In 2025, job-seekers are applying to an average of 45 jobs per month, more than double the 22 applications per month in 2024. Master's degree students are particularly affected, applying to 32 to 60 positions monthly, while bachelor's degree graduates apply to 15 to 38 roles. The competition is fierce, and even graduates with computer science degrees are submitting 22 to 51 applications per month. The decline in programmer employment to its lowest level since 1980 highlights the struggles facing all graduates in today’s job market.
Job-seekers are applying to twice as many jobs this year than they did in 2024, as ghost jobs, AI agents, and a fiercely competitive labor market throw a wrench in the American Dream.
Master's students are having a rough go at it, as they're sending out up to 60 applications per month, compared to bachelor graduates applying to around 38 roles.
Job-hunters sent out an average of 45 job applications per month in May 2025, according to data shared exclusively with Fortune from employment platform Simplify, which tracked its one million job-seeking users and 150 million applications over the past year.
Even those who studied college majors that once guaranteed six-figure salaries are having to work harder to land a gig.
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