Some even believe the bust could end up working in their favour. Andrew Kvaal, a 28-year-old first-year MBA who started two tech companies before heading back to business school, thinks the tech slump has weeded out those who were never really interested in technology in the first place. He said those who came West solely to cash in on the tech boom -- he calls them "gold diggers" -- have gone home. "I have tons of friends who moved out here for the boom. Most of them have left," said Kvaal, who's hoping for a job as a product manager at a software company in Silicon Valley when he graduates next spring. Unlike the graduates immediately before them, at least these students knew going into business school that the dot-com boom had gone bust. Some of those with a master's in business administration are so desperate for work they've taken jobs as postal workers after being kicked off the dot-com express. Others have hopped from job to job after a string of layoffs from ailing or now-defunct companies. Although the latest unemployment rate figure, at 6 percent, is low for an underperforming economy, the number doesn't take into account those who are working in jobs below their skill level. Kvaal said the tech collapse is forcing people to reassess what they really want to do. He said that during the boom, second-year MBA students received as many as five job offers before graduation, compelling many to make snap decisions about employment based on things like salary and stock options. Now, students are really thinking about where they want to focus the massive amount of time and energy it takes to land a job in this economy. Like Knipp, Kvaal is hoping for a tech turnaround by the time he graduates. "We're a little stressed about it, but it's a long way off before we have to find real jobs."
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