State must act to make technology and science popular

Net Results: The good news: students are showing a growing interest in physics, chemistry and engineering, according to the numbers sitting science subjects in this year's Leaving Certificate.

The total figure for students doing these subjects rose by 5 per cent, said news reports this week. Overall grades improved as well, with 17.7 per cent getting As, compared to 13.4 per cent last year.

Of course, a one-year improvement, no matter how welcome, does not a trend make. The slow slide in recent times in the number of graduates in the science and technology sectors has been a source of worry to industry bodies such as IBEC technology industry lobby group ICTIreland and educational organisations like Science Foundation Ireland (SFI). Such groups, as well as the State's science and technology-oriented companies, will be anxious to see if the figures hold in coming years.

From the student perspective, there's plenty of anecdotal evidence that young people remained concerned about the value of degrees in science and technology subjects, having watched job prospects decline and numerous companies crash and burn since the 2000 downturn.

And university students with such degrees fret that they may not find jobs and question if they made the right decision by pursuing these subjects. I can't count the number of times in the past year that I've spoken to graduates who ask if I think there are still jobs out there, if the companies here look like they'll be hiring, and if I know what the feel on the ground is out in Silicon Valley.

Perhaps the best, and bluntest, response I can make is to look at what the National Association of Colleges in the US says are the best-paid degrees. Guess what: it isn't a business degree, folks. The top eight degrees in terms of both earning muscle and - perhaps more important in any economic slump - flexibility (the ability to move into related job areas) are ALL science and technology degrees.

Ranked from one to eight, they are: pharmaceutical studies, chemical engineering, computer engineering, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, computer science, civil engineering and management information systems (MIS).

Average starting salaries in the US for these degrees range from $81,235 (€74,548) for pharmacy to $40,915 in MIS. Chemical and computer engineers pull in around $52,000 annually to start; computer science graduates earn $47,419.

In contrast, a business degree starts at $37,122 (with prospects for earning a lot more, of course, over time). Though the salary levels are undoubtedly different - the US would lead in such areas - I am sure that technology graduates also continue to top the salary tables here.

A recent article on CNN.com quotes Mr Paul Harrington, an economist at Northeastern University in the US, who notes that science and technology degrees are particularly flexible and, therefore, good to have in a downturn. Mr Harrington is the author of a book entitled The College Majors Handbook: Actual Jobs, Earnings and Trends for College Graduates of 60 Major Colleges.

"An engineering degree gives a graduate access to a whole array of fields," he said, noting they often move into sales or management after a few years, or get MBAs. Or they stay where they are, pulling down a good salary.

Given that many Irish students will want to work abroad for a few years - with many eyeing the US in particular - science and engineering degrees clearly suit well in terms of practicality and earning power.

And given the Government's focus on keeping science and technology investment coming in to the State, the choice of a degree in the area at least fits in with stated policy intentions, for those concerned about whether they'll be able to work at home rather than abroad.

That said, it's been a tough three years for science and technology graduates. But it's been a tough year for all graduates, and my guess is that prospects have been better with science and tech degrees than with many, many others.

As for those all-important numbers doing science and technology Leaving Certificate subjects - much more could be done to spark interest in study and careers in these areas, at little cost to Government.

Student interest needs to be captured at a much younger stage than the State has recognised in the past - not with courses in the final school years or immersion programmes to get school leavers or others interested in a possible tech career.

The right time is when students are seven or 10 or 13. The right approach is to teach these subjects in an innovative and exciting way, with teachers given plenty of training and support. The right corporate attitude is to get your employees to the schools to talk to children and older students about their real jobs, or get them in to your site to see how chips are made, software is designed, Web pages are put together, computers are built, bridges and buildings planned, medical devices created, pharmaceuticals manufactured.

In particular, women in the sciences need to get in to talk to girls, the great untapped resource for the sector. And of course, schools need adequate equipment and teaching programmes to make science and technology come alive. Such programmes are few and far between.

Let's try for an A for effort and an A for achievement in all these areas. The pay-off will come in the future - exactly when we will be needing it.

klillington@irish-times.ie

Karlin's weblog:

http://weblog.techno-culture.com