Generation Z Job Hunters: A Complete Guide Part 1 - What are the differences between liberal arts and science/engineering job hunters?

As the job market favors job seekers and competition for talent intensifies, companies must deepen their understanding of job seekers' values and career aspirations. To support talent acquisition branding, the consulting team " Recruitment Branding Experts " conducted the "Generation Z Job Seekers Survey 2024" in February 2024 to uncover the realities of job seekers (release available here ).

This series will unravel the characteristics of today's job seekers based on these findings. The first installment delves into the distinct traits of job seekers majoring in liberal arts versus those majoring in science and engineering at the undergraduate and graduate levels.

Humanities and Science Students Approach Companies Differently

First, we introduce the characteristics of how humanities and science job seekers are influenced as they progress through their job hunting. Recruitment Branding Experts presents the "Job Hunting Journey," which summarizes the people and events that influenced job seekers at each phase, from learning about a company to deciding where to join. According to this survey, the journey progresses differently for humanities and science students.

Awareness to Application phase: Surveyed both "current job seekers (regardless of whether they have decided on a company) and those who have completed their job search." Company Decision phase: Surveyed only "those who have decided on a company and completed their job search."

For liberal arts job seekers, the main flow is recognizing companies through close seniors or peers, deepening understanding at company information sessions, applying, and finally consulting with family. This supports the increasing practice of companies conducting "Oyakaku" (confirming parental consent for job offers) when accepting offers, highlighting its necessity.

Conversely, for science/engineering job seekers, "seniors and peers in seminars/research labs" ranked highest at every stage—from company awareness to final decision—highlighting the close integration of daily research activities with job hunting. Since the environment and points of contact with companies differ significantly by major, tailored recruitment approaches are desirable.

Humanities job seekers prioritize self-realization, while science job seekers prioritize a company's future potential

Next, the selection criteria for joining companies also revealed distinct characteristics between liberal arts and science students. The table below ranks the top five deciding factors for each group.

Surveyed only those who had "decided on a company and concluded their job search"

Regardless of field, both groups prioritized "salary," "business stability," and "company reputation." This indicates that compensation and company performance are top priorities, irrespective of desired job type or specialized field. Beyond this, liberal arts students placed relatively higher importance on "an industry aligned with their dreams or aspirations," showing a strong link between work and self-actualization. Conversely, science students placed relatively greater emphasis on "the future potential of the industry/business model." Given the high number of applicants seeking R&D or technical/design roles (※), it is likely that many desire to work in environments with assured future prospects.

※Top desired positions for science/engineering job seekers: 1st "Research and Development (20.6%)", 2nd "Engineering/Design (16.7%)"

Furthermore, focusing on items with significant differences between liberal arts and science job seekers revealed their distinct characteristics. The table below ranks the top five deciding factors for choosing an employer based on score differences.

Surveyed only those who "have decided on a company and concluded their job search"

Looking at items with large differences, for liberal arts job seekers, the deciding factors were "expectations for gaining diverse experience," such as the level of autonomy, broad field experience, and advantages with an eye toward future career changes. On the other hand, for science/engineering job seekers, the deciding factors were "expectations for demonstrating their own abilities," such as a favorable impression from internships, salary, and the ability to demonstrate their skills and expertise. This shows that their perspectives on company selection differ.

While not universally applicable, a tendency emerged: liberal arts job seekers seek experience for self-actualization, while science/engineering job seekers desire environments with guaranteed future prospects to demonstrate their skills.

Characteristics of those switching from liberal arts to science fields—common enough to be worth knowing

While sales and marketing roles are often broadly termed "liberal arts positions" and R&D or systems engineering roles "science positions," a significant number of job seekers change fields upon entering the workforce. The table below shows the breakdown of planned job types for liberal arts and science graduates.

Surveyed only those who had their job type at the company already decided

10.1% of humanities graduates are entering science-based roles, while 27.4% of science graduates are entering humanities-based roles. While the percentage is higher for science graduates, this likely indicates that a certain number of students, while engaged in research activities, are considering their future careers and contemplating a shift.

The author also feels that such career shifts are by no means uncommon. In fact, the author themselves, despite a science background, works in marketing, and a friend graduated from a business faculty before becoming a systems engineer. Precisely because it's not rare, it's important to understand the characteristics of these students.

The table below lists the top five deciding factors for job seekers who, despite having a science background, secured humanities-related positions, and vice versa. While the sample size is small, making these figures purely indicative, they clearly reveal trends worth sharing.

"Science background → Liberal arts job" refers to respondents who answered "undergraduate/graduate studies in science" and "employed in a liberal arts job." "Liberal arts background → Science job" refers to respondents who answered "undergraduate/graduate studies in liberal arts" and "employed in a science job."

While salary remains the most critical factor, other items also revealed distinct characteristics among these job seekers.

First, students with a science background who entered humanities-related jobs showed a strong desire to be stimulated by coworkers, a high awareness of social contribution, and a stoic attitude toward work.

Next, students with a liberal arts background who entered STEM-related positions showed a strong focus on acquiring specialized skills and awareness of training systems. They expressed enthusiasm for learning skills different from their academic background and a desire to "acquire a skill."

Based on these findings, when communicating a company's appeal during recruitment, the content should vary significantly depending on the job seeker's background: whether they are a liberal arts graduate, a science graduate, a liberal arts graduate pursuing a science-related role, or vice versa.

Next time, we'll delve deeper into "gender differences in job hunting."

A New Approach to Recruitment Centered on Job Seekers
In February 2024, Dentsu Inc. launched the "Recruitment Branding Expert" consulting team focused on hiring Generation Z. We support corporate recruitment branding using proprietary methods like the "Job Hunting Journey Map"—a Dentsu original concept leveraging marketing methodology—and the "3C Framework," which simultaneously achieves highlighting company strengths, differentiating from competitors, and connecting with job seekers. When considering effective recruitment activities for Generation Z with diverse values, please feel free to contact us.

Dentsu Inc. Recruitment Branding Expert Secretariat (Nishii, Iwabe)
Email: recruit-branding-expert@dentsu.co.jp

【"Generation Z Job Seekers Survey 2024" Overview】
・Purpose: To identify Gen Z's attitudes and trends regarding job hunting
・Target Area: Nationwide, Japan
・Eligibility: University and graduate students registered with the career support NPO "Encourage" scheduled to graduate in 2024 or 2025
・Valid Responses: 818
・Survey Method: Online survey
・Survey Period: February 9–15, 2024
・Survey Agency: RECCOO Inc.
・Humanities/Science: Categorized based on responses to "Which field is your faculty/major closer to: humanities or science?"