Secondary and high school students are in such a wonderful period of their lives. There is so much opportunity and growth that awaits them beyond the school campus. They get to select a career path and become the architect of their own dreams, but – with great power comes great responsibility.
For many of us, success is tightly connected to income. We want our children to lack nothing and have access to all the wonderful things the world has to offer. For this, you need job security and financial means. ME students who dream of lucrative careers with plenty of growth opportunities, are well primed to enter the STEM arena.
In our earlier blog, ‘What is STEM education?’ we discussed the basics of STEM based education but in this article, we will be discussing paths that a STEM education opens up for our students and some of the high-powered options they can choose from.
1. Software Developer
Software developers are the scribes of our generation. They create code that can change our experience of the world. We have software developers to thank for daily conveniences like the apps we use on our phones to the games we turn to when we want to relax.
We shouldn’t think that software developers are limited to gaming or app development alone. Almost every industry these days requires software development in some area of their business and new opportunities in this field are being created all the time. According to The Bureau of Labour Statistics, upwards of 316,000 new software development jobs are estimated to open up between now and 2029.
In order to be a great software developer, one needs to be creative, innovative and technical. This career option does not involve just sitting behind a computer all day. Software developers can be expected to do many things like meeting with clients, working with other team members and collaborating with other developers. They will be required to develop new code, maintain existing code or identify and correct bugs in problematic code.
Students who wish to explore this field of expertise will benefit greatly from the skills they learn in their STEM based subjects. The most crucial skills include problem solving, analysing and the ability to think outside the box.
2. Statistician
A career in statistics is for those students who love working with numbers. Statisticians work with numerical data to help make sound decisions.
While it may sound like a day at the office is only crunching numbers, this is not the case. Statisticians have to identify what data needs to be collected and how. Once they have worked that out they can begin to collect the data and then work on analysing and interpreting the story it tells.
The story that data provides us with has many important applications like environmental issues, medicine and even public safety.
The more we learn how to gather data, the more jobs will open up to interpret and harness the power of this data. Students who enjoy analysing and working with numbers will do well in a career as a statistician.
3. IT Manager
IT Managers are the silent heroes at every organisation. If they are doing their jobs well, most employees won’t even know they are there. It’s when something goes wrong that people look to the IT Manager to resolve it.
An IT Manager is responsible for helping a company to maximise productivity through technology. IT Managers will usually have a team under them and will spend a great deal of time in strategy meetings so they can best understand what the company’s short- and long-term technology goals are. They will also meet with suppliers to purchase solutions that will help achieve these goals.
Almost every business will require an IT Manager at some stage especially data sensitive institutions like finance or insurance companies.
As technology continues to make its way into every aspect of our lives, organisations need to be constantly upgrading their information technology systems. To be competitive they need to have the newest, fastest networks and they have to be able to defend themselves against cyberthreats. They will call on their IT Managers for this. If a student shows great leadership qualities as well as problem solving abilities, this may be a career option worth exploring.
4. Mechanical Engineer
Students who are curious about how things work will often do well in a mechanical engineering career. A mechanical engineer is responsible for the research, design, development, building and testing of technological devices.
We use computers for a lot of things these days. A mechanical engineer will have many different computers to aid them in their job but they will also use things like electric generators, industrial production equipment and material-handling systems. As technology advances and the development of new engineering materials rises, so new mechanical engineering jobs are created. 3D printing and carbon fibre composites are two such examples.
Students who excel at STEM subjects like calculus and trigonometry will appreciate the intricacies and rewards that this career path offers.
5. Information Security Analyst Unfortunately, we know all too well the dangers that are posed by cyber-attacks. Information security analysts are the people who keep information on the internet safe and out of the wrong hands. An information security analyst is responsible for planning and executing security measures to help protect an organisation's sensitive data from being infiltrated and compromised. This is another career path for curious students who enjoy understanding how things work and the story that numerical data can tell. More and more industries as well as governments rely on information security analysts to safeguard their IT systems against dangerous and ill-intentioned hackers. STEM courses open the door to so many different careers and it gives our students the opportunity to explore diverse fields. They have some big decisions to make and it is our job to help guide and steer them in a direction that will ultimately be rewarding and successful. To learn more about our STEM curricula and the other courses we offer, please contact us on +852 2383 0300 or info@meeducationhk.com.
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