AI and entry-level jobs: 26% of AI-influenced managers hire fewer beginners
By Kabir SethiEducation Correspondent, Peepals Yuva
Representative image: jump1987 / Pixabay
A Northeastern University survey of 8,174 hiring managers, published 2 November 2026, found 26% of those influenced by AI now hire fewer entry-level workers.
What Happened
About one in four hiring managers whose recruitment has been shaped by artificial intelligence (AI) say they are now taking on fewer entry-level workers, according to the Northeastern University AI & Society Survey published on Monday, 2 November 2026. The survey, run by the Boston-based university, questioned 8,174 people who have the authority to hire. About half said AI had influenced their recruiting decisions. Within that group, 26% said they were hiring fewer entry-level candidates, 7% said they were hiring more, and 28% said they were hiring about the same number but expected beginners to do more advanced work with the help of AI.
Key Facts
- Survey: Northeastern University AI & Society Survey, published 2 November 2026.
- Sample: 8,174 people with hiring authority.
- About half said AI had influenced their recruiting decisions.
- Of those influenced by AI: 26% hired fewer entry-level workers, 7% hired more, 28% hired the same number but expected higher-level work, and 38% reported no change.
- Across industries, the share hiring fewer entry-level staff ranged from 24% in manufacturing, mining and construction to 28% in finance, insurance and real estate, according to a summary by the university's research institute.
- About seven in ten respondents said more AI training would help, the university reported.
- The 26% figure applies only to the AI-influenced group, not to all employers surveyed.
Why It Matters
Entry-level jobs are the first rung of a career: the role where a graduate learns the basics of an industry while doing routine work. Many of those routine tasks, such as drafting documents, sorting data or writing simple code, are exactly what AI tools now do quickly. The survey suggests that some employers are responding in two ways: hiring fewer beginners, or hiring the same number but expecting them to start at a higher level.
The second group matters as much as the first. If 28% of AI-influenced managers want new hires to do more advanced work from day one, the skills a graduate needs to get in the door are changing, not only the number of openings. That pattern was similar across very different industries, from factories to finance.
The survey also has limits. It measures what managers say about their own decisions, not actual hiring data. Economists have not reached a single view on AI and youth jobs: other studies cited in coverage of the issue have found entry-level headcount rising at some firms that invest heavily in AI. The figures here are best read as a picture of employer attitudes, not a count of jobs.
For Indian students, the findings are relevant because many Indian graduates apply to global companies, including their Indian offices, where AI tools are changing similar routine tasks. The survey's own respondents pointed to AI training as useful, and the employers who kept hiring said they wanted beginners who could use AI tools for more advanced work; students planning their first job search can look at whether their courses and projects show those skills.
Peepals calculation: If about half of the 8,174 respondents were influenced by AI, that is roughly 4,087 people. Applying the reported shares, about 1,063 of them said they hired fewer entry-level workers (4,087 × 0.26) and about 286 said they hired more (4,087 × 0.07), a net gap of 19 percentage points. Across the whole sample, the managers who hired fewer beginners because of AI are about 13% of all respondents (0.5 × 26%). Our calculation from the reported figures.
| Response among AI-influenced hiring managers | Share |
|---|---|
| Hiring fewer entry-level workers | 26% |
| Hiring more entry-level workers | 7% |
| Same number, but expect more advanced work | 28% |
| No change | 38% |
Impact
Short-term: Graduates entering the job market may face fewer openings at some employers and higher expectations at others, with AI skills becoming part of what is asked at the start.
Long-term: If fewer people get entry-level roles, employers could later face a shortage of mid-level staff who learned on the job, which is one reason some employers and researchers are watching the trend closely.
Who is affected: College students and new graduates, including Indian students aiming for jobs with global companies; universities designing courses; and employers deciding how to train junior staff.
Key Takeaway
A Northeastern University survey of 8,174 hiring managers found that among those influenced by AI, 26% are hiring fewer entry-level workers and 28% expect beginners to do more advanced work.
Questions and Answers
Is AI reducing entry-level jobs, according to the Northeastern survey?
Among the roughly half of hiring managers who said AI had influenced their decisions, 26% said they were hiring fewer entry-level workers and 7% said they were hiring more. That works out to about 13% of everyone surveyed.
Who was surveyed?
8,174 people with hiring authority, in the Northeastern University AI & Society Survey published on 2 November 2026.
Are employers that keep hiring changing what they want?
Yes. 28% of AI-influenced managers said they hire about the same number of beginners but expect them to do more advanced work with AI.
Does the survey show actual job losses?
No. It records what hiring managers say about their own decisions; it is not a count of jobs.
Disclaimer: Prepared by the Peepals newsroom from publicly available sources with AI assistance. Information is accurate to the best of our knowledge at the time of publication and may change. Images may be representative. Not professional advice. Report an error via our contact page.
By Kabir Sethi, Education CorrespondentCovers Education and more for Peepals Yuva. All stories by Kabir Sethi
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Kabir Sethi is a pen name of the Peepals Global Editorial Team, which researches, fact-checks and publishes every story. The portrait is an illustration.
