2026 Report on New Graduates' Job Change Site Registration Trends: Registrations on 'doda' Immediately After Joining a Company Are 28 Times Higher Than in April 2011, Remaining at a High Level Despite a Year-on-Year Decrease
Key facts
- 2026 Report on New Graduates' Job Change Site Registration Trends: Registrations on 'doda' Immediately After Joining a Company Are 28 Times Higher Than in April 2011, Remaining at a High Level Despite a Year-on-Year Decrease
- A survey by the job change service 'doda,' operated by Persol Career, revealed that the number of new graduates who registered on doda in April 2026, immediately after starting their jobs, decreased year-on-year but remained at a high level, approximately 28 times higher than in 2011 when the survey began. Takafumi Sakurai, the editor-in-chief of doda, analyzes that this is due to improved onboarding environments at companies and a polarization of new graduates into stability-oriented and growth-oriented groups, leading to a wider trend of 'first gaining experience at the current job.' As job changing has become an established career option, the number of registrants is expected to remain high.
- Source: PR Times
- Date: May 27, 2026
Direct answer
A survey by the job change service 'doda,' operated by Persol Career, revealed that the number of new graduates who registered on doda in April 2026, immediately after starting their jobs, decreased year-on-year but remained at a high level, approximately 28 times higher than in 2011 when the survey began. Takafumi Sakurai, the editor-in-chief of doda, analyzes that this is due to improved onboarding environments at companies and a polarization of new graduates into stability-oriented and growth-oriented groups, leading to a wider trend of 'first gaining experience at the current job.' As job changing has become an established career option, the number of registrants is expected to remain high.
- Citation
- 2026 Report on New Graduates' Job Change Site Registration Trends: Registrations on 'doda' Immediately After Joining a Company Are 28 Times Higher Than in April 2011, Remaining at a High Level Despite a Year-on-Year Decrease (May 27, 2026), PR Times
- Source
- PR Times
- Date
- May 27, 2026
A survey by the job change service 'doda,' operated by Persol Career, revealed that the number of new graduates who registered on doda in April 2026, immediately after starting their jobs, decreased year-on-year but remained at a high level, approximately 28 times higher than in 2011 when the survey began. Takafumi Sakurai, the editor-in-chief of doda, analyzes that this is due to improved onboarding environments at companies and a polarization of new graduates into stability-oriented and growth-oriented groups, leading to a wider trend of 'first gaining experience at the current job.' As job changing has become an established career option, the number of registrants is expected to remain high.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: May 27, 2026 at 10:00
- 🔍 Collected: May 31, 2026 at 22:57 (108h 57m after Published)
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: June 2, 2026 at 09:08 (34h 10m after Collected)
Persol Career Co., Ltd., which operates the job change service 'doda' (Editor-in-Chief: Takafumi Sakurai), has analyzed the number of new graduates*1 who registered on the job change site 'doda' in April, their month of employment, among all doda members. We are pleased to announce the results as the 'New Graduates' Job Change Site Registration Trends.'
*1: Individuals who have become working adults for the first time after graduating.
New Graduates' Job Change Site Registration Trends 2026 Edition
In April 2026, the number of new graduates registering on 'doda' decreased from the previous year's record high but continues to remain at a high level.
The number of new graduates registering in April 2026, immediately after joining their companies, decreased to 90% of the same month last year from a short-term perspective. However, compared to 2011 when the survey began, the overall number has increased by about 8 times, and for new graduates, it has increased by about 28 times, continuing to trend at a high level.
Trend of doda Member Registrations in April
[Commentary] Takafumi Sakurai, doda Editor-in-Chief
Background for the year-on-year decrease in new graduate registrations:
The behavior of 'first focusing on the current job' has spread due to environmental improvements by companies and changes in individuals' orientation towards stability and growth.
The number of new graduates registering for job change services in April 2026 decreased compared to the same month last year. However, rather than interpreting this as a weakening of the desire to change jobs among new graduates, it is more accurate to see that the action of 'moving immediately' after joining a company was not as prominent as last year.
April is typically a time when, in addition to those who want to change jobs early, a certain number of people register for 'information gathering just in case, though not for an immediate move.' This year, it is possible that the activity of the group that 'considers changing jobs right after joining' has particularly calmed down. Furthermore, this year's new graduates tend to be polarized into stability-oriented and growth-oriented groups, and it is possible that each group decided not to rush into a job change.
Background ①: Improved reception environment at companies before and after joining.
One possible background factor is the change in the reception environment at companies. In recent years, initiatives to improve new employee retention and reduce post-employment anxiety, such as raising starting salaries, clarifying assignments, and enhancing onboarding measures, have spread throughout companies. These moves may have made it less likely for situations to arise where new graduates feel 'I might have made a huge mistake by joining' or 'I need to find the next thing right away,' at least in the initial stage. As a result, job-seeking behavior driven by strong anxiety or a sense of mismatch immediately after joining may not have been as apparent as in the previous year.
Background ②: Increase in stability-oriented new graduates.
An increase in stability-oriented new graduates is also considered a contributing factor. In a survey on job change awareness conducted by our company from 2024 to 2026*1, when asked about their 'attitude towards work,' young professionals in their early 20s showed an increasing trend in answering 'I don't want to push myself too hard, even for a high salary.' The response 'I don't want to change a stable environment if possible' also remained at about 60% for three years. These results suggest that the younger generation may be cautious about overworking for compensation and conditions or experiencing significant environmental changes. While this survey reflects the trend of those in their early 20s and not specifically this year's new graduates, the increasing trend of stability-oriented students in actual job-seeking support settings allows us to consider this as a supplementary perspective when thinking about their post-employment behavior.
*1: Regular Market Survey on Job Change: Conducted on approximately 5,000 working people. 1st round in April 2024, 2nd in March 2025, 3rd in February 2026. Among them, respondents in their early 20s were 341 in 2024, 332 in 2025, and 278 in 2026.
Background ③: Growth-oriented individuals chose to gain experience first.
On the other hand, not all new graduates are leaning towards stability; a certain number of individuals are conscious of wanting to gain skills and grow quickly. Although the new graduate recruitment market is still a seller's market, the rapid advancement of AI utilization in the last one or two years has led companies to begin changing their recruitment policies, such as curbing new graduate hiring to increase the ratio of mid-career hires, or shifting focus from inexperienced to immediately effective hires. In this context, it can be said that it has become difficult for new graduates to foresee their future careers and the nature of their work. Therefore, it is believed that an increasing number of individuals are prioritizing understanding their work quickly and acquiring skills and experience in their current environment, rather than rushing to change jobs. This stance of maximizing experience in their current position may have led to the decrease in registrations immediately after joining.
Background for the long-term upward trend and high levels:
Job changing has become an established career option for new graduates, and demand continues, including for the purpose of information gathering.
Meanwhile, the trend of young people, including new graduates, viewing job change as a career option continues. Therefore, we expect the number of new graduate registrations to remain at a high level. Today's young people are the 'job-hopping native generation'*2, who choose their first career with future job changes in mind from the job-hunting stage. Registering on a job change site is not just for 'changing jobs now' but also includes purposes like 'knowing my market value' and 'gathering information to organize future options.'
*2: The 'job-hopping native generation' is a keyword announced by the job change service 'doda' in 2021. It refers to the generation for whom it has become commonplace to engage in job hunting (choosing a first career) while being conscious of changing jobs in the future. It points to the generation that started job hunting after 2019, when statements from business leaders to the effect that 'maintaining lifetime employment is difficult' became prominent.
Future Outlook and Recommendations for Companies
Even if there are short-term periods where registrations calm down, since this is a generation where the value of viewing job change as a positive option has taken root to a certain extent, we believe the number of registrations will continue to be stable or show a gentle upward trend. Therefore, it will become more important for companies to, in addition to the conventional long-term perspective on training, provide opportunities to gain practical experience and a sense of growth from the early stages of employment, and to clearly show the path to skill acquisition, thus devising training and placement strategies that meet the growth orientation of young employees.
Commentator Profile: Takafumi Sakurai, doda Editor-in-Chief
After graduating, he joined a major human resources company and has consistently been involved in career education for students in Japan and abroad, job placement and changes, and recruitment support for a wide range of companies. He joined Persol Career Co., Ltd. in November 2016. In the same year, he was seconded to Benesse i-Career Co., Ltd., a joint venture with Benesse Holdings, Inc., where he led the launch of the new graduate offer service 'doda Campus' and became its first editor-in-chief. He later served as the head of the Product & Service Division, responsible for services for university students, including career courses and assessments. In April 2023, he became the deputy editor-in-chief of doda and Executive Manager of the Client P&M Division's Product Management Department, overseeing all recruitment support products for corporate clients. He was appointed editor-in-chief of doda in April 2024. Through his service, he has been involved in the career support of over 600,000 young people and is well-versed in the job-seeking and career-change trends of Gen Z, career formation, and corporate recruitment and training methods.
■ About the job change service 'doda' < https://doda.jp/ >
Under the slogan 'Make today's work a good day,' 'doda' provides optimal matching between job seekers and recruiting companies through various content, including a job site, a recruitment agency, and one of Japan's largest job fairs, the doda Job Fair.
■ About Persol Career Co., Ltd. < https://www.persol-career.co.jp/ >
Persol Career Co., Ltd., with the mission of 'Empowering people to own their work,' provides services such as recruitment, job advertising, and new graduate recruitment support through its job change service 'doda' and high-class job change service 'doda X.' In May 2022, it launched 'HiPro,' a comprehensive support service for the utilization of professional talent, making a full-scale entry into the side-job and freelance domains. By leveraging the full strength of the group, the company strives to create social value that focuses more than ever on the individual's 'work,' confronts social issues head-on, and aims to realize a society where all 'work' leads to smiles.
About our mission: https://www.persol-career.co.jp/mission_value/
*1: Individuals who have become working adults for the first time after graduating.
New Graduates' Job Change Site Registration Trends 2026 Edition
In April 2026, the number of new graduates registering on 'doda' decreased from the previous year's record high but continues to remain at a high level.
The number of new graduates registering in April 2026, immediately after joining their companies, decreased to 90% of the same month last year from a short-term perspective. However, compared to 2011 when the survey began, the overall number has increased by about 8 times, and for new graduates, it has increased by about 28 times, continuing to trend at a high level.
Trend of doda Member Registrations in April
[Commentary] Takafumi Sakurai, doda Editor-in-Chief
Background for the year-on-year decrease in new graduate registrations:
The behavior of 'first focusing on the current job' has spread due to environmental improvements by companies and changes in individuals' orientation towards stability and growth.
The number of new graduates registering for job change services in April 2026 decreased compared to the same month last year. However, rather than interpreting this as a weakening of the desire to change jobs among new graduates, it is more accurate to see that the action of 'moving immediately' after joining a company was not as prominent as last year.
April is typically a time when, in addition to those who want to change jobs early, a certain number of people register for 'information gathering just in case, though not for an immediate move.' This year, it is possible that the activity of the group that 'considers changing jobs right after joining' has particularly calmed down. Furthermore, this year's new graduates tend to be polarized into stability-oriented and growth-oriented groups, and it is possible that each group decided not to rush into a job change.
Background ①: Improved reception environment at companies before and after joining.
One possible background factor is the change in the reception environment at companies. In recent years, initiatives to improve new employee retention and reduce post-employment anxiety, such as raising starting salaries, clarifying assignments, and enhancing onboarding measures, have spread throughout companies. These moves may have made it less likely for situations to arise where new graduates feel 'I might have made a huge mistake by joining' or 'I need to find the next thing right away,' at least in the initial stage. As a result, job-seeking behavior driven by strong anxiety or a sense of mismatch immediately after joining may not have been as apparent as in the previous year.
Background ②: Increase in stability-oriented new graduates.
An increase in stability-oriented new graduates is also considered a contributing factor. In a survey on job change awareness conducted by our company from 2024 to 2026*1, when asked about their 'attitude towards work,' young professionals in their early 20s showed an increasing trend in answering 'I don't want to push myself too hard, even for a high salary.' The response 'I don't want to change a stable environment if possible' also remained at about 60% for three years. These results suggest that the younger generation may be cautious about overworking for compensation and conditions or experiencing significant environmental changes. While this survey reflects the trend of those in their early 20s and not specifically this year's new graduates, the increasing trend of stability-oriented students in actual job-seeking support settings allows us to consider this as a supplementary perspective when thinking about their post-employment behavior.
*1: Regular Market Survey on Job Change: Conducted on approximately 5,000 working people. 1st round in April 2024, 2nd in March 2025, 3rd in February 2026. Among them, respondents in their early 20s were 341 in 2024, 332 in 2025, and 278 in 2026.
Background ③: Growth-oriented individuals chose to gain experience first.
On the other hand, not all new graduates are leaning towards stability; a certain number of individuals are conscious of wanting to gain skills and grow quickly. Although the new graduate recruitment market is still a seller's market, the rapid advancement of AI utilization in the last one or two years has led companies to begin changing their recruitment policies, such as curbing new graduate hiring to increase the ratio of mid-career hires, or shifting focus from inexperienced to immediately effective hires. In this context, it can be said that it has become difficult for new graduates to foresee their future careers and the nature of their work. Therefore, it is believed that an increasing number of individuals are prioritizing understanding their work quickly and acquiring skills and experience in their current environment, rather than rushing to change jobs. This stance of maximizing experience in their current position may have led to the decrease in registrations immediately after joining.
Background for the long-term upward trend and high levels:
Job changing has become an established career option for new graduates, and demand continues, including for the purpose of information gathering.
Meanwhile, the trend of young people, including new graduates, viewing job change as a career option continues. Therefore, we expect the number of new graduate registrations to remain at a high level. Today's young people are the 'job-hopping native generation'*2, who choose their first career with future job changes in mind from the job-hunting stage. Registering on a job change site is not just for 'changing jobs now' but also includes purposes like 'knowing my market value' and 'gathering information to organize future options.'
*2: The 'job-hopping native generation' is a keyword announced by the job change service 'doda' in 2021. It refers to the generation for whom it has become commonplace to engage in job hunting (choosing a first career) while being conscious of changing jobs in the future. It points to the generation that started job hunting after 2019, when statements from business leaders to the effect that 'maintaining lifetime employment is difficult' became prominent.
Future Outlook and Recommendations for Companies
Even if there are short-term periods where registrations calm down, since this is a generation where the value of viewing job change as a positive option has taken root to a certain extent, we believe the number of registrations will continue to be stable or show a gentle upward trend. Therefore, it will become more important for companies to, in addition to the conventional long-term perspective on training, provide opportunities to gain practical experience and a sense of growth from the early stages of employment, and to clearly show the path to skill acquisition, thus devising training and placement strategies that meet the growth orientation of young employees.
Commentator Profile: Takafumi Sakurai, doda Editor-in-Chief
After graduating, he joined a major human resources company and has consistently been involved in career education for students in Japan and abroad, job placement and changes, and recruitment support for a wide range of companies. He joined Persol Career Co., Ltd. in November 2016. In the same year, he was seconded to Benesse i-Career Co., Ltd., a joint venture with Benesse Holdings, Inc., where he led the launch of the new graduate offer service 'doda Campus' and became its first editor-in-chief. He later served as the head of the Product & Service Division, responsible for services for university students, including career courses and assessments. In April 2023, he became the deputy editor-in-chief of doda and Executive Manager of the Client P&M Division's Product Management Department, overseeing all recruitment support products for corporate clients. He was appointed editor-in-chief of doda in April 2024. Through his service, he has been involved in the career support of over 600,000 young people and is well-versed in the job-seeking and career-change trends of Gen Z, career formation, and corporate recruitment and training methods.
■ About the job change service 'doda' < https://doda.jp/ >
Under the slogan 'Make today's work a good day,' 'doda' provides optimal matching between job seekers and recruiting companies through various content, including a job site, a recruitment agency, and one of Japan's largest job fairs, the doda Job Fair.
■ About Persol Career Co., Ltd. < https://www.persol-career.co.jp/ >
Persol Career Co., Ltd., with the mission of 'Empowering people to own their work,' provides services such as recruitment, job advertising, and new graduate recruitment support through its job change service 'doda' and high-class job change service 'doda X.' In May 2022, it launched 'HiPro,' a comprehensive support service for the utilization of professional talent, making a full-scale entry into the side-job and freelance domains. By leveraging the full strength of the group, the company strives to create social value that focuses more than ever on the individual's 'work,' confronts social issues head-on, and aims to realize a society where all 'work' leads to smiles.
About our mission: https://www.persol-career.co.jp/mission_value/
FAQ
What is the job change trend among new graduates in Japan?
The number of new graduates who registered on the job change site doda right after joining their companies in April 2026 was 28 times higher than in 2011, although it decreased from the previous year. This indicates that changing jobs has become a common career option.
Why do young people in Japan consider changing jobs so soon?
They don't necessarily change jobs immediately. Many register to gather information or to understand their market value. This is due to the collapse of the lifetime employment system and a growing awareness of building an autonomous career by gaining skills and experience.
How are Japanese companies responding to a high turnover rate among young employees?
Many companies are strengthening measures to improve retention, such as raising starting salaries, enhancing onboarding programs, and clarifying job assignments. These efforts aim to prevent early turnover due to job mismatches.
Is the 'job-hopping native generation' a characteristic of Japanese youth?
Yes, it's a term coined by doda to describe the generation that considers future job changes as a given when choosing their first employer. This trend became prominent around 2019.
Do all young Japanese people have the same view on work?
No, it's polarizing. There is a 'stability-oriented' group that doesn't want to overwork even for a high salary, and a 'growth-oriented' group that wants to acquire skills and grow quickly. The analysis suggests that both groups, for their own reasons, have leaned towards 'seeing how it goes at the current job first,' contributing to the recent decrease in registrations.