ACTIVITY: Hot STEM Careers

Directions:
Using the STEM Occupations handout, complete the following activities per your teacher’s instructions. Remember, all answers should be in complete sentences. Show all work for your calculations. If you need more room to record your answers, use a notebook paper or the back of this sheet.

STEM Occupations
1.	What is the total number of all STEM employees according to Chart 1?

2.	If natural science comprises 13% of all STEM jobs, then what percent comprises engineering?

3.	Record 3 observations based on the data in Chart 2.

4.	Based on Chart 2, how much more do engineers make than the average occupation in the U.S.? 

5.	What is the national average for all jobs, according to Chart 2? How much more, in dollars, do engineers make than the average of all occupations? 

6.	Engineers made ___% more than the national overage in 2005. (Hint: Set up a proportion to solve this.)

7.	Chart 3 illustrates trends for the number of bachelor’s degrees in STEM subjects through 2004. How could you create a chart to see if and when computer and information sciences intersect with engineering and natural sciences?

8.	Based on the trends illustrated in Chart 3 and the projected numbers in Table 2, will there be enough engineers with bachelor’s degrees in the U.S. to fill the openings? Will there be enough computer specialists? Which occupation will have the biggest gap between degreed and non-degreed employees?

9.	What attributes are necessary for a successful STEM career?

10.	If there are more job openings than there are college graduates for STEM occupations, how does that affect pay and job security for those who are employed in those occupations? Explain your answer.