‘STEM is everywhere. Our nourishment, our safety, our homes and neighbours, our relationships with family and friend, our health our jobs, our leisure are all profoundly shaped by technological innovation and the discoveries of science.’
Professor Ian Chubb, 2013
Why STEM?
STEM refers to science, technology, engineering and mathematics – exciting subjects that offer students the opportunity to investigate real-world issues and challenges that are all around them. An education in STEM subjects, at school and beyond, offers students the opportunity develop knowledge and skills that will prepare them for the future workforce. An understanding of STEM also provides the capacity and confidence to be informed consumers and make decisions on complex issues that face that impact on our lives.
STEM related jobs are some of the fastest growing employment areas in Australia and around the world, with a predicted 75 percent of all future jobs will require STEM literacy and skills. Engaging with STEM opportunities help develop critical thinking, problem solving, analytic capabilities, imagination and curiosity, all identified critical skills in future workplaces. In short, a skilled STEM workforce is central to Australia’s technological growth, economic vitality and innovative developments now and well into the future.
Reports and Research
Australia’s STEM Workforce
Office of the Chief Scientist
Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics the National Interest: A Strategic Approach
Office of the Chief Scientist
Examining our performance in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education, workforce and research in the international arena
Benchmarking Australian Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics
An overview of employment and wages for higher education graduates in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields
Graduate Careers Australia
An overview of the skills and attributes that employers need from STEM graduates today and into the future
STEM Skills in the Workforce: What do Employers Want?
Examines Queensland’s capacity, collaborations and outcomes across diverse STEM workforce and research platforms that underpin current and future science and innovation strategies
Health of Queensland Science Review – 2014
