The National Employment Information Association investigated the employment status of university graduates from 2021 to 2023* and found that about 3% changed jobs within three and a half years of joining the company as a new graduate. People who feel that their current job suits them are more likely to stay at their job, and fostering a sense of job suitability is the key to preventing people from quitting their jobs.
The survey was conducted in August 2024 through the internet research company Macromill. The subjects were people who were hired by a private company as new graduates and are currently full-time employees of a private company or full-time civil servants. A total of 8 valid responses were obtained from 2021 people graduating in 540, 2022 people graduating in 548, and 2023 people graduating in 560.
According to the survey results, 48.8% of people feel that their current work is the right fit for them, 39.8% feel that they are doing well, 40.9% are satisfied with their career choice, and 35.0% are able to proactively shape their career. The survey also showed that communication with the company regarding initial assignment is important, and that a high percentage of people who were assigned to the position they wanted felt that it was "right for me." Even if it was not what they wanted, many people would feel the same way if they received an explanation of the reason for the assignment and if their aptitude was reflected.
On the other hand, while 22.3% of people overall had changed jobs, 3% of those graduating in 2021, who have been with the company for three and a half years since joining the company as new graduates, have changed jobs. Overall, 30.7% have the intention to change jobs, 39.7% are actually looking for a new job, and 10.0% are considering changing jobs.
Looking at the relationship between awareness of one's suitable career and changing jobs, 31.8% of those who had awareness of their suitable career also intended to change jobs, while 39.0% were unable to say either way, and 60.2% had no awareness of their suitable career, suggesting that the presence or absence of awareness of one's suitable career influences quitting one's job.
Hiroki Sato, professor emeritus at the University of Tokyo, summarized his research and analysis as saying, "A sense of job suitability influences whether new graduates stay put when they join the company. It is important to make successful applicants feel that their first assignment is a good fit by providing them with work experience opportunities such as internships, encouraging interaction between accepted applicants and politely responding to their questions, explaining the reasons for their assignment and providing opportunities for temporary assignments."
*The job-hunting activities of university graduates aged 2021 to 2023, who were surveyed, have been significantly affected by the spread of COVID-2020. A total of four states of emergency were declared (in Tokyo) between April 4 and September 2021, which resulted in various restrictions such as travel restrictions being imposed on students graduating in their fourth year, students graduating in 9 from their third year onwards, and students graduating in 4 from their second year onwards. Please refer to the news release for more details on the survey.
