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Additionally, Indeed’s research found that the majority of job ads (52%) have no formal education requirement, up from 48% in 2019. During the same period, 87% of occupational groups saw a decrease in mentions of college degrees.
A recent ZipRecruiter survey of 2,000 employers also indicates a shift toward so-called “skills-based hiring,” prioritizing “abilities” over traditional qualifications: Over the past year, 45% of employers have eliminated degree requirements for some roles, and 72% of employers now prioritize skills over qualifications for job candidates.
According to ZipRecruiter, this trend of prioritizing candidates’ practical skills and real-world experience over formal education appears to be “gaining momentum.”
Meanwhile, Corey Stahl, an economist at jobs site Indeed, said recruiters are becoming more clear in their job ads about the specific skills they are looking for in candidates.
“We’re definitely seeing changes in how interviews and the hiring process are conducted,” Staal said.
As the U.S. economy reopened in 2021 after lockdowns early in the pandemic, demand for workers surged to record highs. Companies struggled to fill job openings amid talent shortages and increased competition for workers.
According to a recent joint study by Harvard Business School and the Burning Glass Institute, this hiring “pressure” is causing employers to eliminate college degree requirements, rendering approximately 62% of Americans without a degree “ineligible.”
Additionally, companies have placed more emphasis on fairness in the workplace, the report said.
More than 70% of black, Hispanic and rural workers lack a four-year college degree, according to staffing firm Randstad USA, and a “paper cap” means valuable skills may be overlooked.
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While traditional measures of career fit, such as educational qualifications, will likely remain important for surgeons and other professionals, many employers are realizing that such qualifications aren’t necessarily a good indicator of career fit, Indeed’s Stahle said.
Job seekers will benefit through new career opportunities that were previously unavailable to them, he added.
A Harvard study found that skills-based hiring also has tangible, measurable “win-win” outcomes for companies and workers, including improved retention rates for workers without college degrees and significantly higher average salaries for such candidates.
That being said, there are some limitations, such as hiring manager stereotypes.
For example, the Harvard report states that about 45% of companies “appeared to have only changed the name of the requirement after removing it from their job descriptions, with no significant change in their actual hiring behavior.”
“Change is difficult for employers,” the company added.
“if [job ad’s] “The job search is focused on skills, so your resume should be focused on skills,” Staal says.
But while skills should “stand out” in these cases, Staal added, that doesn’t mean applicants should forego more traditional information.
Applicants want to be accurate about their work and education history because their resumes may be reviewed by recruiters who value those qualifications, he said.
But it’s not just about resumes: Job seekers should be prepared for prospective employers to conduct some sort of skills test during the hiring process, though how they do this will vary from company to company, he added.
Developing and demonstrating the identified skills are two major keys for jobseekers, he said.
