Millions of STEM jobs are projected to go unfilled—3.5 million by 2025. But why?
It’s not due to lack of interest or demand. STEM powers the world’s most influential companies, with Google, Apple, and Amazon offering coveted careers. If anything, the problem is supply: too few people are qualified for these roles.
The root issue? Limited access to STEM education, especially for women and people of color. It’s not being introduced early or often enough.
These STEM statistics tell the story.
STEM education stats
Below is a quick look at a few of the more popular STEM statistics, with details below each.
1. STEM jobs are projected to grow 10.4%.
Between 2023 and 2033, STEM occupations are projected to grow by 10.4%, significantly outpacing the 4.0% growth rate for all occupations. This growth is driven by increasing demand in areas such as computing, engineering, and advanced manufacturing. (Via US Bureau of Labor Statistics)
2. Specifically, software development employment is projected to grow 17%.
Regarding the job outlook from 2023-2033, employment in software development is projected for 17% growth. (Via US Bureau of Labor Statistics)
3. Employment in STEM occupations has grown 20% over the past decade
Between 2011 and 2021, the STEM workforce expanded from 29.0 million to 34.9 million workers, marking a 20% increase. This growth reflects the rising demand for professionals in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics fields. (Via National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, NCSES)
4. A computer science major can earn 40% more than the college average.
The lifetime earnings of a computer science major is reported to be 1.67M, which is 40% more than the $1.19M lifetime earnings of a college graduate. (Via Code.org)
5. The median annual wage for STEM workers is $101,650
In 2023, the median annual wage for STEM occupations was $101,650, more than double the median wage for all occupations, which stood at $48,060. (Via US Bureau of Labor Statistics)
6. STEM occupations are projected to grow 10.8% between 2021-2031.
This is compared to only 4.9% growth for all other careers. (Via the Bureau of Labor Statistics)
7. The US placed 30th of 64 countries in math, and 11th in science.
This is according to the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA)—which is regarded as one of the biggest cross-national tests of its kind. (Via US World News Report, December 2019)
8. Only 20% of US high school graduates are prepared for college-level coursework in STEM majors.
According to a White House report, 20% of high school grads are ready for the rigors of STEM majors. In fact, over the past 15 years, this report also found that the US has only produced 10% of the world's science and engineering grads. (Via American Affairs, Spring 2019).
9. 74% of middle school girls express an interest in engineering, science, and math...
But only 0.4% choose computer science as a major when they get to college. (Reported by girlswhocode.org and mentioned by the National Girls Collaborative Project, August 2016)
10. 2 out of 3 US women say they were not encouraged to pursue a career in STEM. Just 31% of women with a STEM bachelor’s degree go on to pursue a career in the field.
In the 2019 STEM survey by Emerson, it was stated that 2 of 3 US women said they weren't encouraged to pursue a STEM career, and this impacts even those who are highly qualified. (From Emerson.com, August 2019 and the Society of Women Engineers.)
Read More: The Benefits of Encouragement
11. Women make up only about 26% of the STEM workforce
As of 2022/23, women comprise only 26% of the STEM workforce, indicating ongoing gender disparities in these fields. (Via STEM Women)
13. 63% of middle school girls who know women in STEM feel powerful doing STEM.
In comparison, 46% of middle school girls who don't personally know women in STEM feel powerful doing STEM. Similarly, 73% of those girls who personally know women in STEM understand the relevancy of STEM, and 72% know how to pursue a STEM career. This is compared to 51% and 47% of those who don't personally know women in STEM, respectively. (Via Microsoft and a study done in partnership with KRC research, March 2018)
14. Moms who communicate on STEM leads to girls being +20 points more interested in pursuing their studies.
From the same study above, "Having an encouraging mom who communicates about STEM is associated with girls being an average +20 points more interested in all STEM subjects compared to those girls who do not." Having an encouraging teacher is associated with +21 points; having an encouraging dad is associated with +17 points.
15. 40% of black students switch out of STEM majors before earning a degree.
This is according to a study published in the journal, Education Researcher, and highlighted by the Education Advisory Board (October 2019). There is a lot of work to be done in addressing this trend, and promoting diversity in STEM starts at the university and K-12 level.
16. Black workers make up 11% of the US workforce, but represent 9% of STEM workers.
This is in addition to Latino STEM workers, who make up 16% of the workforce, but only 7% of all STEM workers. And, of those employed adults who hold a bachelor’s degree or higher, 7% are black workers and 6% are Hispanic workers of the STEM workforce." Plus, recent headlines have exposed Silicon Valley's diversity problem and how much work there is still to do to improve equity in tech. (Stats via Pew Research Center, January 2018)
17. The Department of Education recently invested $540 million in STEM education.
The White House "Charting a Course for Success Report" identified a need to bolster support for STEM education at both the K-12 and collegiate level. These funds include efforts to recruit and train quality STEM teachers, increase diverse representation, and provide curriculum and materials for schools. (Via The Department of Education).
18. The US Bureau of Labor predicts 15% growth across healthcare professions by 2029.
STEM infuses virtually all aspects of the healthcare industry. By encouraging kids to pursue STEM, they’ll be prepared to find an exciting career within a wide range of options and increasing demand. (Via Bureau of Labor Statistics)
19. Fewer than half of the schools in the US offer computer science classes.
That's right—according to a 2020 study sponsored by Code.org, fewer than half of US schools offer computer science curriculum. That begs the question: are kids going to be ready to meet the evolving, growing landscape of STEM professions. (Via ESchool News, November 2020)
20. Women comprise just 27% of STEM workers and 8% of computer network architects.
While this number is higher across other STEM professions, this low number sheds light on how much progress there still needs to be made in some of the fastest-growing STEM professions. (Via the US Census, January 2021)
21. In the next 10 years, it’s estimated that there will be over 821,300 STEM job openings.
Those are hundreds of thousands of opportunities for young people! (Via SmartAsset, February 2022)
22. Of the 13.1 million people employed science and engineering-oriented STEM professions, over 60% hold a bachelor’s degree or higher.
In order to have the most opportunities in STEM fields, a college degree can be a big help. Read more about how to prepare for STEM success in college and beyond. (Via National Science and Engineering Indicators)
23. According to a 2020 study, only 57% of US households with incomes lower than $25,000 have daily access to technology.
Especially when compared with 90% access for households with incomes over $200,000, it’s clear that gaping inequalities exist in access to STEM. (Via National Science and Engineering Indicators)
24. Despite representing 35% of college undergraduates, Black and Latino students represent just 25% of STEM degree earners.
Notably, this is not due to lack of interest: underrepresented minority students enroll in STEM college programs at the same rates as their peers, but they are more likely to change majors before graduation (Riegele-Crumb et al., 2019). (Via The National Science Board, July 2022)
25. Currently, federal investment in diversifying STEM education and opportunity focuses on the college level and higher, with less funding dedicated to K-12 education.
This leaves a critical window of missed opportunity at the K-12 level. (Via The National Science Foundation, July 2022).
26. Evidence suggests that by participating in STEM summer programs, underrepresented communities of students are more likely to graduate from high school, attend four-year colleges, and earn STEM degrees.
According to a recent study, students who participated in STEM summer programs boosted their chances of earning a STEM degree and graduating from high school. The most significant increase in STEM degree attainment, 33%, reflected the group who participated in the longest and most in-depth STEM summer program. The students who attained STEM degrees also increased their post-graduation earning potential by 2-6% (Via Cohodes et. al, 2022).
So where does that leave us?
First of all, there are hundreds of stats and related studies. Some are old, others newer. Overall, though, these themes hold true.
STEM is important. STEM is an economic driver. STEM presents opportunity. We need to prepare way more people to meet such opportunity.
The fix, of course, is not easy. I’m not the first to talk about it, nor will I be the last. There are many people talking about it, and others working to do something about it.
I’d be remiss if I didn’t address the fact that we provide STEM summer camps; and relevant to today's world, coding classes for kids, and online math tutoring—programs and opportunities that aren’t inexpensive at that, due to our world-class staff, live instruction, and premium tech tools.
To better serve a wider breadth of families, we also provide these life-changing STEM experiences for underrepresented students through a number of social impact initiatives.
The bottom line is that STEM needs to be where the kids are. In school, after-school; during the summer, and in our local communities, introduced at a young age when they are most curious. Kids need STEM mentors and role models to look up to. They need more education about STEM degrees and related jobs so they can look forward to bright futures in these fields.
STEM needs to be the sport your child is playing, the show they are watching, and the hero they are emulating. It’s not that kids don’t have the time or capacity to “fit in” STEM, but rather that time needs to be reshaped to include STEM.
Read more about how to get into STEM