Ranking of "Dream Jobs" Chosen by Current High School Students Announced! High School Job Hunting Officially Starts July 1st!

Jinjib (Osaka City), which supports high school students' employment, conducted a survey on "dream jobs" and "industries they want to work in" among high school students who participated in the "Oshigoto Fair 2026," a career experience event for high school students held from May to June. (Survey period: May 8 - June 19, Valid responses: 898) The aim is to help understand the career perspectives of high school students who visited the venue.

<Ranking Results Summary>

● For 2026, "Customer Service" ranked first in "dream jobs" for the third consecutive year.

● In terms of "industries they want to work in," the "Entertainment & Creative Industry" ranked first, surpassing the "Manufacturing & Monozukuri Industry," which held the top position last year. For high school students seeking employment, the "Manufacturing & Monozukuri Industry" ranked first.

● The top concern regarding career choices is "not having found what I want to do."

<Background of the Survey>

The job market for high school graduates has a high job opening to applicant ratio of 4.12 times (*1), and competition among companies for hiring continues to intensify. On the other hand, high school students hoping to find employment have insufficient opportunities to interact with working adults and various professions during their school life, and they decide on their desired jobs and companies within approximately two months from the release of job information in July to the application period in September. This is also pointed out as a cause of early job turnover due to a lack of self-understanding and societal understanding.

Since 2023, our company has been conducting surveys on high school students' dream jobs to track changes in their career perspectives. This year, we collected survey responses from 898 high school students who participated in "Oshigoto Fair 2026" and created rankings not only for the overall group but also specifically for "high school students seeking employment."

We hope this will be helpful for companies considering hiring high school graduates, as well as for high school students and teachers in the field.

*1 Source: Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare: "Summary of Job Openings, Job Seekers, and Job Offers for New High School and Junior High School Graduates" (as of the end of March) for Reiwa 7 (2025).

Survey Name: "Dream Jobs" Survey 2026 Chosen by Current High School Students ~Oshigoto Fair Edition~

Survey Period: May 8 - June 19, 2026

Target Audience: 1st to 4th year high school students (4th year for part-time courses) Valid Responses: n=898

<Ranking Results>

Top 10 Ranking of "Dream Jobs" for Current High School Students [Overall] n=898

The No. 1 "dream job" among the 898 current high school students who attended Oshigoto Fair was "Customer Service (14.6%)," marking the third consecutive year at the top.

Reasons for choosing it included practical work experience through part-time jobs and many comments like "I want to do a job that involves interacting with people" and "I like/enjoy interacting with people," indicating its enduring popularity as a profession that is easy for high school students to imagine.

Next, "Accounting/Clerical Work (11.7%)" was chosen. Reasons included comments like "It seems suited to me" and "Weekends off are good."

Additionally, creative professions such as "Designer (11.2%)," "Illustrator (11.0%)," "YouTuber/Influencer (10.5%)," and "Game Creator (7.2%)" were notably clustered in the upper ranks. It is inferred that the popularity reflects jobs that involve self-expression, against the backdrop of the spread of social media and video platforms.

Among the reasons, many stated "because I like (illustrations, anime, games, etc.)," which clearly shows the high school students' inclination to "work in what they love."

Next, we conducted a survey on industries they would like to work in.

Top 10 Ranking of "Industries They Want to Work In" for Current High School Students [Overall] n=898

The No. 1 "industry they want to work in" was the "Entertainment & Creative Industry (22.2%)," surpassing the "Manufacturing & Monozukuri Industry," which was No. 1 last year. Interest in areas like games, videos, and entertainment, which were also frequently mentioned in the "dream jobs" ranking, was reflected in this ranking.

The "Manufacturing & Monozukuri Industry (18.3%)" came in second. Reasons for choosing it included comments like "People I know work in this field," "It seems interesting," and "I like making things."

Following that, the "Accommodation, Food Service, and Tourism Industry (15.8%)," "Animal & Environmental Industry (15.5%)," "Civil Service/Administration (13.6%)," and "IT & Telecommunications Industry (12.4%)" were ranked highly, showing that high school students' interests are expanding into a wide range of fields.

The rankings reveal trends such as "I want to work in what I love," "People I know work there," and "I think I'm suited for it," while also including comments like "I became interested after hearing about it at Oshigoto Fair," indicating that the event served as a catalyst for broadening their interests.

So, how are the high school students who attended Oshigoto Fair thinking about their future paths?

Planned Post-Graduation Career Paths [Overall] n=898

When asked about their planned post-graduation career paths, 41.4% of high school students hoped to "find employment." On the other hand, when combined with "undecided (19.9%)" and "not yet decided (9.6%)," 29.5% of high school students were exploring their career options.

Concerns Regarding Career Choice [Overall] n=898

When asked about their concerns regarding career choices, the most frequent response was "not having found what I want to do (40.2%)."

This was followed by "anxiety about whether I can proceed on my desired path (31.0%)" and "not having found what I am suited for (27.4%)," revealing that many high school students feel a lack of self-understanding at the root of their concerns.

This result highlights the importance of career experience opportunities that allow students to interact with actual companies and jobs, especially for high school students who have limited opportunities to think about their future.

Next, we compiled a ranking specifically for the 372 high school students who responded that they wish to "find employment" after graduation.

Top 10 Ranking of "Dream Jobs" Chosen by High School Students Seeking Employment [Employment Seekers] n=372

The No. 1 "dream job" for high school students seeking employment was "Customer Service (19.4%)," the same as the overall ranking. This was followed by "Accounting/Clerical Work (15.9%)," "Sales (14.0%)," and "Monozukuri/Manufacturing (13.4%)." Reasons for selection included comments based on experience, such as "I want to make people smile" and "I want to do a job that involves interacting with people" for customer service.

High school students seeking employment tend to choose jobs that they are suited for and that seem achievable, based on their past experiences.

Top 10 Ranking of "Industries They Want to Work In" Chosen by High School Students Seeking Employment [Employment Seekers] n=372

Looking at the ranking of "industries they want to work in" for high school students seeking employment, the No. 1 was the "Manufacturing & Monozukuri Industry (24.5%)."

This was followed by the "Accommodation, Food Service, and Tourism Industry (18.0%)," "Entertainment & Creative Industry (17.7%)," "Service Industry (15.9%)," "Logistics, Transportation & Traffic Industry (13.7%)," and "Animal & Environmental Industry (13.7%)."

Compared to the overall ranking, the "Manufacturing" and "Service" industries showed higher support among those seeking employment. Furthermore, the "Logistics, Transportation & Traffic Industry" had the highest level of seriousness, with 64.6% of its respondents being employment seekers, compared to the total number of respondents (79 people).

[The Key to Successful High School Graduate Hiring Lies in "Bridging the Gap" - "Real Experiences" Change High School Students' Career Choices]

What emerged from this survey is a two-tiered structure in high school students' career perspectives: "liking" and "reality."

The overall ranking strongly reflects the inclination to "work in what they love," with jobs like "Customer Service," "YouTuber/Influencer," and "Illustrator." On the other hand, when focusing on high school students considering employment, their choices showed a shift. The "Entertainment & Creative Industry (22.2%)," which ranked first overall in the "industries they want to work in" ranking, dropped to third place (17.7%) among employment seekers, while the "Manufacturing & Monozukuri Industry (18.3%)," which was second overall, rose to first place (24.5%). It can be inferred that the axis of selection shifts from just "liking" to interests based on real experiences such as part-time jobs and the work of adults around them, and to a sense of "feasibility."

This trend was also observed in other industries. While the "Logistics, Transportation & Traffic Industry" was not highly selected among all respondents, 64.6% of those who selected it were employment seekers. In terms of seriousness, this is the highest figure across all industries.

This indicates that bridging the gap between "dream jobs" and "obtainable jobs" is a crucial theme in hiring high school graduates.

Furthermore, 29.5% of high school students have not yet decided on their post-graduation path. This overlaps with the top concern regarding career choices being "not having found what I want to do (40.2%)."

This is precisely why experiential career education opportunities that allow students to encounter actual companies and professions are important. In this survey, multiple comments indicated that students "became interested after hearing about it at Oshigoto Fair" as a reason for choosing an industry or profession. Encountering jobs they didn't know about and conversing with working adults are key to deepening self-understanding and occupational understanding, and improving the quality of career choices.

<Download Detailed Materials>

Detailed data for all questions not included in this release, as well as rankings below the TOP 10, will be provided individually to media representatives and companies who inquire for interviews or information.

Click here to download materials

[Survey Overview and Demographics]

Survey Name: "Dream Jobs" Survey 2026 Chosen by Current High School Students ~Oshigoto Fair Edition~

Survey Period: May 8 - June 19, 2026

Survey Method: Questionnaire collection from visitors to Jinjib's "Oshigoto Fair 2026."

Target Audience: 1st to 4th year high school students (4th year for part-time courses)

Valid Responses: n=898

Demographic Breakdown:

- Graduation Year: 545 people in March 2027, 259 people in March 2028, 86 people in March 2029, 8 people other

- Venue: 19 venues where Oshigoto Fair was held

- Career Aspirations: Employment 372 people, Further Education 256 people, Undecided 179 people, Not yet decided 86 people, Other 5 people

*This survey has been conducted as a joint survey with our group company, Jinjib Career, since 2026. Rankings for high school students who participated in the "Jinjib Career Career Counseling," primarily for those seeking further education, will be announced separately around mid-July 2026.

<Company Overview>

Jinjib Co., Ltd.

Representative Director and President: Mitsuhide Sasaki

Head Office Location: Sunmarion Tower 14F, 2-6-12 Minamihonmachi, Chuo-ku, Osaka

Locations: Osaka Head Office, Tokyo, Fukuoka, Nagoya, Sendai, Hiroshima, Niigata, Okayama, Kumamoto, Shizuoka

Established: March 23, 2015 (Group Founding: September 1, 1998)

Stock Information: Tokyo Stock Exchange Growth Market (Securities Code: 142A)

HP: https://jinjib.co.jp/

Group Company: Jinjib Career Co., Ltd. (https://jinjib-career.co.jp/)

Jinjib is a social problem-solving company for "high school students" and "young people." President Mitsuhide Sasaki, who is a "high school graduate president," started the business with the slogan "Dreams Begin at 18."

Addressing social issues such as career disparity and early job turnover among young people, we provide information on high school students' further education and employment, career education, post-employment retention and career development, and job change support. Together with "high schools" that support high school students and "companies" that engage in recruitment and training, we continuously strive to "increase dreams for those who live in the future" by staying with them from their first career to all stages of life.

● High School Graduate Job Hunting and Recruitment Support Service "Job Draft"

High school graduates seeking employment are forced to choose their workplaces with limited information and time, leading to a "super early turnover" in the first year after joining the company due to a gap between expectations and reality.

To foster a culture where high school students can proactively choose their future with their own will, we operate "Job Draft Career," a career education support program, the job information app "Job Draft Navi," and the joint company information session for high school students, "Job Draft Fes."

We also support job seeking and changes for high school second-year graduates, post-graduates, and those who have not yet entered the workforce with "Job Draft Next," continuing to support them after they enter society.

Job Draft: https://jinjib.co.jp/service/recruitsupport/jobdraftplan

Job Draft Career

This is an experiential career education program that creates "opportunities" for career development for high school students. For students approaching their career decisions, it offers programs covering themes such as self-understanding, societal understanding, career choice, and basic work skills, providing opportunities for high school students to "think about their future independently."

https://jinjib.co.jp/service/recruitsupport/career-support-program

Oshigoto Fair

This is a work experience event for high school students. Local companies and high school students gather at one venue, and through work experience and interaction with working adults, students deepen their understanding of professions, discover their interests and concerns, and create opportunities to think about their careers.

Job Draft Fes

This is a joint company information session held in July, when job information for high school graduates is released.

High school students can directly meet and talk with employees from companies posting job openings, gaining insight into the company atmosphere and the lives of its workers that cannot be obtained from job descriptions alone.

https://jinjib.co.jp/service/recruitsupport/jobdraftfes

"Job Draft Career, Oshigoto Fair, and Job Draft Fes" received the "Excellence Award" at the "13th Career Education Award" (hosted by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry) (*2).

*2 Source: Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, 13th Career Education Award (December 2023)

[For Companies] [For School Personnel] Service Consultation/Inquiries:

https://landingpage.jinjib.co.jp/contact-pressrelease

Inquiry URL