After this summer’s weak job market performance, some career experts are hoping that fall will bring more opportunities for job seekers.
There’s a popular belief that the job market kicks into high gear in early autumn, commonly known as the “September surge.”
According to Katie Martocchio, senior talent acquisition manager at software company Prompt, the month of September brings a spike in productivity for employers and job seekers alike.
Coasting off of fall’s “back-to-school energy,” companies start “getting back into the groove” after Labor Day, she says, and year-end goals become top of mind.
“Now is the time that we can onboard someone, and they can help support and drive those goals to that finish line,” Martocchio says.
Here’s what Martocchio and other career experts say about this year’s “September surge,” and how job seekers can prepare to take advantage of the fall boost.
Why the ‘September surge’ happens
According to Maribel Valencia, a corporate and technical recruiter based in Las Vegas, Nevada, timing is a major factor in the September surge.
By September, most vacationers have returned to the office, kids are back in school “and everyone just seems to get back into the rhythm of things,” Valencia says.
Hiring is typically slow during the summer, she says, but it peaks in fall between Labor Day and the end of October.
Additionally, she points out that September lands toward the end of Q3, right when many companies are beginning to plan for the next year. Hiring teams are often trying to spend the rest of their budgets before the end of the fiscal year, too.
Posting open positions in September gives companies plenty of time to “hire, train, acclimate and get everybody ready” ahead of the new year, Valencia says.
According to career coach Colleen Paulson, the beginning of fall is “just naturally an easier time to start thinking about goals and objectives.”
“They’re starting to hire folks to get ready to solve next year’s problems,” she says.
Will the surge happen this year?
After this summer’s hiring slowdown, Valencia is uncertain that the labor market will bounce back this fall.
“I think this is the first year that I’m kind of like, is it going to happen?” she says. “Obtaining a job right now is probably the hardest I’ve seen.”
Amid recession fears, many companies are being particularly cautious about hiring, Paulson says.
“A lot of companies are trying to figure out where they can cut costs in order to maintain profitability, especially with where this market is,” she says.
Paulson predicts that the job market will “improve somewhat” in the fall, but she doesn’t anticipate a dramatic change.
“I think that hiring will certainly pick up compared to where it’s been in the summer,” she says. “Will it be what we’ve seen in the past? I don’t know that we’re going to get there.”
“In 18 years of doing this work, I feel like this is probably the worst market that I’ve seen,” Paulson continues. “This market is so much more challenging than we see on the surface.”
Martocchio has a more optimistic view — in her experience, the “September surge” is still happening in 2025, albeit a little earlier than usual. This year, Martocchio says that she posted “a ton” of roles in August so that she could get a head start on hiring timelines.
“The goal is to have people in seats for September and October, and sometimes you have to do that work ahead of time,” she says.
How job seekers can prepare for a surge
Valencia, Paulson and Martocchio all recommend that job seekers update their LinkedIn profiles ahead of a potential hiring surge.
Having a strong LinkedIn profile can help job seekers with what Paulson calls the “passive job search”: even when you’re not actively looking, “you have this profile set up that’s attracting attention to you,” she says.
“If you’re not set up with a strong profile there, you’re just missing out,” she adds.
In Martocchio’s experience, job seekers often put plenty of effort into improving their resumes, but neglect to update their LinkedIn profiles.
“From a recruiter standpoint, we look at that and we say, ‘I don’t know which one to rely on,’” she says.
She advises job seekers to ensure that their LinkedIn profiles match the depth of their resumes.
“It’s great to have them both updated, but making them cohesive, making them match, is something that I think is really important,” Martocchio says.
Even if more jobs do become available this month, Martocchio cautions job seekers to be strategic about their job search.
“Especially in the surge, it’s so tempting to just hit apply, apply, apply,” she says.
Instead, Martocchio recommends investing the majority of your energy into your top jobs. Researching the company and messaging the hiring manager will demonstrate your genuine interest in the role, she says.
“It’s just about getting your name out there and trying to stand out, because it’s hard nowadays,” she says.
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