The Institute of Student Employers (ISE) has said students are falling short in work readiness and risk overselling themselves in job applications through use of AI. In their annual Student Development survey the ISE found around half of employers are concerned that graduates (48 per cent) and school and college leavers (52 per cent) who use AI in the selection process misrepresent their abilities.
While candidates using AI to apply for jobs led to record job applications, most of those starting out on their careers in 2025 will have studied under lockdown conditions and had less access to work experience opportunities.
ISE’s survey found many employers are concerned that their student hires are less prepared for work than previous intakes. In particular, concerns over essential communication and interpersonal skills have significantly increased.
In 2025, 54 per cent of employers reported that graduates did not meet expectations in self-awareness (up from 43 per cent in 2024 and 35 per cent in 2023), while 46 per cent reported concerns about resilience (up from 37 per cent in 2024 and 30 per cent in 2023). Work-appropriate verbal communication was a concern for 22 per cent (up from 17 per cent in 2024 and 7 per cent in 2023).
For school and college leavers, more employers reported unmet expectations in key areas. In 2025, 48 per cent of employers highlighted concerns about resilience (up from 35 per cent in 2024 and 25 per cent in 2023), while 43 per cent cited self-awareness (up from 31 per cent in 2024 and 33 per cent in 2023).
Additionally, concerns about work-appropriate verbal communication rose to 42 per cent in 2025 (up from 29 per cent in 2024 and 22 per cent in 2023), and concerns about written communication rose to 46 per cent (up from 28 per cent in 2024 and 2023).
For other technical and analytical skills such as problem solving, the performance of graduates and school and college leavers broadly met the expectations of the majority of employers.
“When employers take on new hires whose skills are not fully aligned with their performance during recruitment it creates a no-win situation for everyone,” said Stephen Isherwood, joint CEO of ISE. “At best, the training process is disrupted, at worst, the candidate finds themselves in the wrong job.
“It’s important that students are genuine about their capabilities, but we need to do more to boost confidence in their abilities,” he added. “Undoubtably work experience makes better hires. It is the single most valuable step a student can take to improve their employability. It will help develop the essential skills businesses want and employers like to hire former interns, so students may just find themselves with a job at the end of it.”
