AI was supposed to streamline hiring, but has it done the opposite? A global study led by Columbia Business School professors suggests that artificial intelligence is blurring the lines between skilled and unskilled candidates, leaving recruiters struggling to make the right choices.
Job seekers using AI tools are complicating hiring
AI has become a core hiring tool in recent years, refining how employers screen candidates, conduct assessments and identify talent. An estimated 82% of companies use AI to review resumes. While AI is streamlining hiring for big employers, candidates worry about being left out in the process. Reports indicate that AI’s rigid selection criteria can sometimes filter out top candidates, depriving both employers and job seekers of the best possible matches. At the same time, recruiters must now navigate a surge of AI-enhanced resumes to identify genuine expertise.
A study from Columbia Business School found that while generative AI significantly boosted the overall quality of job applications, it also led to a 4%–9% higher likelihood of job screeners assessing an applicant inaccurately. AI has become a widely adopted tool for updating cover letters and personalizing CVs, playing a central role in the modern job search process. Platforms like ChatGPT have proven especially useful for interview preparation. Users can provide the AI with details about their expertise, job requirements and other relevant information to generate flash cards, revision notes or key facts in a clear and customized format. Notably, for those who face language barriers, especially non-native English speakers, AI can also be an essential aid in helping them make a strong first impression, according to the research.
As reported by Financial Times, human resources group Randstad found that 57% of Gen Z workers use AI to write job applications, CVs and cover letters. For millennials, the figure stands at 40%, while just 21% of Gen X and 13% of baby boomers follow suit.
Can ChatGPT help you land your dream job?
As AI tools become increasingly embedded in the job application process, candidates are using them to tailor and refine their submissions with remarkable ease. Research suggests that cover letters crafted with the assistance of ChatGPT significantly improve the chances of securing an interview. “ChatGPT cover letters contain a bit more fiction and more (exaggerated) positivity,” according to Simone Schuilwerve at Tilburg University. “For some applicants, ChatGPT will blur the line between ‘presenting oneself desirably’ and ‘faking,’” they suggest.
The rise of AI in applications is raising concerns about the loss of authentic, authoritative applications that once set the most qualified candidates apart. As automation blurs those distinctions, hiring managers are left to question what, if anything, remains uniquely human in the application process.
Will corporations shift their hiring strategies to eliminate AI?
Incidentally, it may not be long before corporations rethink their hiring strategies. Some have already taken steps to ensure that every candidate presents an authentic and unassisted first impression. Anthropic AI, last month decided to ban the use of AI in applications for certain positions, declaring that they want to see the real human behind the online profile before hiring them. A job application form for one of the company’s current openings features a disclaimer: “While we encourage people to use AI systems during their role to help them work faster and more effectively, please do not use AI assistants during the application process.”
Simply banning the technology won’t be a quick or easy solution. Not only will people continue to use AI despite crackdowns, but detection technology is still in its infancy, meaning there’s often no way to prove whether candidates are actually being assisted. Nowhere is this more evident than in online interviews, where AI can essentially whisper answers live. People use third-party devices or separate tabs that keep an ear on the conversation, and LLMs such as ChatGPT can use text/audio translation to provide real-time answers. Practices such as this may pose a challenge that recruiters may never fully get ahead of in the hope for authenticity.
The shift toward AI in hiring is arguably raising as many concerns as solutions. Businesses are grappling with biases in their algorithms, while applicants are only adding to the complexity. The future could bring stricter regulations or even an end to remote applications, but change is inevitable. If tech continues to overlook talent and prevent recruiters from identifying key skills, alternative routes may emerge that minimize or exclude automated assistance altogether.
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