In Japan there's a combination of things that support hiring discrimination against anyone who hasn't just graduated from college, spanning all fields. The REC

In Japan there's a combination of things that support hiring discrimination against anyone who hasn't just graduated from college, spanning all fields. The RECRUIT monopoly has pushed a significant amount of hiring into large recruiting events which commoditize applicants with unified application forms and an overemphasis on testing and school names (students have to start looking for jobs in their sophomore year). Job applications also require photographs. There are also several incentives not to leave a job, such as the general assumption (read: requirement) by other companies and institutions of lifetime employment (e.g., my Gym doesn't have a way for someone to join who isn't employed or a student, and upon changing jobs, I lost my housing contract, even though I was paying for it - granted, I'm a foreigner). It's harder to leave a job, in a culture that's generally considered pretty risk-averse, and so companies are less willing to hire those who have. Moreover, there are many taiiku-kei companies, where work and social life are intertwined, which would likely favor hiring fresh out of college. Certainly many companies don't discriminate by age, but there's a whole lot more in place to support a company that does. I'd imagine there'd be a good deal of value in reaching out to an untapped labor market in either location.