DoomJobbing is Now a Thing

What I love, as an observer and commentator on career trends, is our new era of creative names for what’s happening in the job market. From the Great Resignation, to Quiet Quitting to Ghostworking, we have a catchy name for almost any new behavior. Sometimes positive behavior, but mostly negative.

You undoubtedly have heard of Doomscrolling, and may have practiced it yourself. 50% to 80% of Gen Z (depending on the study) admit to spending time daily on the compulsive consumption of negative news and content, often driven by anxiety.

Doomscrolling, meet DoomJobbing.

You know it’s a trend to follow when Monster.com issues a report on it. Monster conducted an April 2026 survey of over 1,000 jobseekers spanning generations but skewing female (63%) The survey reveals a growing pattern of “doomjobbing,” where job seekers apply rapidly to multiple jobs with minimal vetting, treating the process more like a numbers game than a well-thought-out and curated approach. And then bemoan the cruel and indifferent job market. (My commentary, not Monster’s.)

In many cases, this behavior stems from the frustrations of a prolonged search, lack of employer feedback, and uncertainty around what truly captures a recruiter’s attention. Jobseekers come to believe the odds of getting a random job by randomly spinning the wheel, so to speak, are the same as a getting a good job through a careful and thorough job search.

Here are the key findings.

• Doomjobbing is widespread. 42% of job seekers apply to four or more jobs per search session.
• Minimal time is spent reviewing roles. 32% of job seekers spend one minute or less reviewing a job posting before applying.
• Candidates skip key details.48% admit they apply to jobs without reading the full job description. 16% said they spend less than 30 seconds on the job descritiption.
• Volume is a core strategy. 47% balance quantity and fit, 32% focus on strong matches, and 21% prioritize applying to as many roles as possible. Some admitted to some submitting as many as 16 applications in a single sitting.

Job seekers aren’t the only ones affected by doomjobbing. More applications doesn’t necessarily mean better candidates. Instead, hiring teams face higher volumes of less relevant submissions, making it harder to identify strong matches. This creates inefficiencies on both sides: candidates feel ignored. Employers feel overwhelmed. The hiring process slows down, creating a vicious cycle and more anxiety for jobseekers. And if my job will get eaten by AI in a couple of years anyway, it doesn’t matter what the positions description is or what I’m actually doing at the office.

Most probably don’t think humans are reading the applications, anyway. Applicant Tracking Systems have started using AI to help sort through qualifications, and applicants might be envisioning a bot on the other side swiping right or left based on 30 seconds of consideration, as well.

The generations that grew up with online application process, online purchasing, and online dating may not have the in-person skills needed to uncover job leads and form connections that can provide insight into a company’s culture and hiring manager’s thinking. A serious job search requires serious effort, so jobseekers who develop OG networking and research skills will almost certainly have an advantage in any competitive job market.