Gen Z Leads the Way in Dishonesty
Why do candidates for jobs exaggerate on their resumes stretch the truth? Monster’s Resume Confessions Report reveals a disconnect between what workers believe and what they’re willing to do. Nearly 6 in 10 U.S. adults (59%) say a resume should always be completely truthful, but 37% would exaggerate something on their resume to land their dream job if they knew they’d never be caught. Meanwhile, 45% believe employers and job seekers are equally guilty of exaggerating to land the hire or the job.
Workers also acknowledge exaggeration in their own job searches. More than 1 in 4 (27%) say they’ve intentionally included something that wasn’t completely accurate to improve their chances of getting hired.
These results do not surprise me at all. Our society has developed a new standard for truthfulness, and it seems to be ‘so long as you won’t get caught, exaggeration/lying is acceptable.’ The underlying ethical reason is that the ends justify the means. In other words, if we seek to be hired by an employer, we can choose ways of embellishing our resume. It’s a worthy goal.
The report explores how workers think about resume honesty, what candidates exaggerate, why they do it, and where they draw the line between presenting themselves favorably and being dishonest.
Key Finding of Monster Survey
- Nearly half see exaggeration on both sides. 45% believe employers and job seekers exaggerate equally during the hiring process.
- Exaggeration is widely expected during hiring. 89% believe employers, job seekers, or both stretch the truth, while just 11% say neither side exaggerates.
- More than 1 in 4 admit to resume inaccuracies. 27% say they’ve intentionally included something on their resume that wasn’t completely accurate to improve their chances of getting hired.
- More than one-third would exaggerate without consequences. 37% say they’d exaggerate something on their resume to land their dream job if they knew they’d never be caught.
- Embellishing responsibilities is the most common change. 22% say they’ve made their responsibilities sound more impressive, while 11% have inflated their skills or experience.
- Candidates borrow language from job postings. 23% say they’ve copied wording directly from a job description into their resume to appear like a better match.
- Getting an interview is the top motivation. Among workers who have exaggerated, 38% say they did so to improve their chances of landing an interview.
- Honesty remains the standard for most workers. 59% believe a resume should always be completely truthful.
What Do Workers Exaggerate on Their Resumes?
While more than 1 in 4 workers say they’ve intentionally included something on their resume that wasn’t completely accurate to improve their chances of getting hired, the most common changes involve embellishing existing experience.
When asked about the biggest change they’ve made on a resume:
- 50% say they’ve never stretched the truth.
- 22% have made responsibilities sound more impressive.
- 11% have inflated skills or experience.
- 8% have adjusted employment dates.
- 5% have changed a job title.
- 2% have used keywords they didn’t fully qualify for.
- 2% have claimed more credit for a project.
These lying-on-resumes statistics suggest that workers are more likely to enhance or reframe their experience than make more substantial changes to their employment history.
Candidates are also tailoring their resumes closely to individual openings. Nearly 1 in 4 workers (23%) say they’ve copied wording directly from a job description into their resume to appear like a better match.
Gen Z
Nearly half of Gen Z job seekers have lied on their job applications, according to new research that paints a troubling picture not so much of today’s stable of talent but, rather, the hiring landscape.
Two recent reports reveal that resume dishonesty has reached epidemic proportions, with younger workers leading the charge. As the career services platform Career.io reports, among 1,000 full-time workers surveyed, nearly half (47%) of Gen Z applicants have fibbed their way through applications, compared to fewer than 10% of boomers. Meanwhile, the online job board FlexJobs reveals that one-third of 2,200 workers surveyed have stretched the truth on their resumes or cover letters.
Career experts say the real story here isn’t about moral decline, as many might imagine – it’s about market desperation. This another rationalization for an unethical action. Lying is indicative of a moral decline regardless of the reason for doing so.
The pressure isn’t just economic – it’s cultural. Gen Z is the first generation to grow up entirely immersed in social media, where polished highlight reels dominate their feeds. “They tend to gravitate toward TikTok, Instagram and Snapchat, which are filled with polished, bite-sized pieces of content where everyone seems to be thriving,” Izquierdo points out. “Add in the rise of influencers openly encouraging others to lie on their resumes, and it’s no surprise that many Gen Z job seekers feel tempted to exaggerate their own career stories.”
“For hiring managers, embracing skills-based hiring goes hand in hand with investing in better training and onboarding programs.”
Among Gen Z workers who admitted to dishonesty, 29% exaggerated their responsibilities, while 24% inflated their work experience. Flex.Jobs found that 19% of respondents fake enthusiasm for company missions, while 10% stretch employment dates to cover unemployment gaps.
Toni Frana, career expert manager at FlexJobs, sees these embellishments as symptoms of a larger problem. “Workers sometimes feel they need to stretch the truth to meet job market pressures and expectations from prospective employers,” she says. “In an effort to avoid being overlooked by hiring managers, rank higher with ATS scanners, or be the ‘perfect fit’ for a role, many are resorting to embellishments for the sake of staying competitive.”
Rather than tightening the verification screws, many HR leaders are rethinking their approach entirely, as Izquierdo notes, advocating for skills-based hiring that focuses on capabilities rather than traditional credentials. “Job seekers of all ages can benefit from this hiring trend by reworking their resumes to highlight their skills over job titles and backing up those skills with concrete examples or measurable outcomes,” he suggests.
This shift requires investment on the employer’s side as well. “For hiring managers, embracing skills-based hiring goes hand in hand with investing in better training and onboarding programs, especially if they want entry-level talent to grow and thrive within their organization,” Izquierdo adds.
“Workers sometimes feel they need to stretch the truth to meet job market pressures and expectations from prospective employers.”
Consequences of Embellishing One’s Resume
Perhaps the most obvious consequence of exaggerating one’s resume or lying to get an interview—maybe a job offer—is it is possible the exaggeration will come back to haunt the candidate. It could be that one’s credentials are reviewed after the hiring ad it gets out that the candidate lied.
It’s not a good idea to lie on one’s resume. Do you really want to start a job with a lie, which you may have to cover up?
I think one reason for lying/exaggerating is the fact that so may students get ‘A’ grades for their coursework.
The Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences announced on May 19 that a vote was taken to cap the number of A grades at 20 percent per course, plus or minus four A’s. The policy proposal, which faculty have deliberated over for months, passed in a 458-to-201 vote and will take effect in fall 2027.
The new cap is an effort to address grade inflation at the Ivy League university, where 66 percent of Harvard undergraduates earned A’s and 84 percent earned an A or A-minus during the 2024–25 academic year. The number of possible A-minuses will not be limited under the new grading policy.
Why are so many students earing ‘A’ grades? Having taught for 40 years, I’ve identified the following:
- Student evaluations of faculty carry weight and some faculty believe they will “earn” a higher score if they give out more ‘As’.
- Students are under pressure to produce high grades to get an interview/job because fewer jobs are available because of AI.
- Faculty do not want to create a conflict with students. In my experience, it’s not unusual for a student to lobby for a higher grade and keep at it until the faculty member relents.
Finally, the hyper-exaggeration of resumes is unfair to students who do the right thing and act honestly. What message does this send to society when some students get a job because of the embellishments while others face a more difficult task.
Blog posted on August 27, 2026, by Steven Mintz, PhD, professor emeritus from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. You can contact Steve at smintz@calpoly.edu. Visit his website (stevenmintzethics.com) to learn more about his activities.