The STEM Paradox

This past week, the New York Academy of Sciences, a scientific and technology society dedicated to  scientific advancements across disciplines and professions, published a report entitled the “STEM Paradox”. The report states that even though global economies are producing a record number of scientist, engineers and mathematicians, STEM jobs continue to go unfilled resulting in the observation that there is a shortage  in science professionals. The U.S. Department of Commerce estimates that by 2018, there will be more than 1.2 million STEM jobs, unfortunately,  all won’t be filled, since there are not enough qualified graduates. Most of these jobs go unfilled since there are gaps between what graduates are in STEM fields can do and the skills that STEM employers are seeking. 

The New York Academy of sciences suggests that most STEM graduates tend to have enough insight in approach difficult technical problems, instead they lack critical non-technical relative skills needed for the job.  According Meghan Groome, the executive director of education and public programs at the New York Academy of Sciences, “The problem is universal,” Groome explained. “Students aren’t learning how to network, manage their time, or to work together.” These skills, Groome insisted, are those that students can learn if they take the right courses.” Most often students learn rote memorization from STEM course rather than through creative thinking. Students typically learn these “soft skills” from lab oriented projects, critically analyze the problem in front of them while work with their classmates.

However, there has been a sharp decline in the amount hours students spend on science labs or team collaboration projects in US schools and it has reached its lowest point since 1988. Groome believes that decline is due to the rise of standardized testing that focuses on Math and English, Groome says “standardized tests don’t even ask students about their science knowledge.” The New York Academy of sciences suggests that schools create a rigid curriculum geared towards STEM fields but focus primarily on soft skills. This type of ecosystem will strengthen and develop critical-thinking skills. Groome explained, because “everyone in the ecosystem needs STEM skills, from the head of the lab to the PhD student who is conducting the research to the lab technician who is setting up the equipment and even to the janitor who has to know how to create the clean lab that is essential for creating a dust-free lab environment.”  

Another problem is related to the immigration problem in the US. Currently the US applications for B-1/B-2 visa are difficult to obtain even though many foreign nationals have rich STEM skill sets. Overall there is a real mismatch between education and industry's needs that need to be resolve in order to strengthen our education system in the US.