Among Gen Zers whose parents attended interviews, 40% say they sat in, about one-third say parents answered or asked questions, and over a quarter say they helped negotiate pay or benefits. Roughly 1 in 4 say parents introduced themselves or spoke positively about them to the hiring manager.
Parents are also going the extra mile as their full-time career coach. Three in four Gen Zers have tapped a parent as a reference. Most have had parents apply for jobs (63%), email hiring managers (54%), or even call them directly (53%). Nearly half had parents complete test assignments (48%), and 41% let a parent handle the first HR call. About 8 in 10 Gen Z workers say their parents even communicate with their manager.
Career experts warn that using a parent in an interview as a buffer might not be as beneficial as they expect.
“If you’re the parent who’s inserting yourself, you’re going to diminish the confidence that your son or daughter has walking into interviews, thinking that they can’t do it themselves,” Britton says.
Instead of using their parents as an interview assistant in the room, Britton recommends Gen Z use them more behind the scenes. For example, they can help with interview practice.
However, if they prove not great at question-asking—that’s when AI can be an even greater resource. Using generative tools like ChatGPT to produce interview prep tools can help generate curveball questions and could help candidates feel prepared for topics they may not have thought of, Britton adds.
“[By utilizing AI] You’re going to learn a lot about the person and the company on the front end, which will help you come up with a list of questions that you want answered,” she says.
