Dr Roslyn Prinsley's presentation to the 2014 AGM for the Australian Council for the Deans of Science

1. STEM SKILLS IN THE WORKFORCE -
'IVORY TOWER TO CONCRETE JUNGLE’
Dr Roslyn Prinsley
National Adviser, Science and Mathematics Education and Industry

2. Outline
1. Competing globally using STEM skills
2. STEM graduates in the workforce
3. STEM skills – what do employers want?
4. Work Integrated Learning

3. 1. Competing globally using STEM skills

4. Fast rate of growth in STEM jobs
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).

5. 4.9
4.6
8.6
Income from sales of goods or services
Profitability
Productivity
Range of goods or services offered
Expenditure on information technology (IT)
Total number of jobs or positions
Structured/formal training for employees
Social contributions
Contracting out work or outsourcing
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Innovation leads to improved business performance
0.6
3.6
9.7
6.3
14.2
20.0
27.7
2.5
10.6
13.5
18.6
21.3
30.0
28.0
33.7
32.8
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
Percentage of businesses
Innovation-active businesses Non innovation-active businesses
Source: ABS (2014), Selected Characteristics of Australian Business, 2012-13 cat. no. 8167.0

6. Over 70 per cent of employers say their STEM qualified staff are
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among their most innovative
2.00
1.95
1.90
1.85
1.80
1.75
1.70
1.65
1.60
1.55
Relative likelihood of a business engaging in
innovation:
STEM/non-STEM
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

7. 2. STEM graduates in the workforce
(ABS results)

8. 2.6
2.5
2.2
2.2
2.1
2.0
1.9
1.7
1.4
1.4
1.4
1.4
1.4
1.3
1.3
1.3
1.3
1.3
1.3
1.2
7.3
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services…
Computer System Design and Related Services
Public Administration
Tertiary Education
Finance
Preschool and School Education
Medical and Other Health Care Services
Other Store-Based Retailing
Machinery and Equipment Manufacturing
Machinery and Equipment Wholesaling
Hospitals
Telecommunications Services
Food and Beverage Services
Auxiliary Finance and Insurance Services
Metal Ore Mining
Building Construction
Basic Chemical and Chemical Product…
Administrative Services
Defence
Heavy and Civil Engineering Construction
Food Product Manufacturing
Electricity Supply
Public Order, Safety and Regulatory Services
Agriculture
Construction Services
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Industries where STEM graduates are employed
1.2
2.3
6.3
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
Source: ABS 2011 Census of Population and Housing. Percentage of graduates

9. Industries where Natural and Physical Science graduates are employed
2.0
1.9
1.8
1.6
1.3
1.3
1.2
1.2
1.2
2.8
5.9
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services (except…
Tertiary Education
Public Administration
Medical and Other Health Care Services
Preschool and School Education
Hospitals
Computer System Design and Related Services
Basic Chemical and Chemical Product Manufacturing
Other Store-Based Retailing
Finance
Food and Beverage Services
Public Order, Safety and Regulatory Services
Metal Ore Mining
Food Product Manufacturing
Auxiliary Finance and Insurance Services
Other Goods Wholesaling
Food Retailing
Administrative Services
Machinery and Equipment Wholesaling
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1.2
1.7
2.7
3.2
4.8
5.5
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
Source: ABS 2011 Census of Population and Housing. Percentage of graduates

10. Occupations of Natural and Physical Science graduates
2.8
2.6
2.5
2.4
5.0
10.5
Design, Engineering, Science and Transport Professionals
Specialist Managers
Education Professionals
Business, Human Resource and Marketing Professionals
Engineering, ICT and Science Technicians
ICT Professionals
Health Professionals
Professionals nfd
Office Managers and Program Administrators
Sales Assistants and Salespersons
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2.3
4.7
7.7
9.7
25.5
0.0 5.0 10.0 15.0 20.0 25.0 30.0
Hospitality, Retail and Service Managers
Source: ABS 2011 Census of Population and Housing. Percentage of graduates

11. Industries of doctoral holders: Natural and Physical
Sciences
3.5
2.5
8.3
23.3
37.5
0.0 10.0 20.0 30.0 40.0
Tertiary Education
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services (except Computer
System Design and Related Services)
Public Administration
Hospitals
Medical and Other Health Care Services
Source: ABS 2011 Census of Population and Housing. Percentage of graduates

12. New faculty positions versus new PhDs
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13. 3. STEM skills – what do employers want?
 Survey of employers (Deloitte)

14. 3.1
3.1
6.7
6.3
5.6
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services
Manufacturing
Financial and Insurance Services
Mining
Information Media and Telecommunications
Other
Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing
Public Administration and Safety
Education and Training
Health Care and Social Assistance
Construction
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Survey respondents by industry sector
2.0
5.4
6.7
8.3
10.3
19.9
22.8
0 5 10 15 20 25
Electricity, Gas, Water and Waste Services
Percentage of respondents
Source: Deloitte Access Economics (2014), Australia’s STEM Workforce: a survey of employers

15. Findings
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.

16. Importance of skills and attributes in the workplace
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Source: Deloitte Access Economics (2014), Australia’s STEM Workforce: a survey of employers

17. Skill level – STEM and non-STEM
1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0
Active learning (i.e. learning on the job)
Critical thinking
Complex problem-solving
Creative problem-solving
Interpersonal skills
Understanding how we do business
Time management
Lifelong learning
Design thinking
Knowledge of legislation and regulation
System analysis and evaluation
Programming
Average skill level rating
Average skill level: STEM
Average skill level: non-STEM
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Source: Deloitte Access Economics (2014), Australia’s STEM Workforce: a survey of employers

18. Lack of interpersonal skills
Lack of understanding of how we do business
Lack of general workplace experience
Lack of practical experience/lab skills
Content of STEM qualifications are not relevant to
business needs
Shortage of STEM graduates
Lack of applications
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Issues encountered during recent recruitment
9
16
21
26
35
33
38
36
0 10 20 30 40 50 60
STEM qualified applicants are too specialised
Percentage of respondents
who had encountered the issue
Source: Deloitte Access Economics (2014), Australia’s STEM Workforce: a survey of employers

19. This is not a new problem
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.

20. Satisfaction with relationships with post-secondary
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educational institutions
Source: Deloitte Access Economics (2014), Australia’s STEM Workforce: a survey of employers

21. 4. Work Integrated Learning – Universities
and industry collaborating to match
graduates with needs.

22. 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.

23. Work Integrated Learning (WIL) Studies
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)

24. Current coverage for project 1

25. Current coverage for project 1, cont’d

26. WIL in STEM in universities – a baseline
• 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.

27. Engineering
ICT
Agriculural and environmental sciences
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WIL by STEM discipline (illustrative)
Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Mathematics
Work placements for credit Projects

28. Hunting for Good WIL
• 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

29. What are employers saying?
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 level
7. Getting new ideas about technology and research
Early interim results NCVER October 2014

30. What are employers saying?
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.
Early interim results NCVER October 2014

31. WIL for Science Students
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.

32. 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?

33. The End

34. Physics and Astronomy
5.2
4.7
3.2
2.3
2.3
Mathematical Sciences
Tertiary Education
Professional, Scientific and…
Preschool and School Education
Computer System Design and…
Finance
Public Administration
Auxiliary Finance and Insurance…
Insurance and Superannuation…
Other Store-Based Retailing
Defence
Adult, Community and Other…
Administrative Services
Food and Beverage Services
Telecommunications Services
Food Retailing
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11.7
10.3
34
Unpacking the industries of the Natural and Physical Sciences
2.0
2.0
1.8
1.7
1.5
4.3
7.9
16.3
19.5
Tertiary Education
Professional, Scientific and Technical…
Computer System Design and Related…
Preschool and School Education
Public Administration
Defence
Machinery and Equipment…
0.0 5.0 10.0 15.0 20.0 25.0
Hospitals
Finance
Other Store-Based Retailing
Medical and Other Health Care Services
Auxiliary Finance and Insurance Services
Machinery and Equipment Wholesaling
Telecommunications Services
Percentage of graduates
2.0
1.7
1.6
1.4
1.4
1.3
1.2
1.2
4.4
3.2
6.9
6.5
9.4
11.0
0.0 5.0 10.0 15.0
Hospitals
Percentage of graduates
Source: ABS 2011 Census of Population and Housing.

35. Chemical Sciences
4.7
Biological Sciences
Tertiary Education
Professional, Scientific and…
Public Administration
Medical and Other Health…
Hospitals
Preschool and School…
Other Store-Based Retailing
Basic Chemical and Chemical…
Heritage Activities
Food and Beverage Services
Public Order, Safety and…
Computer System Design and…
Personal and Other Services
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18.6
35
Unpacking the industries of the Natural and Physical Sciences
2.5
2.4
2.0
1.6
1.6
1.6
1.6
1.6
1.5
1.5
1.3
1.3
1.2
1.2
1.2
3.1
5.2
9.6
12.2
16.3
Professional, Scientific and…
Tertiary Education
Basic Chemical and Chemical…
Preschool and School Education
Public Administration
Polymer Product and Rubber…
Other Store-Based Retailing
Food Product Manufacturing
Computer System Design and…
Food and Beverage Services
Medical and Other Health Care…
Other Goods Wholesaling
Public Order, Safety and…
Basic Material Wholesaling
Hospitals
Machinery and Equipment…
Machinery and Equipment…
Primary Metal and Metal Product…
Food Retailing
Water Supply, Sewerage and…
0.0 5.0 10.0 15.0 20.0
Defence
Percentage of graduates
2.6
2.1
2.1
1.9
1.6
1.5
1.4
1.4
5.3
4.6
4.1
11.2
17.0
0 5 10 15 20
Agriculture
Percentage of graduates
Source: ABS 2011 Census of Population and Housing.

36. Earth Sciences
3.0
6.1
Professional, Scientific and Technical
Services (except Computer System Design…
Metal Ore Mining
Exploration and Other Mining Support
Services
Public Administration
Tertiary Education
Oil and Gas Extraction
Coal Mining
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Unpacking the industries of the Natural and Physical Sciences
2.0
5.3
7.4
11.0
14.1
25.4
0.0 5.0 10.0 15.0 20.0 25.0 30.0
Preschool and School Education
Percentage of graduates
Source: ABS 2011 Census of Population and Housing.

37. Natural and Physical Sciences in the Professional, Scientific and
1.6
1.4
5.1
Scientific Research Services
Architectural, Engineering and Technical Services
Management and Related Consulting Services
Legal and Accounting Services
Market Research and Statistical Services
Other Professional, Scientific and Technical Services
Veterinary Services
Advertising Services
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Technical Services industry
Source: ABS 2011 Census of Population and Housing.
0.8
4.0
7.1
17.7
26.9
35.3
0 10 20 30 40
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services (except
Computer System Design and Related Services), nfd
Percentage of graduates

38. Occupations within the Professional, Scientific and Technical Services
Scientific Research Services
Architectural, Engineering and Technical Services
Management and Related Consulting Services
Legal and Accounting Services
Market Research and Statistical Services
Other Professional, Scientific and Technical Services
Advertising Services
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industry for NPS graduates
Source: ABS 2011 Census of Population and Housing.
0 2000 4000 6000 8000 10000
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services (except Computer System
Design 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

39. Industries where Natural and Physical Science graduates are employed
2.0
1.9
1.7
1.6
1.3
1.3
1.2
1.2
1.2
3.2
2.8
5.9
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services (except…
Tertiary Education
Public Administration
Medical and Other Health Care Services
Preschool and School Education
Hospitals
Computer System Design and Related Services
Basic Chemical and Chemical Product Manufacturing
Other Store-Based Retailing
Finance
Food and Beverage Services
Public Order, Safety and Regulatory Services
Metal Ore Mining
Food Product Manufacturing
Auxiliary Finance and Insurance Services
Other Goods Wholesaling
Food Retailing
Administrative Services
Machinery and Equipment Wholesaling
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1.2
1.8
2.7
4.8
5.5
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
Percentage of graduates
Source: ABS 2011 Census of Population and Housing.

40. %
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
BUSINESS COLLABORATION with HIGHER
EDUCATION or PUBLIC RESEARCH AGENCIES
Large firms SMEs
SOURCE: OECD, based on Eurostat (CIS-2010) and national data sources, June 2013.

41. Professional occupations within the Professional, Scientific and
Scientific Research Services
Architectural, Engineering and Technical Services
Management and Related Consulting Services
Legal and Accounting Services
Other Professional, Scientific and Technical Services
Market Research and Statistical Services
Advertising Services
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services (except Computer System
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Technical Services industry for NPS graduates
Source: ABS 2011 Census of Population and Housing.
0 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 6000 7000 8000
Veterinary Services
Design 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