Dive Brief:
- Almost half of job seekers (49%) use resumes longer than one page and 30% have resumes two pages or longer due to growing concerns over applicant tracking systems, according to Monster's 2026 State of Resumes Report.
- The national survey of 1,001 U.S. job seekers found that candidates are no longer just trying to stand out among their peers. They’re “trying to survive the screening process,” with 77% of candidates worried their resumes will be filtered out before even reaching a human reviewer.
- Due to high application volume, long job postings and a belief that ATS optimization matters more than fine-tuned storytelling, 68% of candidates said they spend less than 30 minutes tailoring a resume for each application. “Efficiency has become the priority, not perfection,” the report said.
Dive Insight:
The report, which represented working-age adults across four generations, outlines a hiring landscape with unclear standards that force many candidates to guess at what they’re expected to do, Monster said in a press release, adding that “confusion, anxiety, and legacy habits continue to shape resume decisions.”
While job seekers know that resumes still matter, they’re not convinced the hiring system works in their favor, the report said.
Overall confidence in resume review is low, with 43% of job seekers saying they believe hiring managers only skim resumes, and 6% saying they believe resumes are read thoroughly, per the report.
"Resumes are no longer static documents; they're evolving alongside how hiring actually works,” Vicki Salemi, career expert at Monster, said in the release. “Job seekers know the rules are changing, but many are still unsure how to respond. The data shows people trying to balance speed, customization, and credibility in an increasingly automated process."
Instead of undergoing deep rewrites, resume writers now limit customization to keyword swaps, reordered skills or small summary edits, the report said. However, Monster added that the shift isn’t about laziness or disengagement, but rather about efficiency, uncertainty and adapting to unclear expectations.
Against these evolving standards, online applications have dropped somewhat, while the proportion of recruiter-sourced applicants have increased 72% since 2023, according to recent data from Glassdoor, from 8.6% to 14.8%.
