Elementary school student's future dream, 'streamer' ranked first

It has been revealed that the number one future wish of Japanese elementary school students is to be an ‘online streamer.’ Overtaking traditional professions such as doctors, teachers, and police officers, becoming a digital creator has become the dream of children.

According to the results of the annual future hope survey conducted in 2026 by Gakken, a Japanese educational publishing company, a total of 1,800 students (600 each from elementary school, middle school, and high school) were surveyed, and among elementary school students, 'streamer' ranked first with 113 votes.

In particular, the popularity of streamers among male elementary school students was overwhelming. On the other hand, female elementary school students ranked ‘pastry chef’ as 1st, while streamer ranked only 8th.

The ranking of future aspirations for all elementary school students is as follows:

• 1st place: Online streamer (113 votes)
• 2nd place: Pastry chef (110 votes)
• 3rd place: Police officer (92 votes)
• 4th place: Teacher (87 votes)
• 5th place: Doctor/Dentist (69 votes)

Middle school students prefer ‘office workers’, high school students prefer traditional jobs

As students reached middle school, the popularity of streamers cooled somewhat. It ranked 4th with 36 votes out of 600, with 1st place going to 'office worker' (75 votes), 2nd place to 'civil servant' (54 votes), and 3rd place to 'teacher' (49 votes). Among middle school girls, streamers were not ranked, and instead, hairdressers and cartoonists were popular.

When you reach high school, things change completely. Both men and women chose 'office worker' as number one, and not a single streamer chose it out of 600, so it completely disappeared from the rankings.

Changes in the digital native generation’s job outlook

The results of this survey show that the career outlook of the generation raised in a digital environment is significantly different from that of previous generations. With the growth of streaming platforms such as YouTube and Twitch, popular streamers have become realistic role models for children, earning as much influence and income as celebrities.

However, it is noteworthy that preference for streamers declines rapidly as people age. This is believed to be because as students go up in grade, realistic considerations about career paths increase and they become aware of the instability of the job of streamer.

A similar trend is occurring in Korea. In a recent domestic survey, YouTubers and creators were ranked among the top future aspirations among elementary school students, and the preference for digital content creators is becoming a trend throughout East Asia.