Drastically fewer entry-level jobs for IT professionals

According to an analysis by the career portal Indeed, the job market for entry-level positions in Germany has shrunk by more than two-thirds since 2022. Knowledge-based professions and office jobs, especially in IT, are particularly hard hit. Of all the professional groups examined, the IT applications and solutions sector recorded the largest decline at 77 percent. Fields such as data and analytics, IT infrastructure and support, and software development saw only slightly smaller reductions.

Indeed also sees a drastic decline in job offers for career starters in other professional fields such as marketing (minus 75 percent) and project management (minus 60 percent). Overall, the number of openings has decreased in 26 out of 28 professional groups studied since 2022, with 23 of them falling more sharply than the overall market. Only in the fields of nursing, medicine, and pharmacy (plus 18 percent) and food, gastronomy, and hospitality (plus 10 percent) did the number of entry-level job openings increase.

Indeed also recorded not quite as significant, but still considerable, losses for internships and working student positions during studies. Fields such as software development and IT applications and solutions also saw a decline of around 50 percent here.

Starting professional life disadvantaged?

Until 2022, the availability of entry-level jobs had risen sharply, reaching its peak in July 2022, according to Indeed, after which the decline began. The overall market also weakened during the same period but lost just over a third (39 percent), significantly less than entry-level positions.

“Anyone starting their professional career today has only about half as many job openings to choose from as a few years ago,” explained Dr. Virginia Sondergeld, economist and labor market expert at Indeed. “This increases the risk for young people to begin their careers with a period of unemployment.” There is a threat of a cohort entering the workforce with a disadvantage from the start.

Apprenticeship market significantly more robust

According to Indeed’s figures, the apprenticeship market, including dual study programs, appears significantly more robust. In 20 out of 23 professional groups, the number of apprenticeship openings increased more strongly between 2019 and the last season from August 2025 to July 2026 than entry-level jobs. In software development, for example, entry-level jobs decreased by 70 percent since 2019, while apprenticeships such as IT specialist for application development remained 27 percent above the 2019 level.

There is frequent debate about whether companies prefer to use artificial intelligence for routine tasks instead of hiring young people. According to Virginia Sondergeld, however, this cannot be proven with the current data: “Entry-level candidates are primarily the first victims of the weak economy, because in uncertain times, companies first save where they would have to invest in young talent. The most effective help for this generation is therefore an economy that grows again.”

Sondergeld advises young people to carefully consider the choice between vocational training and university. This can be particularly worthwhile in a weak economy. “Apprenticeships take place within a company, which can train its young talent for its needs and often hires them. The fact that companies stick with apprenticeships even in weak years, thus offering young people prospects, contributes to Germany having one of the lowest youth unemployment rates in Europe.” According to Eurostat, the youth unemployment rate in 2025 was 7.1 percent, a slight increase compared to the previous year. However, Sondergeld notes that the content of apprenticeships must also be adapted to the AI era to remain future-proof.

(axk)