Only 55% of Gen Z in UK Feel Job-Ready as Skills Gap Widens

Gen Z Don’t Know What Employers Want

The Youth Voice Census surveyed 8,278 people aged 11 to 30 across the UK. Fewer than half (49%) said they understood what employers wanted from applicants. Among young people not in education, employment or training, that figure dropped to just 26%.

Confidence falls further when the questions become more specific. Only 60% believed they held the right qualifications, while 50% thought they had enough work experience. The main barriers were a lack of experience at 47%, travel or location at 45%, and missing skills at 35%.

I work with young career-changers every day, helping them to tailor job applications and prepare for interviews, and so I know that this is not simply a crisis of confidence. Young people are receiving a clear message from job descriptions: qualifications alone are not enough. Employers also want practical ability, workplace awareness and evidence that candidates can contribute from day one.

This is why Learning People’s career support is such a crucial part of our students’ success - in fact, 78% of people who enrol with us do so because of Career Services!

Work experience should help close this gap - yet only 26% of young people in education completed a placement during the previous year, despite 74% valuing the opportunity. A third had done no extracurricular, volunteering or social-action activities that could provide further evidence for a CV.

At the same time, only 25% believed employers supported the recruitment of young people, down from 31% in 2024. That creates a readiness trap: applicants in the entry-level job market need experience, but the opportunities to gain it are narrowing.

Employer behaviour appears to be reinforcing the problem. According to an analysis of early-career recruitment by Lewis Silkin, 57% of businesses face skills shortages, yet 43% recruited fewer people over the previous year.