Inside "Shukatsu", Japan's Job hunting: The System Supporting Japan's 98% Graduate Employment Rate

Inside "Shukatsu", Japan's Job hunting: The System Supporting Japan's 98% Graduate Employment Rate — YouTube

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According to a 2025 survey, the employment rate for Japanese university students at the time of graduation reaches a staggering 98%. How does that number make you feel? In reality, most Japanese students have already secured their "future workplace" months before their graduation ceremony.

What's truly surprising is that almost all of these successful candidates are "inexperienced"—meaning they have zero full-time work experience. Furthermore, it's not uncommon for them to be hired for roles completely unrelated to their majors. A Computer Science major might go into Sales, while a Literature student becomes an IT Engineer. Companies make hiring decisions based on a student's "future potential," fully aware that they "can't do anything yet" in a professional capacity.

What exactly is this mysterious "New Graduate Recruitment" system, where specialized skills and practical experience aren't even required?

The theme is "Shukatsu"—Japanese job hunting. In this article, we'll uncover the truth behind Japan's unique "Membership-style" employment and "Potential-based" hiring. Why are people hired even without skills? Let's look at the mechanism and the reality, starting with my own experience and my rather unusual "Shukatsu timeline."

The Mass-Hiring Wave vs. Academics#

To be honest, my job hunting journey had a very "late" start. Initially, I intended to take the teacher recruitment exam, so private sector job hunting wasn't even on my radar. I spent every day buried in preparations for my university seminars. Seeing my classmates, seniors, and even my older brother looking so exhausted by the process made it a choice I wasn't particularly eager to make.

It was only just before the selection process began in earnest that I thought, "Maybe I should try applying to a few companies I'm interested in." Naturally, I hadn't done any of the typical preparations, like "internships," which highly motivated students usually complete. I did participate in one internship on a whim, but in the end, the company I actually interviewed with was a completely different story. Regarding the field I applied for, I was starting as a complete "novice" with no direct connection to my specialized field of study.

Even though I only applied to a few companies I liked, it was a very difficult time. I was trying to balance researching those companies with preparing for my seminars and Master's thesis. If you don't secure a job offer smoothly and the process drags on, the deadline for your thesis and the "graduation deadline" for job hunting approach at the same time. It becomes an incredibly grueling situation, both mentally and physically.

Why is job hunting—which technically could be done after graduation—treated as if the deadline is "by graduation day," creating such a sense of desperation? It's because Japanese job hunting is a massive wave called "Ikkatsu Saiyo" (Simultaneous Mass Hiring). If you miss this wave, it's difficult to recover.

Generally, the gates open all at once in the latter half of the junior year, and by the summer of the senior year, most students' paths are decided. The biggest problem is that this process—submitting Entry Sheets, taking aptitude tests, and multiple interviews—completely overlaps with the busiest period for graduation or Master's theses.

There's a contradiction in having to run to interviews and set aside your studies right when you should be focusing on your thesis. The pressure of seeing everyone around you getting job offers one after another is intense. There is a unique sense of anxiety and peer pressure, a feeling that "if I miss this wave, there won't be another."

Resume Walls and Aptitude Tests#

To start my job hunting, I first submitted a resume that required information like a headshot, age, and gender. Then, I filled out unique application forms called "Entry Sheets" provided by each company. I also bought workbooks for the aptitude tests used by many firms and began studying for them bit by bit.

"Entry Sheets" are custom application forms where you write about your past experiences and your "reason for applying." However, for someone like me who started job hunting on a whim, I had almost no "impressive" background or specialized experience. I really struggled to fill them out. Also, in sections like the "motivation for applying," you're expected to show that you've researched the company thoroughly.

In the end, since I challenged specialized roles at popular companies without internship experience or specific preparation, I received a string of "rejection notifications"—or what we call "prayers" (Oinori) in Japan. Out of five companies, only one passed my documents. Even though experience isn't required for new grads, the competition for specialized roles at popular companies is high. It's quite common to fail at the document stage if you go in unprepared. After that, I moved on to the first interview and the aptitude test.

Let's dive a bit deeper into the documents and aptitude tests. Japanese resumes require a photo, age, and gender, and the format is extremely standardized. What's prioritized in the selection is your "personality" and "organizational adaptability" demonstrated through clubs or part-time jobs. In other words, rather than your actual research content, companies use these standardized documents to judge your "potential"—specifically, whether you can fit into the company's organization. However, for specialized roles at high-competition firms, they might ask for specific experience or academic grades.

Furthermore, what plagues many students is the aptitude test, such as the "SPI." This is less about your depth of knowledge and more like a filter to measure your "processing ability" and "adaptability" through high-speed tasks. Let's look at an example. The problems themselves aren't that difficult, but you need to solve many of them continuously in a very short amount of time.

No matter how smart you are, if you aren't used to these "rules specific to Shukatsu," you might get cut. Even if you have the ability, the final outcome is often influenced by your level of preparation and a certain amount of "luck" or "fate."

Haisoku Gacha: The Cost of Being Trained#

In my case, I was able to secure a job offer from that one company where my documents passed, after an aptitude test and several interviews. (By the way, if you aim to be a teacher, you'd need a different process, including specialized written exams and mock lessons.)

On the other hand, my brother's experience was much harsher. I only applied to about five companies, but my brother struggled while applying to nearly forty. I feel this difference was due more to the "economic climate" of that year rather than individual ability. Also, back then, all interviews were in-person, so he was traveling all over the country to take them, which seemed physically exhausting.

After joining the company, even though I had zero practical experience, they provided a thorough training program lasting over three months. Being able to learn from the basics while receiving a salary was a blessing for me. However, some of my colleagues were dissatisfied, saying, "The content is too standardized; I want to get into the field sooner."

Then there's the issue of placement and work location. In Japan, the company usually decides which department you'll work in. Most of my colleagues didn't seem to get their first choice. I heard a story from a friend that someone joined wanting to be a programmer but was assigned to Accounting.

This is the essence of Japan's "Potential-based hiring"—a culture where the company bears the training cost to "raise you from scratch." Larger companies offer more extensive training, but it's true that standardized content can lead to frustration when it doesn't match an individual's level, delaying their entry into actual work.

Furthermore, this system has a major trade-off. In exchange for the company taking the risk of hiring someone inexperienced, starting salaries are kept low, and the authority to decide your department and work location is handed over to the company. These "placement risks" and "location risks" are called "Haisoku Gacha" (Placement Roulette/Gacha) online, and they are perhaps the darkest shadow of potential-based hiring. Additionally, the value of your "New Graduate Card" is unfairly dictated by the economy, leading some students to choose graduate school just to wait for a better time.

Looking back, the only reason I—as someone with no experience—could start my current career was because of this "New Graduate Recruitment" system. If hiring were based strictly on past achievements, I wouldn't have even made it to the starting line. For many students, it's a massive safety net, and even if you fail, there's a path to try again as a "second new graduate" (Dai-ni Shinsotsu).

However, we cannot ignore the downsides like low starting pay and the "Placement Gacha." Recently, moving to a new job after gaining experience has become common. While this is an opportunity for individuals, it makes it harder for companies to recover their training costs. Also, the excessive pressure before graduation on students' mental health is a pressing issue within this system.

Closing Remarks#

Thank you for reading my article today. I hope you found the information helpful.
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