encourages employers to increase hiring numbers. The firms planning to grow their numbers were more likely to state the importance of college hiring when "building their talent pipelines and offsetting upcoming retirements."

A majority of organizations maintaining hiring numbers cited consistent and steady internal growth, and the retention of new college graduates. Maintaining their numbers staves off the need to increase the number of new hires, and successful planning has helped them to predict the specific number of college hires for the future.

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