Thank you to Dr Liane Slaughter for this article.
What comes to mind when you think of training in a STEM discipline? Lots of question marks about career options? What if everything we touch in our daily lives is touched by STEM in some way, and is therefore a prospect that needs our STEM skillset?
What is STEM?
It stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics, is more than a list of four separate disciplines; it’s an interconnected set of fields that overlap significantly and strengthen each other. Studying in STEM means that we build an invaluable set of transferable skills in addition to the technical knowledge of our specialty. We can think of STEM in terms of skillsets:
The scientific method – A systematic approach to understanding the world through observation, experiments, and analysis.
Technological innovation – Applying scientific knowledge and engineering principles to create new tools, processes, and systems. Science and engineering rely on technology to enable discoveries and better ways of doing things.
Engineering design & problem solving – Designing, building, and testing solutions to real problems. Engineering relies on scientific and mathematical principles to understand problems and create effective solutions.
Mathematical modeling & analysis – Using math to describe, understand, and predict phenomena in nature and in human-built systems. Mathematics provides essential language and tools for making sense of data, building models, and solving problems.
Through STEM education, we gain an abundant toolbox of specialized and transferrable skills, such as critical thinking, problem solving, creativity, and data analysis. And these involve solving complex problems in collaboration with others and thereby cultivates critical professional skills of teamwork, adaptability, communication of complex ideas in speaking and writing.
With the world changing ever so quickly, STEM fields are constantly evolving, leading to more interdisciplinary career paths.
What careers option are there for my child?
Traditional STEM disciplines, for the sake of this article, can be considered those which are a university major.
The four natural sciences:
- Chemistry
- Biology
- Physics
- Mathematics
Common interdisciplinary sciences:
- Biotechnology
- Ocean science
- Environmental science
- Agricultural science
- Astronomy
- Geology
- Paleontology
Myriad engineering specialties such as:
- Chemical Engineering
- Electrical Engineering
- civil engineering
- Environmental Engineering
- mechanical engineering
- computer science
- biomedical engineering
- software engineering
- materials science & engineering
- Information Technology
What are my child's career prospects in STEM in Hong Kong and globally?
Training in these fields is important should your child want to work in research or education. Since everything we touch in our day-to-day lives is made possible by STEM, training in STEM can set you up to work in many other sectors too. Here are a few examples:
Automotive, aerospace, oil & gas, construction, and transport – these industries rely on diverse expertise and skills including mechanical engineering, surface science, geological science. Industries that use and build heavy machinery, including refineries, rockets, cranes, trains, boats, and military equipment employ materials science experts to help ensure that components are compatible with each other and will function as the weather changes.
Consumer products – Think about things in the home used for cleaning, self-grooming, pet-grooming, decorating, etc. Every product has science in its formulation and packaging, in addition to engineering to produce it to scale for the mass market. STEM professionals are not only behind the function of your products, but also the user experience – including scents, feel, and whether something is applied as a cream or as a spray.
Personal care & cosmetics – From brands you find in the supermarket to luxury protects, you can count on rigorous STEM principles involved in its formulation, packaging, and shelf-life.
Food science – What qualities do we notice in our food? Flavor, color, scent, shelf-life. If it’s produce, we look at ripeness. Where did it come from? STEM is behind the production, packaging, and transport of food.
Health care – Pharmaceuticals, patient data systems, medical devices, diagnostics, nutrition science & preventative health care. Here, biology meets physics (MRIs, EEGs, and CT scans), to medicines, to surgical equipment to advanced information and encryption systems that organize, update, and protect patients’ data.
Law – Every branded product has a patent, and often the components have patents. You’ll find STEM experts in just about every firm that applies, publishes, and disputes patents.
Technology – We hear about ‘tech’ all the time as a highly lucrative industry. What comes to mind might be software, programming, and AI. Every piece of software is made possible by hardware. All these require diverse skillsets that go into designing and manufacturing these components.
Government – Most governments will require experts in their environmental projects to monitor industry compliance with environmental regulations, remediation work, and infrastructure. Scientists and engineers are also needed in essential services such as storm water management, waste disposal, air quality monitoring, and pollution control. These projects will require teams with diverse skillsets including analytical chemistry, geochemistry, ecology, atmospheric science, and materials science.
Some career options will be unique for some locations. For example, Hong Kong offers unique context in which to apply civil engineering principles. Regions with heavy industries in natural resources, such as oil, gas, and mining might emphasize application of chemistry, physics, engineering, and sustainability principles towards these industries.
Where else might STEM be needed?
More and more cross-disciplinary STEM fields with the world changing every so quickly. AI is now a key tool in all kinds of applications, from evolutionary biology to vaccine discovery and epidemiology. Robots and humans are interfacing more and more, raising new questions about opportunities as well as privacy and regulations.
Here are two more applications of STEM education to careers that might surprise you:
Finance – Have you heard about fintech? Did you know physicists and other math experts have been crucial among hedge fund management, day trading, and business research?
Marine archaeology – Do you live in a place with lots reclaimed land, multiple cross-harbor tunnels, or bridges over many kilometers of water? Traditionally, marine archaeologists have studied human cultures in oceans, lakes, and rivers and are perhaps best known for investigating shipwrecks. This same skillset of diving, navigating, gathering magnetic, acoustic, and infrared sensing data, and analysis is highly sought after for assessing the feasibility and effects of underwater urban development.
What are some challenges to getting on the STEM track?
If a STEM education path now sounds appealing, you might be wondering what are some challenges to getting there?
Math – Math is the foundational language. Understandably, math anxiety can hinder many students from pursuing these fields even with interest and aptitude for other aspects of STEM. There is a common misperception that one is either naturally good at math or not. Math, like a foreign language or badminton, is something we can excel at with commitment, practice, and learning from mistakes.
Competition – Competition can be fierce for the top academic programs in STEM, not to mention jobs. Prepare early as much as you can. Academic performance is important and so is hands-on experience. If you can, participate in clubs or projects where you will strengthen both technical and soft, which are critical to teamwork in any industry.
Awareness of opportunities – The best way to find out if a STEM track is right for you is to gain hands-on experience with real-world applications. Opportunities may not always be obvious. Online resources, including social media, can be great resources to start seeking opportunities for summer or after school experiences. If you know there’s a desire to gain such experience, talking with educators and industry contacts such as myself, who might be aware of such opportunities.
STEM offers a world of exciting and diverse career paths, impacting every aspect of modern life. While challenges exist, the rewards – both personal and professional – are significant. By embracing challenges, cultivating key skills, and actively seeking opportunities, you can prepare for a fulfilling future in a STEM.
Bonus reading:
STEM training gives you transferable skills for non-STEM roles. Since I am a woman and chemist, I will share a selection of famous women who majored in chemistry:
Indra Nooyi – CEO of PepsiCo, 2006-2018, Bachelor of Science in Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics from University of Madras, India
Janet Reno – Attorney General of the United States, 1993-2001, Bachelor of Arts in Chemistry, Cornell University, USA
Margaret Thatcher – Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, 1979-1990, Bachelor of Science in Chemistry, Somerville College, Oxford, UL
Angela Merkel – Chancellor of Germany, 2005-2021, Ph.D. in Quantum Chemistry, German Academy of Sciences at Berlin Check out this list for more people who studied chemistry but became famous for other reasons!
Dr Liane Siu Slaughter is a STEM mentor and coach at Clear Water Science Consulting. Reach out to her should your child need support in STEM subject-application for university.
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