5 ways to encourage STEM careers

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5 ways to
encourage
STEM careers.

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the BLS predicts 1M STEM
job openings by 2022.

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With many opportunities, how can you motivate today’s K-12 students
to pursue STEM?
3 | © Randstad North America, Inc. 2017
food
for thought.

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5 ways to encourage STEM careers.
connect STEM to the real world. 5
introduce prolific STEM role models. 9
showcase STEM’s potential growth & compensation. 13
commend STEM thought process. 18
encourage early STEM participation. 21

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connect STEM to the
real world.
#1

randstad6 | © Randstad North America, Inc. 2017
connect STEM to the real world.
“When students can relate what they
learn in the classroom to links outside the
classroom, there is a tremendous boost in
motivation for STEM.”
Laura Smith,
VP of Technical Sales of IBM
Source: The 2017 Randstad STEM Study and Insights Report

practical uses of
STEM jobs are
difficult for students
between the ages of
11 and 17 to see.
56%
say knowing how STEM subjects relate to the real world would
make STEM classes more interesting
don’t know what kind of math jobs are out there
don’t know what kind of engineering jobs are out there
don’t know a lot about what accountants do
don’t know a lot about what engineers do
49%
47%
69%
76%

in what ways can we
make better
connections?
• partnering with businesses to apply hands-on learning alongside
classroom curriculum
• encouraging bring-your-child-to-work days to provide a better
understanding of jobs
• holding discussions on the scope of STEM skills, which are
functional in many roles — from NASA to fashion design

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introduce prolific
STEM role models.
#2

introduce prolific STEM role models.
“I truly believe we need to expose girls to
successful role models in math and science in
order to help counter negative stereotypes.
When girls can see that people like them can
be successful, it is quite powerful.”
Rachel Hudson,
CFO, Global Corn Processing of Archer Daniels Midland Company

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say they don’t know someone with a job in STEM
haven’t talked to anyone about jobs in STEM
talk to their teachers about STEM jobs
talk to their parents or family about STEM jobs
talk to their friends about STEM
practical uses of
STEM jobs are
difficult for students
between the ages of
11 and 17 to see.
52%
27%
50%
54%
25%

who are some
notable figures in
these fields?
Mayim Bialik
Neuroscientist and Actress
Elon Musk
CEO of Tesla and SpaceX
Debbie Sterling
Engineer and Toy Inventor
Terence Tao
Mathematician and UCLA
Professor

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showcase STEM’s
potential growth.
#3

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In the United States, 80 percent of the fastest-growing jobs depend on a
mastery of mathematics, scientific knowledge and skills.
showcase
Source: https://www.edutopia.org/pdfs/stw/edutopia-stw-mc2STEM-infographic.pdf
STEM growth and
compensation.

the demand
for the best jobs has
never been higher.
STEM continues to boom in technological breakthroughs and innovation.

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robotics engineer
big data engineer
IoT architect
virtual reality/augmented reality engineer
showcase STEM growth and compensation.
potential
compensation
in STEM.
$105,400
$140,900
$144,650
$121,000
Serve as the middleman to communicate what interesting jobs are out there,
what they entail and the strong annual pay tied to positions.
Source: Randstad’s 2017 Salary Guides

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broaden the outlook
of what STEM
careers encompass.
Especially outside of the generic titles of a scientist, technology expert,
engineer or mathematician.

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commend STEM
thought process.
#4

commend STEM thought process.
“When teachers and educators focus too heavily
on the ‘right or wrong’ answer, we do a
disservice to students who demonstrate
effective problem-solving and reasoning skills.”
Trina Salvisberg,
Senior Region Engineer of Enbridge Energy Partners

commend STEM thought process.
how to foster
different thought
processes.
• Focus on the unique path a student took to an
educated guess, not whether it was right or
wrong.
• Applaud a child’s critical thinking or reasoning
skills as a natural skill-set and they will find
navigating an answer more appealing.

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encourage early
STEM participation.
#5

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high school or earlier
middle school or earlier
encourage early STEM participation.
when did you
decide to
study STEM?
78%
21%
Nearly 4 in 5 STEM college students say they decided to study STEM in high
school or earlier, and 1 in 5 decided in middle school or earlier.

“I believe middle school is the deciding
point. If you don’t get them by high school,
you’ve lost them. As a country, we don’t
focus enough on early education and these
all-important years.”
Susan Brennan,
COO of Bloom Energy

as a result, target
teenagers who are
at a crossroads
with their intended
career path.
Students aged 11 to 14 are 18 percent more likely than 15 to 17-
year-olds to consider STEM topics, such as math, as one of their
favorite subjects.

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learn
more.

learn more.
interested in
learning how to
overcome the
barriers to STEM?
Visit and download the Randstad
STEM Study and Insights Report.
download the full report

5 ways to encourage STEM careers

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