Two job hunting pet peeves stand out the most—and almost equally—for biopharma professionals, according to a recent BioSpace LinkedIn poll: job ghosting and ghost jobs. Over 900 poll respondents felt strongly about those two issues, with 35% picking the former and 34% the latter as their No. 1 pet peeve.

Job ghosting is a term for when job candidates have direct contact with an employer they expect a follow-up from, typically after a screening or interview, only to have no further communication. Ghost jobs, also known as fake job listings, are positions that are not actually open. Both were cited as issues in the recently published BioSpace 2025 U.S. Life Sciences Employment Outlook report, which was based in part on responses to surveys fielded late last year.

“Regardless of the number of applicants who have applied,” one respondent noted, “companies (HR) should inform all candidates of their status.”

Another commented, “Many of the current recruiting trends need to be changed – ghost jobs, recruiters not keeping appointments and not getting back to people, etc.”

Ghost Jobs: Why They Happen

While a 2024 report from hiring platform Greenhouse found that 60% of surveyed U.S. job candidates have applied to suspected ghost jobs, Greg Clouse, BioSpace recruitment manager, was somewhat skeptical about the prevalence of fake postings. He noted that they likely don’t happen as often as people think—or at least are not intentional.

Clouse said that although some believe companies post roles to accumulate candidates for future positions, that more likely happens at contracting or consulting firms. Those businesses, he noted, are always looking for talent to quickly plug into positions once they’re open. He doesn’t see that as a common practice at other organizations, as it has no real benefit.

“What’s the big thing you hear from companies right now?” Clouse said. “‘I have to go through so much junk to get a good candidate. I spend so much time siphoning through resumes to get a good candidate.’ So, you’re going to accumulate a whole bunch of other junk to go through before you get there?”

What’s more likely happening, according to Clouse, is that a job was posted or left up in error. For example, a hiring manager may have told human resources they needed to fill a position, so the HR person posted that role on a board. Then, a few days later, they found out the hiring manager didn’t get the job approved but forgot to tell them, so the post shouldn’t be up at all. Or the company may hire someone for a role, but nobody remembers to remove the post advertising the position.

Job Ghosting: An Unfortunately Common Practice

The real issue for job candidates, Clouse said, is job ghosting.

“So, for whatever reason, it’s become OK now to ignore people, and it’s—I think—frankly wrong, but it is what it is,” he said. “So, if you don’t like somebody, you just don’t reply at all.”

Job ghosting happens in part because of application volume, according to Clouse. A 2024 Resume Genius survey backs up his assertion. It found that eight out of 10 surveyed hiring managers have ghosted candidates, with the main reasons being ongoing decision-making about the right candidate (34%) and the high volume of applications (33%).

Being ghosted is not a new issue for biopharma professionals. The BioSpace 2022 How to Attract and Retain Talent report found that 52% of survey respondents had experienced employers ghosting them. Also noteworthy: 53% of respondents had encountered companies not acknowledging their job application.

Time to Hire: Getting a Job Can Take Months

A slow hiring process, the other BioSpace LinkedIn poll option that got double-digit votes, is also not a new issue for biopharma professionals. According to 2023 BioSpace data, 61% of HR and talent acquisition survey respondents said it took 30 to 60 days on average to fill a position, with 38% indicating time to hire was at least 46 days.

Clouse noted that he’s introduced candidates only to have companies take 45 days to indicate they want to talk to them. At that point, he said, the candidate is seldom still available for that job.

“Now, they might still be open to looking, but they don’t want to look at that job anymore, because I think candidates are savvy enough to understand if it takes you 45 days to get around to me, what does that say about you and your culture?” Clouse said. “So, I think most candidates, at that point, just turn down even the opportunity to interview.”

Spotting Ghost Jobs and Tackling Job Ghosting

For those who want to spot and avoid applying to ghost jobs, Clouse said to notice if the job description sounds overly general and lacks specific information about the role itself.

Other tips, according to a recent Resume Genius article, include checking the position’s posting date, as those that have been up for two months or longer are more likely fake given that companies tend to fill positions more quickly than that. For job boards specifically, Resume Genius recommended seeing if the role is also listed on the company’s website. If not, the article noted, the employer may have forgotten to remove it from the board or is leaving it up to create the illusion of company growth or to collect data.

When it comes to addressing job ghosting, Clouse recommended that candidates contact the people they interacted with, such as a talent acquisition professional or hiring manager. He said they can reach out via email or, if they don’t know the person’s email address, LinkedIn.

Clouse advised job candidates to communicate that they enjoyed talking to the person, thought the opportunity sounded great and are excited to go to the next step. Then, he said, they can say, “I hadn’t heard back and just wanted to follow up and see if there’s anything I can do for you. Is there anything else you need from me to move to that next step? What are we looking at as a time frame so I can make sure I have everything ready?”

People are more likely to respond to this approach than to a demand for something, Clouse noted.

“Be professional,” he advised. “You always want to be professional.”

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