From resume bots to automated hiring systems, AI is complicating the job search for recent college grads. The Wall Street Journal’s Lindsay Ellis tells CNN’s Audie Cornish about the challenges young professionals are facing.

Many companies are opting to use AI-powered tools for tasks traditionally performed by entry-level employees, resulting in a challenging job market for recent college graduates. While the national unemployment rate remains around 4 percent, the rate for new graduates has risen to 6 percent in the first quarter of the year. 

Job seekers are increasingly using AI tools to distribute their resumes widely, while employers rely on advanced applicant tracking systems to filter candidates. Since 2019, hiring of recent graduates at tech firms has dropped by nearly 50 percent, with similar trends seen in business and finance roles. Young professionals report frustration, feeling that despite following traditional advice, opportunities are diminishing due to the growing reliance on AI.

College grads compete with AI for entry-level jobs

Companies have decided they'd rather have AI-powered tools do the job than pay entry-level employees, and it's basically creating a jobs crisis for young workers. So while the overall national unemployment rate is hovering around 4 percent, the unemployment rate for new college graduates peaked at 6 percent in the first quarter of this year. Now, we've heard of people applying for dozens of jobs at once. What are they facing? Dozens, hundreds. I mean, the job market has changed not only in the last, you know, five years, but in the last two. I have talked to people who are using AI tools to send their resumes around to try and, from a sheer volume perspective, get it to as many companies that are hiring. So when someone says, like, on TikTok, I've applied to 100 jobs, they really could have because they've used AI? Oh, absolutely. I've talked to people who have applied to several hundred, even in the last few months. And on the flip side, companies are using applicant tracking systems that are really tech-enabled to filter through these resumes, stack them, rank them, screen some out. It's really a bot versus bot war in the hiring space right now. I was looking through the jobs numbers, and since 2019, the hiring of recent graduates at tech firms has fallen by nearly 50 percent. It's not just tech, though, right? That's right. So we're looking at business roles in tech. Finance. Yeah, I see. And, you know, in many cases, it's these sort of back-end-type positions, and it might not be a company saying, we're going to close hiring in this space or totally eliminate our entry-level hiring, but if they need to backfill a role or if someone leaves, you know, they might say, well, can we lean on AI for now while we navigate this uncertain moment in the economy instead of expanding our headcount or, you know, replacing somebody who left. When I talk to young professionals in general, they really, they express just a real frustration, you know, feeling like we've checked every box. You told us to go to college, we went to college. You told us to pursue these industries, we're pursuing these industries. And many people I interview say they feel the rug is being pulled out from underneath.

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Breakdown