Finals week is wrapping up on the UW campus.

That means one thing to graduating seniors: it's time to job hunt.

According to the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development, the state's job market is the best it's been in 5 years.

That's good news for many.

"The fact that there are more jobs and that I don't have any money is good news to me," says UW-Madison senior Nate Schwantes.

Graduating senior, Rosanna Kendrick agrees, "I applied to law school and didn't get in where I wanted to go. Hopefully I'll be able to find a job and get experience and reapply in the future."

"I'm excited about it," says Reena Sood, also a senior at the UW, "I like to see everyone work hard and then get somewhere."

Sood is graduating Saturday. She's already had six job offers and gives thanks in part to the recovering economy.

"I also think it's due to the amount of work I put into it," says Sood, "I know a lot of people who expect jobs to come to them but I definitely went out there, attended the career fairs and took advantage of the resources on campus."

The chief labor economist for the Department of Workforce Development says the job market is building strength nationwide.

"The Midwest is doing quite well," says Terry Ludeman, "Wisconsin has been leading the Midwest. There are some markets that are a little bit better but not many. It's been very good in Wisconsin."

But some worry about a brain drain, as young workers choose to move to bigger cities than Madison.

Sood is moving to Chicago.

"Wisconsin doesn't have those large cities with those kinds of job markets so we're always going to see some loss of our graduates to those market places," says Ludeman, "But I think our economy is good enough that young people should be able to find the right kind of jobs in Wisconsin frankly."

That's a mentality that's been missing for years.

"I know a lot of people that when I started college friends of mine were older that were moving in with their parents and finding jobs around town and that was a little disconcerting," says Schwantes.

Ludeman says don't be surprised to see the improving job market reflected throughout the economy.

As for the fields with the most promise, Ludeman says science, engineering and elderly care have the most opportunities in 2005.