Record-high unemployment among young veterans appears to be in decline, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. It's not clear, however, what is causing that joblessness.

Statistics from federal data indicate that for the first three quarters of this year, unemployment among veterans ages 20 to 24 fell to 11 percent, down from an average in 2005 of 15.6 percent, according to the department.

James Walker, an economist with the Bureau of Labor Statistics, says the department cannot be certain of the numbers because the survey sampling for this age group is too small for a precise conclusion.

If accurate, the rate for young veterans would be more than twice the national unemployment figure of 4.6 percent in September, and higher than joblessness among nonveterans of the same age group, which was 8.7 percent last year.

Matthew Langrehr, 22, had several interviews for part-time work since leaving active Army service in June after a year in Iraq.

"The interviews went well, but then you get a phone call back saying someone else is more qualified," Langrehr says.

Joblessness among young veterans had been climbing since 2000, says Charles Ciccolella, assistant secretary for veterans' employment and training at the Department of Labor. "We don't know if the stress of combat impacts this," he says.

Ciccolella says vets have skills that employers should find appealing. "The things that makes veterans so attractive is ... the leadership, the management skills that they bring," he says. "Sort of an inclination or a bias for action, for success."

Ciccolella says his office is working with the Department of Veterans Affairs to interview 2,000 young veterans about employment issues.

A second, smaller study by the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago will examine about 120 veterans ages 20 to 24 on career options.

"You would expect veterans who have just left Iraq to take time to look for a job," says Julia Lane, an economist and senior vice president at the center. "We want to explore the dynamics of that process: Are they taking that unemployment compensation and using that to help them search for a job?"

Ciccolella says employers complain that former servicemembers may lack resume-preparation and interviewing skills. He says the military has worked harder at urging soldiers to attend a job-training course before they leave the service.

"I think we're getting 65 (percent) and 70 percent of those out in the class. My goal is 85 percent," he says.

Langrehr says the course was modestly helpful. His mother, Cindy Murphy, says she is mystified about her son's plight.

"You put your life on the line for your country, you'd think somebody would give you the benefit of the doubt and hire you," she says.