High schoolers plan to get science jobs in Rhode Island

Posted on September 5, 2014

A slew of high schoolers are planning their career early and are looking to snag science jobs in Rhode Island.

According to a survey from Careerbuilder, high school seniors may be taking a more active role in providing a solution to the skills gap. Nearly three in four high school seniors know what career they want to pursue, and STEM-related fields (science, technology, engineering and math) top their choices.

According to the survey, 37 percent of hiring managers reported that they currently have positions that, on average, stay open for 12 weeks or longer, up from 35 percent last year. Comparing industries, Information Technology (52 percent), Health Care² (49 percent) and Manufacturing (44 percent) all came in significantly higher than the national average.

For example, employment in industries such as Manufacturing had been on a downward trajectory for a number of years due to automation and sending jobs overseas.

Now, more Manufacturing jobs are coming back to the U.S., but the talent pool has shrunk over time due to workers moving into other fields and students avoiding related majors because jobs were being offshored.

From 2010 to 2014, there were an estimated 23,861 annual job openings for Machinists, but the number of college degrees awarded for this field was only 6,184 in 2013. Moreover, 25 percent of Machinists are ages 55 and older and approaching retirement, hastening the need to find replacement workers.
The Harris Poll survey shows the majority (97 percent) of high school seniors plan to go to college to obtain a two-year or four-year degree or other training that may ultimately help to close the talent gap. The most popular majors these students plan to sign up for are largely STEM-related:

1. Engineering
2. Business
3. Psychology
4. Biological and Biomedical Sciences
5. Physical Sciences
6. Arts, Visual and Performing
7. Computer and Information Sciences
8. Health Professions and Related Clinical Sciences
9. English Language and Literature
10. Math and Statistics