The tide is turning for Texas A&M University graduates hoping to remain in Aggieland, area employers say.

"The local job market is such that anybody who wants a job here can work," said Bonnie Boatwright, owner of College Station-based Human Resource Connection. "And the pay scale, generally, has gone up."

The university will hand out degrees to an estimated 5,500 graduates in five ceremonies over the weekend. Of those graduates, approximately 1,096 will receive doctoral or master's degrees.

In late 2006, Bryan-College Station employers retained 7 percent to 8 percent of graduating Aggies, according to information collected by the Texas A&M career center. The Texas A&M System hired about 25 percent of students remaining in the area, the center said.

"Some students come here and fall in love with Aggieland," said Paula Moses, director of employer services for the career center. "And there are many that would like to stay here if there's an opportunity."

The Association of Former Students figures show that about 17,000 Texas A&M graduates resided in the Bryan-College Station area in 2006. At the time, Harris County boasted the largest number of Texas A&M graduates, according to the association.

Dozens of firms with local ties have courted Texas A&M students in the months leading up to graduation, according to the career center's schedule of on-campus interviewers. The schedule -- which reads like the Fortune 500 list -- includes major local employers such as Reynolds & Reynolds Co., Blue Bell Creameries Inc. and Citigroup.

West Corp., an Omaha, Neb.-based communications company, also frequents the campus, recruiter John Street said.

"It was kind of odd. When I was at the liberal arts job fair at A&M a few weeks ago, I would say there were an average of about 60 percent who were wanting to stay in the area," Street said.

West employs students for entry-level positions from a broad range of disciplines, Street said. The firm, which employs about 700 people locally, offers positions primarily in customer service.

Several small, local firms are targeting specific majors for up-and-coming talent.

"While the big four accounting firms are actively recruiting, wining and dining the students, we have not had much of a presence or exposure on campus," said April Eyeington, managing partner of Bryan-based Brewer, Eyeington, Patout & Co. LLP. "But we stay in good contact with the accounting department."

Eyeington said her firm and other local accounting firms also work to promote the benefits of working in a smaller company in the area -- less hierarchy, proximity to big cities and a wealth of local culture. Brewer, Eyeington, Patout & Co. has two Aggie alums on staff.

MicroAge, a College Station-based technology firm, also looks for local talent.

"There are more and more opportunities opening up here locally for people who want to stay," said MicroAge President and Chief Executive Robert Orzabal.

Orzabal said his firm is seeking a general manager, sales and technical staff members, computer networking specialists and audiovisual personnel.

Local efforts to broaden the area's base of research and technology-related employers is also presenting opportunities for graduates, said Randall Spradley, executive vice president of development at Fibertown.

"We hear people saying this is going to be a place to live, work and play for people who are graduating -- really, a destination for talent," Spradley said. "This used to be a place where talent was produced, but there was nothing to recruit talent."

The number of independent companies that have grown out of Texas A&M and the area's various incubators are creating an environment that is appealing to students, Spradley said.

But Todd McDaniel, president and chief executive of the Research Valley Partnership, said underemployment continues to be a problem.

In 2005, Dallas-based Pathfinders determined that the local market had 9,300 underemployed workers, meaning those workers had the skills, experience and education to qualify them for pay rates at which they would take a new job. The median pay rate of the underemployed workers was $16.10 per hour, while the median desired rate was $17.40 per hour, according to Pathfinders' study.

The underemployment scenario is palpable for Ellen Palomo, a 23-year-old senior in the market for a communications-related position. She and her husband, Jesus, will receive their degrees this weekend in communications and English, respectively.

"We found there are jobs, but it all depends on how picky you allow yourself to be," Palomo said. "I want to at least have a good starting salary, with upward potential, but with all the talk of a recession, it is a little concerning to me."

Ashley Gregg, a 22-year-old senior who expects to receive a degree in marketing, said she planned to leave College Station within the next few months.

"I love it here, but I want to go travel," she said.

Gregg said she planned to enter an immersion program in Chile over the summer and then work for her brother's company in Dallas for a couple of months. After the Dallas stint, she plans to work in Italy.

"I'm from Austin originally, so that's where I would like to end up. College Station's never been the No. 1 place I would want to be," she said.

• Holli L. Estridge's e-mail address is holli.estridge@

theeagle.com.