Japan Univ. Grads' Job-Securing Rate at 89.7 Pct in Feb.

Tokyo, March 18 (Jiji Press)--A survey by the Japanese labor and education ministries showed Friday that 89.7 pct of job-seeking university students in Japan graduating this month had secured informal job offers as of Feb. 1.

The proportion was up 0.2 percentage point from a year before, when it dived reflecting the novel coronavirus fallout, as companies are seeking to hire more new graduates. Still, the figure fell short of levels before the pandemic.

The job-securing rate had been on a rising trend in recent years. But the rate for students graduating in March 2021 fell for the first time in 10 years due to the impact of the COVID-19 crisis.

The rate for male students as of the beginning of last month stood at 88.3 pct, and that for female students at 91.4 pct, both up 0.2 point. The rate came to 92.3 pct for science students and 89.1 pct for those majoring in humanities courses.

By university location, the job-securing rate climbed 1.7 points to 92.5 pct in the Kanto eastern region, the highest among all regions. The rate dropped in the Hokkaido and Tohoku region of northernmost and northeastern Japan, the Kinki western region, and the Chugoku and Shikoku region, also western Japan.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]