According to the U. S. Department of Commerce, STEM occupations are growing at 17%, while other occupations are growing at 9.8%.
STEM education helps to bridge the ethnic and gender gaps sometimes found in math and science fields.
STEM majors on average earn $81,500, while non-STEM majors earned about $15,500 less. STEM majors were also more likely to be employed and hold only one full-time job, rather than a part-time job or multiple jobs.
Girls and STEM
Women make up more than half of the total college-educated workforce in the U.S., but only 29% of science and engineering jobs.
A study of fourth graders showed that 66 percent of girls and 68 percent of boys reported liking science. But something else starts happening in elementary school. By second grade, when students (both boys and girls) are asked to draw a scientist, most portray a white male in a lab coat.
The top influences on choosing to pursue science and engineering have been found to be parents and K-12 teachers.
