The Class of 2026: Five Things Graduates and Hiring Managers Should Consider

The transition from college to the workforce has never been particularly straightforward. But for the Class of 2026, the path feels especially complicated.

Recent graduates are entering a market shaped by leaner organizations, higher expectations and an application process increasingly influenced by artificial intelligence. Candidates are using AI to find opportunities, tailor résumés and prepare for interviews. Employers are using technology to screen and manage an overwhelming volume of applications.

The process may be more efficient, but it does not necessarily lead to better matches.

A talented candidate can be filtered out before a recruiter ever sees their résumé. Another may rise to the top because they—or the AI tool they used—understood how to optimize an application, not because they are better suited for the role.

For both graduates and hiring managers, navigating this new environment requires a combination of technology and something far less automated: curiosity, judgment, evidence and genuine human connection.

Here are five things both sides should keep in mind.

1. AI fluency matters, but human judgment matters more

The Class of 2026 is the first graduating class to have spent most of college with generative AI readily available. More than 80% have used it, and 57% report using it at least weekly. Common uses include brainstorming, self-teaching, improving written communication and accelerating research.¹

For employers, this comfort with emerging technology can be a real advantage. Many organizations are still determining how AI fits into their workflows. New graduates can bring a willingness to experiment, learn new platforms and identify more efficient ways of working.

In fact, 73% of hiring managers say entry-level hires are typically more comfortable with emerging technology than senior employees, and 70% expect AI to change the requirements of entry-level roles.¹

But familiarity with AI is not the same as independent thinking.

For graduates: Use AI to support your work, not replace it. Be prepared to explain how you used it, what you verified and where you applied your own judgment.

For hiring managers: Don’t assume an AI-assisted application lacks authenticity—or that a beautifully written résumé demonstrates ability. Ask candidates to describe their process. The most revealing question may not be, “Do you use AI?” but, “How do you decide when to trust it?”

The strongest candidates will be able to use the technology without surrendering their judgment to it.

2. Skills matter more when candidates can prove them

Skills-based hiring continues to grow. Seventy percent of employers now report using it, up from 65% the previous year. Employers apply skills-based criteria most often during interviews and application screening.²

At the same time, GPA is becoming less influential as an initial screening tool. Only 42% of employers now screen candidates by GPA, compared with 73% in 2019.²

That shift should benefit recent graduates. It allows employers to consider what candidates can do rather than relying exclusively on where they went to school, what they studied or whether they have already held a conventional professional position.

The challenge is that graduates do not always recognize the skills they have developed—or know how to communicate them.

A summer job can demonstrate reliability and customer service. A student organization can show leadership and collaboration. A capstone project may provide evidence of research, analysis, presentation and problem-solving. Those experiences count, but only when candidates explain why they are relevant.

For graduates: Don’t simply list your responsibilities. Show what you contributed, how you approached the work and what happened as a result.

For hiring managers: Look beyond job titles and traditional credentials. A candidate may not have direct industry experience but may already possess the curiosity, communication skills and problem-solving ability the role requires.

Experience is valuable. Potential is, too.

3. Human connection has become a competitive advantage

AI has made it easier to create a polished application, and much easier to submit applications at scale. Employers, faced with an enormous number of responses, increasingly depend on automated systems to manage the volume.

The result is a strange loop: AI helps candidates write applications, and AI helps employers decide which applications deserve human attention.

Qualified candidates inevitably disappear in that process.

At the same time, successfully optimizing a résumé for an algorithm does not necessarily identify the best employee. It may simply identify the person who is best at optimizing a résumé for an algorithm.

This makes networking more important, not less.

A conversation can provide context that a résumé cannot. A referral does not guarantee that someone is qualified, but it can help ensure a qualified person receives meaningful consideration.

For graduates: Treat networking as a central part of your job search rather than something you do after applying. Talk to alumni, professors, former supervisors, family friends and people working in fields that interest you. Attend industry and community events whenever possible. Ask for insight, not immediately for a job.

In-person networking can be especially valuable. A thoughtful conversation at an alumni gathering, professional event or informational meeting is more likely to create a memorable connection than another generic LinkedIn request.

For hiring managers: Automated screening is useful, but it should not become the only route into your organization. Build relationships with colleges, attend career events, encourage employee referrals and create opportunities to meet emerging talent before a specific position needs to be filled.

AI can help a graduate create a better résumé. A relationship can help ensure someone actually reads it.

4. Real examples reveal more than polished answers

As applications become more polished and standardized, interviews must do more than confirm what appears on the résumé.

Behavioral questions, work samples and practical exercises give candidates an opportunity to demonstrate how they think, communicate and respond to challenges. They also help employers distinguish between someone who has learned the right language and someone who can apply those ideas in practice.

For graduates: Prepare specific examples of times you solved a problem, learned something quickly, handled feedback, worked through a disagreement or took initiative.

You do not need a dramatic corporate success story. You need an honest example that shows how you approached the situation, what you did and what you learned.

Be prepared to discuss every claim on your résumé in your own words. If AI helped you articulate an experience, you must still be able to explain the decisions, challenges and results behind it.

For hiring managers: Create interviews that allow candidates to demonstrate their abilities rather than rewarding only the most polished or confident speaker. Use consistent questions, realistic scenarios and thoughtful follow-ups.

Confidence can be compelling, but it is not always the same as capability.

The goal of an interview should not be to catch a candidate saying the wrong thing. It should be to discover how that person thinks, learns and might contribute.

5. Entry-level hiring is an investment in both directions

Organizations often say they need experienced employees while reducing the opportunities through which people gain that experience.

That is not a sustainable talent strategy.

Hiring recent graduates takes intention. They need clear expectations, useful feedback, exposure to different parts of the business and meaningful opportunities to contribute.

But employers also gain something valuable in return: technological fluency, current knowledge, adaptability and a fresh perspective on processes experienced employees may no longer question.

Hiring managers recognize this potential. Eighty-three percent say entry-level hires are critical to their organizations’ future success, while 71% believe early-career employees add immediate value. Among employers planning to increase entry-level hiring, 51% cite the need to build their future leadership pipeline.¹

For graduates: Your first job does not need to be your forever job. Look for a place where you can learn, contribute, build relationships and discover more about your strengths.

Bring curiosity, reliability and a willingness to do the work—even when the first assignment is not particularly glamorous. Your first position may be an entry point rather than a destination.

For hiring managers: Consider what a candidate might become with the right experience, not only what they can do on their first day. Intentional entry-level hiring strengthens succession planning, develops future leaders and brings new energy into an organization.

The greatest benefit comes when generations work together. Emerging professionals bring comfort with new technology and fewer assumptions about how work must be done. Experienced professionals bring context, judgment, relationships and institutional knowledge.

Each makes the other stronger.

A place to begin

The Class of 2026 does not need to have everything figured out. Most successful careers are far less linear than they appear in retrospect.

Graduates need opportunities to begin, make mistakes, develop skills and discover what kind of work they do well. Employers need thoughtful, adaptable people who can grow alongside their organizations.

Technology will continue to change how the two find each other. But the qualities that create a successful match remain remarkably human: curiosity, initiative, resilience, judgment and the willingness to recognize potential before it is fully formed.

For graduates, the next opportunity may not look like the beginning of a long-term career. It may simply look like a place to start.

For employers, that seemingly junior hire may become one of the most valuable investments the organization makes.

Sources

1. Handshake, “What Does AI Mean for Your Early Talent Pipeline?”
Based on surveys of more than 2,400 students and 1,000 hiring managers, along with an analysis of millions of job descriptions and résumés.
Read the Handshake article

2. National Association of Colleges and Employers, “Employer Use of Skills-Based Hiring Practices Grows.”
Based on NACE’s Job Outlook 2026 survey of 183 employers, conducted between August and September 2025.
Read the NACE research