STEM professionals
STEM Education: the careers with the greatest demand and future
Training Employment Youth Economy
The acronym STEM education encompasses careers related to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. The new digital era and the acceleration of technological advances have made STEM professionals to be the most sought-after by companies.
The report The Future of Jobs Employment, Skills and Workforce Strategy for the Fourth Industrial Revolution [PDF], — World Economic Forum, 2016 — already proposed that disruptive changes in business models would have a profound impact on the employment landscape in the coming years.
In 2022 the Linkedin Jobs on the Rise Report 
External link, opens in new window. indicates that 20 of the 25 fastest growing jobs are in STEM (science, techonology, engineering and mathematics) occupations. These jobs are key to new business models, with an annual increase in available positions.
In that scenario of change, students trained in STEM subjects will be in the best positions. Aside from technology companies, sectors such as banking, healthcare and energy will need to add talent to their workforce that can focus on data analysis, innovation and cybersecurity in an increasingly global and digital economy.
SEE INFOGRAPHIC: The future of jobs, net employment outlook by job family [PDF]
Employment growth does not increase STEM education
At present, there are already more than nine million workers in the US engaged in jobs linked to technology, engineering and science, accounting for more than 6 % of the country's workforce. Employment in these sectors has grown much more rapidly in the last decade compared to all other professional branches: 24.4 % versus 4.0 % for non-STEM employment, according to figures from the US Department of Commerce. The trend will continue in the coming years, up 11 % in the 2020s according to the US statistics instituteEnlace externo, se abre en ventana nueva. , with the creation of new professions which do not yet exist or are beginning to be shaped now: drones pilot, talent aggregator or financial technologist are just a few examples.
However, the increase of professionals with degrees in STEM subjects is moving at a slower pace than the actual demand required by US companies. In Europe, the deficit in talent is even more palpable. It is estimated that the call for engineers and mathematicians will increase by 14 % by the end of the decade, and companies will have difficulty covering all of these vacancies.
This is the case in the UK, where an IETEnlace externo, se abre en ventana nueva. (Institution of Engineering and Technology) report indicates that there is a shortage of 173,000 workers, almost 10 % of the expected jobs are not filled. In addition, the number of students accepted into engineering and technology industry careers has not increased. As a result, the UK government itself has created a plan to try to reach 200,000 trained people by 2030.
SEE INFOGRAPHIC: The future of jobs, technological drivers of change [PDF]
Reports, such as the one published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the United States Department of Labor, warn that the shortage of skilled professionals will be felt most keenly in the fields of technology and green economy. The main companies in these sectors are therefore involved in promoting scientific and technological research, and in encouraging young people to take an interest in STEM careers.
These actions are necessary in order to refocus talent towards business demand. Those scholarships and programs which promote equal opportunities in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics are helping to instigate a young, quality workforce, which will benefit professionals, companies and society in general. Iberdrola Mexico is working on the Impulso STEMEnlace externo, se abre en ventana nueva. programme to promote the study of engineering amoung young people in Oaxaca.
Efforts are also currently being made to encourage women to enter STEM careers. To this end, Iberdrola has created the Sustainable Mobility STEM Women ChairEnlace externo, se abre en ventana nueva. , which seeks to investigate the reasons for the low participation in studies related to scientific and techonological issues.
