Dr Roslyn Prinsley: The OCS study of workforce integrated learning in science faculties

STEM SKILLS IN THE WORKFORCE -

'IVORY TOWER TO CONCRETE JUNGLE’

Dr Roslyn PrinsleyNational Adviser, Science and Mathematics Education and Industry

Outline

1. Competing globally using STEM skills

2. STEM graduates in the workforce

3. STEM skills – what do employers want?

4. Work Integrated Learning

1. Competing globally using STEM skills

Australia - Jobs held by people with STEM credentials grew at 1.5 times the rate of non-STEM jobs, 2006-2011 (ABS ,2014).

Globally - 75% of the fastest growing occupations require STEM skills and knowledge (AiGroup 2013).

Fast rate of growth in STEM jobs

OFFICE OF THE CHIEF SCIENTIST5

Innovation leads to improved business performance

0.6

3.6

4.6

4.9

9.7

8.6

6.3

14.2

20.0

27.7

2.5

10.6

13.5

18.6

21.3

28.0

30.0

32.8

33.7

44.0

0.0 5.0 10.0 15.0 20.0 25.0 30.0 35.0 40.0 45.0 50.0

Export markets targeted

Contracting out work or outsourcing

Social contributions

Structured/formal training for employees

Total number of jobs or positions

Expenditure on information technology (IT)

Range of goods or services offered

Productivity

Profitability

Income from sales of goods or services

Percentage of businesses

Innovation-active businesses Non innovation-active businesses

Source: ABS (2014), Selected Characteristics of Australian Business, 2012-13 cat. no. 8167.0


Over 70 per cent of employers say their STEM qualified staff are among their most innovative

1.55

1.60

1.65

1.70

1.75

1.80

1.85

1.90

1.95

2.00R

elat

ive

likel

iho

od

of

a b

usi

ne

ss e

nga

gin

g in

in

no

vati

on

:ST

EM/n

on

-STE

M

Source: ABS (2014), Custom data.

STEM skills used to undertake core business activity:

• Engineering• Scientific and research• IT professionals• IT support technicians

NON STEM skills used to undertake core business activity:

• Trades• Transport, plant and

machinery operation• Marketing • Project management• Business management• Financial

2. STEM graduates in the workforce (ABS results)


Industries where STEM graduates are employed

1.2

1.2

1.3

1.3

1.3

1.3

1.3

1.3

1.4

1.4

1.4

1.4

1.4

1.7

1.9

2.0

2.1

2.2

2.2

2.3

2.5

2.6

6.3

7.3

9.3

15.6

0.0 2.0 4.0 6.0 8.0 10.0 12.0 14.0 16.0 18.0

Food Retailing

Construction Services

Agriculture

Public Order, Safety and Regulatory Services

Electricity Supply

Food Product Manufacturing

Heavy and Civil Engineering Construction

Defence

Administrative Services

Basic Chemical and Chemical Product…

Building Construction

Metal Ore Mining

Auxiliary Finance and Insurance Services

Food and Beverage Services

Telecommunications Services

Hospitals

Machinery and Equipment Wholesaling

Machinery and Equipment Manufacturing

Other Store-Based Retailing

Medical and Other Health Care Services

Preschool and School Education

Finance

Tertiary Education

Public Administration

Computer System Design and Related Services

Professional, Scientific and Technical Services…

Percentage of graduatesSource: ABS 2011 Census of Population and Housing.


Industries where Natural and Physical Science graduates are employed

1.2

1.2

1.2

1.2

1.3

1.3

1.6

1.7

1.8

1.9

2.0

2.7

2.8

3.2

4.8

5.5

5.9

7.5

11.5

14.7

0.0 2.0 4.0 6.0 8.0 10.0 12.0 14.0 16.0

Exploration and Other Mining Support Services



Food Retailing

Other Goods Wholesaling



Metal Ore Mining



Finance


Basic Chemical and Chemical Product Manufacturing


Hospitals




Tertiary Education

Professional, Scientific and Technical Services (except…



Occupations of Natural and Physical Science graduates

2.3

2.4

2.5

2.6

2.8

4.7

5.0

7.7

9.7

10.5

25.5

0.0 5.0 10.0 15.0 20.0 25.0 30.0

Hospitality, Retail and Service Managers

Sales Assistants and Salespersons

Office Managers and Program Administrators

Professionals nfd

Health Professionals

ICT Professionals

Engineering, ICT and Science Technicians

Business, Human Resource and Marketing Professionals

Education Professionals

Specialist Managers

Design, Engineering, Science and Transport Professionals


Industries of doctoral holders: Natural and Physical Sciences

2.5

3.5

8.3

23.3

37.5

0.0 10.0 20.0 30.0 40.0


Hospitals


Professional, Scientific and Technical Services (except ComputerSystem Design and Related Services)

Tertiary Education


New faculty positions versus new PhDs

OFFICE OF THE CHIEF SCIENTIST

3. STEM skills – what do employers want?

Survey of employers (Deloitte)


Survey respondents by industry sector

2.0

3.1

3.1

5.4

5.6

6.3

6.7

6.7

8.3

10.3

19.9

22.8

0 5 10 15 20 25

Electricity, Gas, Water and Waste Services

Construction

Health Care and Social Assistance

Education and Training

Public Administration and Safety

Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing

Other

Information Media and Telecommunications

Mining

Financial and Insurance Services

Manufacturing

Professional, Scientific and Technical Services

Percentage of respondents

Source: Deloitte Access Economics (2014), Australia’s STEM Workforce: a survey of employers

Over four in five firms agree that people with STEM qualifications are valuable to the workplace, even when their qualification is not a prerequisite for the role.

53 per cent expected an increase in demand for STEM qualified professionals, while only 8 per cent expected a decrease.

Findings



Importance of skills and attributes in the workplace



1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0

Programming

System analysis and evaluation

Knowledge of legislation and regulation

Design thinking

Lifelong learning

Time management

Understanding how we do business

Interpersonal skills

Creative problem-solving

Complex problem-solving

Critical thinking

Active learning (i.e. learning on the job)

Average skill level rating

Average skill level: STEM

Average skill level: non-STEM

Skill level – STEM and non-STEM


Issues encountered during recent recruitment

9

16

21

26

33

35

36

38

0 10 20 30 40 50 60

STEM qualified applicants are too specialised

Lack of applications

Shortage of STEM graduates

Content of STEM qualifications are not relevant tobusiness needs

Lack of practical experience/lab skills

Lack of general workplace experience

Lack of understanding of how we do business

Lack of interpersonal skills

Percentage of respondents who had encountered the issue


To what extent universities have contributed to national economic decline through their failure to be relevant to students - the nation's potential wealth providers.

Universities need to address the discrepancy between employers' expectations of graduates and their actual performance.

O'Leary, J. (1995). What we can infer from Australian graduate employment statistics: The discrepancy between

employers' expectations and graduate performance. Queensland Researcher, 11(1), 15-27.

This is not a new problem


Satisfaction with relationships with post-secondary educational institutions


4. Work Integrated Learning – Universitiesand industry collaborating to match graduates with needs.

Industry Working Group

• UA, BCA, AiGroup, ACCI, ATN, ACEN

• Advises the Chief Scientist on improving preparedness of graduates to meet Australia’s future workforce needs

• Enhances collaboration between universities and industry

• Assesses feasibility of options to expand work-based educational placements and projects.

Work Integrated Learning in STEM in universities – a baseline and

stocktake

• types and extent of WIL in universities.

• opportunities and barriers to WIL uptake.

• nature and components of higher order skills.

Australian Council for Education Research (ACER)

Work Integrated Learning in STEM from the employer perspective

• types and extent of WIL in enterprises.

• benefits, issues, opportunities and barriers to WIL.

• nature and components of higher order skills required .

National Centre for Vocational Education and Research (NCVER)

Work Integrated Learning (WIL) Studies

Current coverage for project 1

Current coverage for project 1, cont’d

• WIL in STEM is widely embraced. Lots happening in practice, lots of ambition to expand.

• The focus for these activities/ambitions tends to be on ‘authentic’ experiences for students, usually placement-based or project-based.

• The full costs of WIL are in most cases unknown• WIL funded similarly to any other subject/unit.

WIL in STEM in universities – a baseline


WIL by STEM discipline (illustrative)

Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Mathematics

Agriculural and environmental sciences

ICT

Engineering

Work placements for credit Projects

• Linked to theoretical aspects of courses – ideally providing an “ah-ha” moment to student when

practical and theoretical merge.

• Well articulated expectations of students/industry• Well established processes for logistics and

support• Clear assessment-based/reflective tasks that

engage students in considering the ‘experience’ • Long and intensive/block placements best for

building skills and capabilities

Hunting for Good WIL

Employers are willing to provide experiences for students.

Why?1. Win/win situation for enterprise and student.2. “Try before you buy”.3. Building the STEM workforce - investing in the future of their industry.4. Corporate / community citizenship.5. Workload alleviation.6. Employer branding at university level7. Getting new ideas about technology and research

What are employers saying?

Early interim results NCVER October 2014

What makes WIL work? –• Selection process and screening• Committed line managers. • Critical to experience real world and business critical tasks – at scale.

Barriers• Outsourcing to e.g. India/Phillipines threat to student placements.• Little effort of universities to establish/maintain relationships with

SMEs - forgoing many potential placement opportunities.

What are employers saying?

Early interim results NCVER October 2014

Issues

1. Where to start, how to do it?

2. Is there genuine interest from industry?

3. Are there enough employers to scale up WIL?4. Does there needs to be an industry placement for every student?5. Difficult to maintain relationships with employers.6. Matching placements with times of high workload (not summer).

Solutions?1. Project based WIL, employer provides one project for several students

(interaction with industry, apply skills to real world, teamwork).2. Onus on students to seek placements.

WIL for Science Students

The future for WIL for Science Students

What do you need to take the lead on this for your institution?

Where are there areas for cooperation?

What information would be valuable to you?

What else do we need to do?

The End


Unpacking the industries of the Natural and Physical Sciences

1.5

1.7

1.8

2.0

2.0

2.3

2.3

3.2

4.3

4.7

5.2

7.9

16.3

19.5

0.0 5.0 10.0 15.0 20.0 25.0






Finance

Hospitals

Machinery and Equipment…

Defence



Computer System Design and Related…

Professional, Scientific and Technical…

Tertiary Education

Percentage of graduates

Physics and Astronomy

1.2

1.2

1.3

1.4

1.4

1.6

1.7

2.0

3.2

4.4

6.5

6.9

9.4

10.3

11.0

11.7

0.0 5.0 10.0 15.0

Hospitals

Food Retailing




Adult, Community and Other…

Defence


Insurance and Superannuation…

Auxiliary Finance and Insurance…


Finance

Computer System Design and…


Professional, Scientific and…

Tertiary Education


Mathematical Sciences

Source: ABS 2011 Census of Population and Housing.



1.2

1.2

1.2

1.3

1.3

1.5

1.5

1.6

1.6

1.6

1.6

1.6

2.0

2.4

2.5

3.1

4.7

5.2

9.6

12.2

16.3

0.0 5.0 10.0 15.0 20.0

Defence

Water Supply, Sewerage and…

Food Retailing

Primary Metal and Metal Product…



Hospitals

Basic Material Wholesaling

Public Order, Safety and…


Medical and Other Health Care…





Polymer Product and Rubber…



Basic Chemical and Chemical…

Tertiary Education



Chemical Sciences

1.4

1.4

1.5

1.6

1.9

2.1

2.1

2.6

4.1

4.6

5.3

11.2

17.0

18.6

0 5 10 15 20

Agriculture

Personal and Other Services


Public Order, Safety and…


Heritage Activities

Basic Chemical and Chemical…


Preschool and School…

Hospitals

Medical and Other Health…



Tertiary Education


Biological Sciences




2.0

3.0

5.3

6.1

7.4

11.0

14.1

25.4

0.0 5.0 10.0 15.0 20.0 25.0 30.0


Coal Mining

Oil and Gas Extraction

Tertiary Education


Exploration and Other Mining SupportServices

Metal Ore Mining

Professional, Scientific and TechnicalServices (except Computer System Design…


Earth Sciences



Natural and Physical Sciences in the Professional, Scientific and Technical Services industry


0.8

1.4

1.6

4.0

5.1

7.1

17.7

26.9

35.3

0 10 20 30 40

Professional, Scientific and Technical Services (exceptComputer System Design and Related Services), nfd

Advertising Services

Veterinary Services

Other Professional, Scientific and Technical Services

Market Research and Statistical Services

Legal and Accounting Services

Management and Related Consulting Services

Architectural, Engineering and Technical Services

Scientific Research Services



Occupations within the Professional, Scientific and Technical Services industry for NPS graduates


0 2000 4000 6000 8000 10000

Professional, Scientific and Technical Services (except Computer SystemDesign and Related Services), nfd


Veterinary Services







Managers Professionals Technicians and Trades Workers

Community and Personal Service Workers Clerical and Administrative Workers Sales Workers

Machinery Operators and Drivers Labourers


Industries where Natural and Physical Science graduates are employed

1.2

1.2

1.2

1.2

1.3

1.3

1.6

1.7

1.8

1.9

2.0

2.7

2.8

3.2

4.8

5.5

5.9

7.5

11.5

14.7

0.0 2.0 4.0 6.0 8.0 10.0 12.0 14.0 16.0

Exploration and Other Mining Support Services



Food Retailing




Metal Ore Mining



Finance


Basic Chemical and Chemical Product Manufacturing


Hospitals




Tertiary Education

Professional, Scientific and Technical Services (except…



0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

%Large firms SMEs

SOURCE: OECD, based on Eurostat (CIS-2010) and national data sources, June 2013.

BUSINESS COLLABORATION with HIGHER

EDUCATION or PUBLIC RESEARCH AGENCIES


Professional occupations within the Professional, Scientific and Technical Services industry for NPS graduates


0 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 6000 7000 8000

Veterinary Services

Professional, Scientific and Technical Services (except Computer SystemDesign and Related Services), nfd








Professionals nfd Arts and Media Professionals

Business, Human Resource and Marketing Professionals Design, Engineering, Science and Transport Professionals

Education Professionals Health Professionals

ICT Professionals Legal, Social and Welfare Professionals