Job worries for Japan's grads

Because many young adults live at home and have few expenses, they can spend the bulk of their salaries on the latest Louis Vuitton bags or computer games.

Some graduates work at call centers for a few months before quitting to go backpacking in exotic locations overseas, repeating the cycle every year or so. Others hold down dead-end jobs in convenience stores or refilling canned drink machines to support expensive hobbies such as recording and producing experimental punk music at night.

"It's true that more people are opting for short-term part-time jobs," says international law major Nobuko Nakagara. "But there are also those who have a clear vision for their future."

Her own goal, she explains, is "to do work that has an effect on society," citing her experience as a volunteer in Turkey. Although it was a short-term stay, helping with a project to build a park for the women of a local village reinforced her desire to do work assisting other people.

"From that experience, I discovered that even doing a small amount as part of an organized effort can end up being useful to someone."

Ms. Nakagara is not alone in hoping to make the world a better place.

"I think the environment will be an important theme, both for corporations and the public sector," says economics major Yukinari Ota, pausing on his way to meet friends for a bowl of ramen noodles. "At the moment, solving environmental problems is considered something of a burden - I'd like to somehow turn it into a plus."

But even many of these idealistic students are finding their aspirations frustrated.

Recent evidence suggests that some are giving up on Japan altogether and turning to overseas job markets. Those who have studied abroad to improve their language skills face a shrinking pool of prospective employers as many foreign corporations have cut or reduced operations in Japan. And because a degree from a foreign university often raises eyebrows at Japanese corporations, these students are sometimes forced to take jobs unsuited to their skills.

Young women in particular, who often receive lower pay and may have little chance of promotion beyond clerical level positions, are increasingly looking to Singapore or Hong Kong, where their English and Japanese language skills are highly valued. A number of staffing agencies in Tokyo have recently set up services to help job seekers find work overseas.

For those left behind, the prospects are frequently poor, and many students end up lowering their sights in the quest for the ideal job.

A nationwide survey of this year's graduating class conducted by Mainichi Communications, a private research firm, shows that the percentage of students who would be happy with any kind of job at all had reached 80 percent for the first time since the survey began in 1979.

At the same time, those who aspired to be able to do work they had an interest in had slipped to new lows. The research firm said this suggested that students were more willing to trade in their personal aspirations for job security during the prolonged economic downturn.

• Sanae Kawanaka contributed to this report.

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