7 years after college, I'm not a noob engineer, I'm a leader on my team.
The way I talk to recruiters has changed as well, and they know what my paygrade is as a result.
A grad doesnt have that industry experience and HR penalizes them greatly for it.
The biggest threat is being a new grad and never changing companies. I know a kid 2 years younger than me making 50k less per year than me.