Too many applications? Some tips to take control of that volume

We recently attended the IHR Early Careers Conferences in London and Manchester, where delegates were asked to share their biggest recruitment challenges this year. Unsurprisingly, volume of applications came out on top

In this article, we'll explore why employers are seeing such high application numbers and share practical steps you can take to manage volume more effectively.

(If you need support with your recruitment campaigns, get in touch.)

According to the ISE Student Recruitment Survey, the average vacancy now receives 140 applications. At the same time, our Early Careers Survey 2025 found that more than a quarter of respondents applied to as many roles as possible, with 27% of graduates submitting more than 50 applications.

While a high number of applications may sound like a good problem to have, the reality is it's creating pressure on teams, slowing processes, and making it harder to identify the right candidates.

What's driving this surge in volume?

• Fewer roles: according to the ISE, entry level roles were down 5%, concentrating demand into fewer opportunities (with similar trends from Indeed and Adzuna).
• A changing landscape - from graduates applying for school/college level roles to the removal of minimum academic requirements on some roles, this has created more competition, which hasn’t been there in the past.
• AI-enabled applications - AI tools are making it faster and easier for candidates to write and submit applications. Our Early Careers Survey revealed that 30% of respondents used AI for writing a CV or cover letter.
• Lower friction to apply - features like LinkedIn Easy Apply and similar options, means its much quicker for candidates to apply and at a greater scale.
• Wider economic uncertainty - news around AI taking jobs, fewer opportunities and the cost of living are making candidates worried, meaning more applications to maximise their chances.

The result being a high number of applications, but not necessarily higher quality or better matched candidates. So, what can you do about this?

Set clear expectations around AI use

AI is being used more and more by candidates in applications, but expectations around its use are still unclear. Whether you support AI use or not, clarity is key. Without it, you risk receiving high volumes and overly generic applications, lacking personalisation.

What you can do:

• Include clear AI guidance in your job descriptions and career pages. This could be a short statement around candidate AI usage or a dedicated policy or FAQ section.
• Provide examples of good and bad practices around AI.
• Encourage transparency from candidates by asking them to explain how and why they have used AI.
• Watch our webinar, 'How AI is shaping early careers - what employers need to know'.

Setting these expectations helps to improve application quality, not just reduce volume. It also supports candidates who may be unsure how to use AI appropriately, creating a fair process for everyone.

Consider AI and automation tools to manage volume

There's no shortage of AI and automation tools that can help manage application numbers, reduce manual workload and improve the candidate experience.

The challenge is finding the right solutions for your process. Therefore, it's key to:

• Understand your recruitment funnel - analyse where applications are coming from, where candidates drop off in the recruitment process and which stages create bottlenecks. This insight will help you identify where technology can have the biggest impact.
• Define your goals - different tools serve different purposes. Are you trying to reduce irrelevant applications, speed up your process or improve candidate engagement? Clarity here will help you select the right solution.
• Learn from others - conferences, professional networks and online recruiter groups are great ways to see what works in early careers recruitment and avoid pitfalls others have encountered.
• Balance automation with human judgement - even the best tools need oversight, especially when assessing fit, motivation or potential bias.

These tools can help with volume, but don't forget that candidates increasingly value transparency. Be upfront with candidates if you use automation or AI in your recruitment processes and explain why you use it.

Use job descriptions to encourage self-selection

An effective way to manage volume is to make your job descriptions clear and detailed upfront. When candidates have a realistic understanding of the role, they can screen themselves in or out of the process, which in turn reduces unsuitable applications and ensures you attract more motivated, engaged applicants.

Make sure to include:

• Salary - this stops misaligned expectations later in the process.
• Location - include office location, and if you offer hybrid or remote options.
• Benefits and progression opportunities - highlight what makes your role attractive and potential career paths.
• Required skills - distinguish between essential and desirable requirements.
• Eligibility criteria - specify qualifications, work eligibility, whether international students can apply.
• Supporting materials - include links that showcase your brand, work environment and day-to-day of the role.
• AI usage - as mentioned above.

Review and refine your recruitment process

Practical steps to manage applications:

• Introduce realistic job previews: short videos or insights into the role and team can help candidates decide if it's right for them before progressing.
• Use more personalised, role relevant questions - move away from generic application questions. Questions that reflect the role and your organisation encourage more authentic responses and reduce overly generic AI responses.
• Incorporate task-based assessments and real-life scenarios - these tend to drive higher engagement and better demonstrate candidate suitability.
• Review your funnel and marketing data - track where candidates are dropping off and which channels are driving applications. This can help you prioritise where you need to focus with marketing campaigns and on your recruitment process.
• Evaluate tools regularly - there's no single right approach in recruitment with online tests to video interviews to assessment centres having their positives and negatives. Spend time reviewing what works and adjusting where needed.
• Maintain candidate engagement - in a competitive, uncertain market, candidates may accept the first offer they receive. Additionally, many are facing frequent rejections, which can impact motivation and engagement. Regular communication, clear timelines, and feedback keeps them engaged, reduces reneging and overall, creates a more positive candidate experience.

Be more targeted with your attraction strategy

When application volumes are high, it can be tempting to reduce attraction activity. The problem with this approach is that there may still be recruitment challenges around skills shortages in specific roles or difficulties with location-based hiring. Stepping out of the recruitment arena even for one cycle may give a talent attraction advantage to your competitors and it is hard to pick up momentum further down the line.

Instead of reducing activity, the focus should be on being more targeted:

• Think locally - graduates are less geographically mobile than expected, with many staying in the same region as their home address. Location focused strategies can make a significant difference, especially for roles outside major cities. Working with local institutions and organisations and attending local fairs and recruitment events can help you reach candidates for harder-to-fill roles in specific locations.
• Build talent pipelines earlier - engage with schools, colleges and universities to create a pipeline of future candidates. This not only supports work experience and apprenticeship hiring but builds a pool for future graduate roles.
• Use data to refine your approach - analyse which channels are most effective, understand where students are, and learn what motivates them to understand your audience and refine your strategy. (We can help with this.)
• Change up your tactics - relying on the same channels can limit who you reach. Exploring a mix of in-person, virtual, and targeted activities can help you engage different talent pools and attract more relevant candidates.
• Be strategic with frictionless tools - options like LinkedIn Easy Apply can be useful for broad roles, but for targeted or hard-to-fill roles, too much ease can attract less relevant candidates. Effective targeting should be a priority, but if you do use these tools, consider introducing extra steps, mentioned in this article, to filter out irrelevant applicants.
• Rethink your recruitment window - adjusting when and how long roles are open, such as recruiting at different times of year, shortening application windows, or closing roles early once you've received a strong pool of candidates, can help manage volume. However, this should be balanced carefully with your EDI goals, ensuring other attraction activity is in place so you don't unintentionally limit access for underrepresented groups.

Outsource where it adds value

Outsourcing parts of your recruitment can be an effective way to manage high volume. While there may be initial costs, working with organisations like Prospects to support your recruitment marketing, to ATS providers and organisations that can support with AI and automation can help reduce workload and make your overall process more efficient.

Find out more

Prospects can help you with writing effective job descriptions, understanding data, recruitment marketing and so much more. If you need support, get in touch today.

Thanks for reading the latest newsletter. If you have any thoughts or feedback on future topics we should cover, please reach out. You can find out more about what we do and advertising your opportunities on the Prospects website.

Written by

Matthew West

Marketing communications executive

Prospects at Jisc