Why is STEM important?

Why is Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics important?

Because your future (and the future of your children) depend on STEM skills

How do you prepare for a job that doesnt yet exist?

This question was the topic of a recent panel discussion at the University of Lincoln, UK. Among others, Juergen Maier (CEO of Siemens UK) said: “I am often asked what can we do to get ahead in this area of industrial revolution. What our research clearly shows us is that if we can get it right then this revolution will create many more jobs than the technology itself displaces. So the good news is universities are definitely not worthless.” The rest of this discussion touches on the fact that STEM Skills WILL become more critical over the next few years.

Click here for the full panel discussion

Future jobs have not been invented yet

Depending on who you ask, between 65% and 85% of jobs that will exist in the future doesn’t even exist yet.

HASTAC Co-founder and Director, Cathy Davidson ventures to say that: “… 100% of us have experienced some kind of massive change in the way we do our work, whether we’re still working at what is called the same job or not.” See her full post on HASTAC here.

In an article from Huffington Post, Dell claims 85% Of Jobs That Will Exist In 2030 Haven’t Been Invented Yet. Get ready for a globalized workforce and a lifetime of retraining : Huffingtonpost’s article

Retraining

Dell’s statement reminds me of a statement Dion Chang, Founder of Flux Trends, made at a conference I attended earlier this year. It was something in the line of: “Generally jobs lost gets displaced into other services”. Dion Chang went on to explain this is only true if the people whos jobs are lost are prepared and trained to perform new functions and services.

You only need to do a simple “future jobs” search to see that the future of employment and being employed is changing…fast. CNBC lists the 10 best and worst jobs. Here are the Best 10:

App developer
Computer systems analyst
Nurse practitioner
Physical therapist
Health services manager
Physician assistant
Dental hygienist
Market research analyst
Personal financial adviser
Speech language pathologist

The bottom line is that with technology developing so fast, mankind travelling to Mars soon, projects like the Square Kilometer Array and Nuclear Fusion Reactors being tested STEM skills will become more essential to secure employment in the future. Download this STEM infographic on the right for more statistics about STEM.