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The use of skills-based hiring by employers is growing, according to results of NACE’s Job Outlook 2026 survey.
Among survey participants, 70% report using skill-based hiring, up from 65% last year. Furthermore, among this year’s employers, 71% use this approach at least half of the time.
The stages in the recruiting process when employers use skills-based hiring most often are during interviewing (87%) and screening (65%). The latter is especially noteworthy as this approach has partly supplanted GPA as a screening tool. In 2019, nearly three-quarters of employers—73%—screened candidates by GPA; this year, just 42% are doing so.
Still, skill development among candidates is important whether or not employers use GPA: 73% of employers that do not screen by GPA and 67% of employers that do screen by GPA consider if a candidate has demonstrated proficiency in key competencies when making hiring decisions.
Employers also frequently use skills-based hiring practices when creating their job descriptions (81%) and interview rubrics (58%).
Although it is growing in prevalence, students appear to be unfamiliar with the concept of skills-based hiring.
The first step to overcome this disconnect is for students to understand what skills-based hiring is: a strategic approach for employers to align their recruitment processes with the skills needed for success in today's dynamic workforce. Employers do so by focusing on the skills candidates have rather than academic degrees or GPAs.
Employers can help students better understand this approach by:
- Including specific skill requirements in their job and internship position descriptions;
- Making sure their internship descriptions also identify the skills the students will develop through the experience; and
- Partnering with career services to educate and prepare students for skills-based hiring and their interviewing process.
NACE collected data for its Job Outlook 2026 survey from August 7, 2025, through September 22, 2025. Of the 183 total respondents, 170 were NACE employer members, representing 22.7% of eligible member respondents. The Job Outlook 2026 survey was also distributed to nonmember companies; this group provided an additional 13 responses. Job Outlook 2026 is available on NACEWeb.
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