US – The Science and Engineering Workforce

T​he number of college graduates in the United States nearly doubled between 1993 and 2013, from 29 million to 55 million, according to the National Survey of College Graduates (NSCG). The number of college graduates with degrees in science and engineering (S&E) fields grew faster than the number of college graduates with degrees in non-S&E fields. Additionally, in 2013, about 1 in 10 college graduates were employed in an S&E occupation, and this proportion has remained largely unchanged since 1993. Women accounted for more than one-half of the college graduate population in the United States in 2013. However, women constituted only 29% of those employed in S&E occupations.

Educational Background and Labor Market Conditions

Overall, slightly more than one-fourth (27%) of the college-educated population in 2013 held degrees only in S&E fields of study. An additional 14% held degrees in at least two of the following: S&E, S&E-related, and non-S&E (table 1). Nearly half (49%) of the employed college graduates with degrees only in S&E fields worked in an S&E or S&E-related occupation in 2013. Among individuals with degrees only in S&E fields who were employed outside of S&E, the majority (62%) reported that their job was related to their S&E degree. This suggests that the application of S&E knowledge and skills is widespread across the U.S. economy and not just limited to occupations classified as S&E. The extensive use of S&E expertise in the workplace is also evident from the 18 million college graduates reporting in 2013 that their jobs required at least a bachelor’s degree level of technical expertise in one or more S&E fields. This number is about three times as large as the number of college graduates employed in an S&E occupation in 2013 (6 million).

In 2013, the median annual salary for college graduates in the United States was $58,000.

Chosen excerpts by Job Market Monitor. Read the whole story at nsf.gov – Characteristics of the College-Educated Population and the Science and Engineering Workforce in the United States – NCSES – US National Science Foundation (NSF).