SHOULD YOU TAKE UP A STEM DEGREE?
an honest advice from a STEM graduate
Growing up, I can never imagine myself not being a scientist. I love, like really, really love science. I was excelling in the subjects. I wanted to work at CERN and be the first from my country to win a Nobel Prize. Man, what an ambitious soul.
But it was all history.
Background (You can skip this if you want)
Months into my first semester in university, I decided to change my major, from phsyics to geosciences. The reason was simple, Physics is hard (and it’s supposed to). I want to learn history, social sciences and languages. Plus, geosciences is a lucrative major (think of the oil and gas money). So, why not?
Geosciences was fun. I thoroughly enjoy it. Looking at rocks and you can infer millions, if not billions of history of the Earth — how the force of the planet affects and makes us the way we are now. On top of that, I minored in Religion Studies and Arabic. I studied Islam from a Protestant Professor, and studied Christianity from critical, philosophical and historical viewpoints. It was awesome.
All good things must come to an end. I graduated and returned to my home nation, eager to serve. Oil prices are slumping so no active recruitment from oil and gas companies. Within a year after my graduation, I declined two job offers, failed many scholarship applications, deferred an unconditional offer from UCL due to lack financial assistance, and pursued self-funded postgraduate studies at UKM only to drop out after a semester.
Fortunately, I landed a job as an environmental geoscientist at an multi-national consultancy. I thought this is it, I am gonna make it as a scientist.
But life has its own way. It may change you, or at least, you will change.
Since that job was dependent to Oil and Gas companies and the prices aren’t showing any sign of reaching the good ol' days of >$100 per barrel, jobs for my consultancy was scarce. I ventured out again and after a year, I changed my career to something I never imagined: a government bureaucrat.
Oops, stop skipping: Here are my answers (disclaimer: yours might be different)
1. You will change, or you have to change
Your passion for a scientific pursuit is surely great, and I would argue it’s noble. Malaysia is lacking in science talent and every year some public figures will point out that our nation is lacking in STEM talents. We never reach 60:40 quota for science to art stream ratio in secondary schools, and in fact few years back, the actual number of students taking up STEM talent decreases.
So it is great, you want to contribute to a national agenda. Nevertheless, as it has been pointed out by World Bank and many pundits, Malaysia is in a crossroad, which what some call a middle income trap. We maintain to be the producers of raw and intermediate products but never scale up to finished products nor to design of the products, which is higher in value. Think South Korea and Japan. We exported out rare earths or maybe some electronic chips. But the electronic products are mainly coming out from more developed nations — or China.
Consequently some of those STEM talents find themselves without job because either the industry is maturing/not mature enough and need not such talents in that quantity. Sometimes, those who need it think some talents are beyond their reach (yes, there is such thing as over-qualified).
We all have to admit, policymakers and pundits alike, that there is mismatch in our labor supply and demand.
To bet your future on job market is some risky move. I thought I was gonna have a breeze by taking geosciences but it had been proven to me (and many others) otherwise.
In your years of study, you may find yourself shifted or oriented towards other stuff. You may develop your passion in social works, or business/finance. I would argue that that it is definitely okay. An 18 years-old you might have different priorities than a 23 years-old you.
Seriously, that’s okay! Your degree doesn’t have to define you nor it has to bind you for life. You will change and adapt and improve yourself. With all the free classes and materials online, you can learn about stuff you later decide what is paramount to you.
2. But how about my 4-years degree?
This is the part where I argue the value of your STEM education. First and foremost, your GPA is pretty much the “it” in job hunting for fresh graduates. It filters the candidates that they want. But this is where it might help or backfire you. Too perfect of GPA might scare some employers because they thought you won’t stay long in the company; too low of a GPA, well you know what people will think of you.
Nevertheless, STEM education trains you to be analytical and to be facts-and/or-number-oriented. The courses demand you to be organized and systematic in your thinking. For some, it demands endurance and resistance (especially those that involve field work). It surely demands your hard work. So you yourself must reflect all of these qualities.
Your four or three years in college, build yourself to be future-proof. Regardless what your courses are, STEM or non-STEM, dabble yourselves in little bit of technology/computer sciences. Learn come coding, make yourself versed with Microsoft offices and even Adobe applications. Join extracurricular activities to enhance your soft skills, managerial capacities and network. You may not get a job in your field of study, so these skills will come in handy.
Like myself, even though I am “trapped” in my bureaucratic jobs, I find the skills I developed during my undergraduate years helped me a lot to understand issues and approach problems for solutions. Of course, I am still learning and thinking. At the plus side, being in the ministry and in the position to directly be informed of environmental and science & technology policy helps too. (I am way too junior to actually design a policy, still I consider myself lucky in terms of my exposure).
In the job market, your attitude plays very important part. Open up yourself to new experiences and carry yourself professionally. Whining doesn’t get you anywhere, seriously.
3. Job market is not just in Malaysia (and sometimes, it’s in you)
If you don’t have constraints, why not venturing outside Malaysia? Some people dub it a brain drain and claim it’s a loss to the nation. From my part, I believe in brain circulation. If you’re stuck in Malaysia doing stuff that you don’t like just to drain the “science” juice out of your life, why not go elsewhere where your passion and talent may be recognized and even acknowledged? Take your time to hone your skills in your preferred field, expand your network and build your capital. When the time is right, you may come back and help those who are like you were to make sense of their degree.
Better, if you can start from scratch and build your name and company in Malaysia. This may take some guts and blazing entrepreneurial spirit, but why not. Some people (like me included) find this is very hard especially if you (like me) are very risk-averse. But some people manage to do it.
So is a STEM degree still worth it?
My answer is yes, and depending on your passion, choose wisely. You can base your decisions on the prospect of the job market but I suggest it to be what you really want to learn and are happy to put your hours in for it. In the end, during hard times that you will definitely encounter, you have no one to blame but you and to plow through them, like a some badass science enthusiasts! Go to the length. If it needs post-graduate studies than be it. You are carrying the legacy of those scientists and engineers who had made this world a better place. Surely whatever you will go through won’t be on par with what Marie Curie had to go trough — discrimination and cancer of all.
Later on, you might find yourself unable to carry those legacy, as I repeatedly say, that is okay. Acknowledge the fact that the world around you will change and/or you will change, too. Adjust your expectation so it does not ruin you. STEM degree, or any degree for that matter, should be more than about fulfilling job market, it should fulfill you.
**none of this is indicating that I figured it out. Like you, I am still learning and some parts of me regretting why didn’t I take Economics as a major. However, in overall, my undergraduate years were one the best years of my life.
