Latinos Aren't Interested In Stem Fields And That's A Problem For Everyone

While there has been some positive progress in improving interest and aptitude among students in science, technology, engineering and math careers, the number of available jobs in such fields continues to significantly outpace the number of available peoplel qualified for those jobs, according to a new analysis.

The new U.S. News/Raytheon STEM Index, released last month, found that STEM employment in the U.S. has increased by more than 30 percent, from 12.8 million jobs in 2000 to 16.8 million in 2013. And while the number of undergraduate and graduate STEM degrees granted increased during that time, the proportion of STEM in terms of total degrees granted has remained relatively flat, the study found.

“Just using the government’s data, which is quite a conservative estimate, it’s clear that STEM is an important and growing part of the economy,” said Brian Kelly, editor and chief content officer of U.S. News & World Report. “Beyond that, we know that STEM skills may be required in as many as 50 percent of future jobs.”