Employers, particularly those in the public and educational sectors, just love application forms. From the recruiter's perspective, they do have a number of advantages :

	There is nearly always a declaration which you (the applicant) have to sign which states that all of the information furnished is true, followed by a warning statement from the employer that "falsification can lead to summary dismissal" or words to that effect.
	Recruiters can compare like with like more easily using a standardised format and can get through the screening process more rapidly.
	You are frequently required to include information which you would normally omit from your CV: › Health status, Sick leave record › Reasons for leaving current and previous employments › Precise remuneration details for each position held (And remember that "falsification can lead to summary dismissal.")
	They also require you to indicate month and year for commencement and termination of each employment, which can expose gaps that you might otherwise gloss over.

Application Forms 101 - have a look at the basics