A new survey by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) reveals nearly half of all firms will not be looking to hire graduates or school-leavers in the months ahead.
The study also found that only one in five companies planned to hire 16-year-olds due to leave school and a third of firms said they had cut their graduate employees in 2009.
The extent of the economic slowdown is also reflected in the fact that some 45% said they did not aim to recruit from either group this year.
According to Gerwyn Davies, the CIPD's public policy advisor, against this backdrop graduates and school leavers need to sharpen their case for being picked ahead of their classmates - and fast.
Young people, who often have little or no work experience, have been particularly hard hit by the recession as employers seek to cut costs.
One way that graduates and school leavers can help themselves to stand out from the crowd is to familiarise themselves with psychometric testing.
Although it is impossible to revise for a psychometric test, getting to know the principles of psychometric testing will help any job applicant when it comes to actually completing one.
As the jobs market becomes increasingly competitive, a growing number of employers are turning to psychometric testing as a means of identifying the most suitable candidates.