According to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCSE), in the last 10 years, the number of computer and information science degrees has gone up 129 percent. Engineering degrees have increased by 51 percent. Biology and biomedical science degrees have increased by 37 percent. In total, science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) accounted for nearly 22 percent of all degrees handed out during the 2021-22 graduation year.
But these changes are no surprise given the enticing six-figure salaries often promised to STEM graduates.
Currently, an overwhelming number of industries are moving toward prioritizing STEM talent, with some companies like Meta even offering $100 million bonuses to top AI researchers. This shift has caused students across the country to gravitate towards STEM majors, resulting in a lack of enrollment for humanities and liberal arts majors — again, according to the NCSE, from 2020 to 2022, total humanities B.A.’s dropped below 200,000 and then fell again to 170,000, a sharp 7.3 percent decrease.
As this gap widens further, students face the difficult decision of sacrificing balance between STEM and the humanities for the sake of commiting to STEM and specializing in one field. By doing so, many hope to one day land lucrative jobs at prestigious tech companies.
Associate Headmaster John Ashton believes that this pressure largely stems from a scarcity mindset — college students perceive STEM jobs as extremely difficult to obtain, which then pushes them to abandon other facets of their lives.
“The scarcity mindset is having the mindset where there is a finite amount of resources, and you’re going to have to do whatever you need to do to secure those resources for yourself,” Ashton said. “Therefore, you’re not going to place a higher value on community, social life or self.”
This mindset can be risky, especially given the fact that job markets are volatile. Although hard work is typically rewarded by, for example, a job at a reputable company, interviews or admission are never guaranteed. There are also challenges discerning the authenticity of the pursuit of interests to further one’s career or college placement. Often, those interests are only propelled because of what one believes the interest might yield.
“There are only so many seats at a given college or job, and therefore, you (have the) mindset: ‘here I am, a student at St. Mark’s,’” Ashton said. “‘Everything I do will decide how I’m going to have my experience in school equip me to be more competitive than whoever else is applying at these schools or jobs. But really, what are we willing to trade for that possible — not even guaranteed — interview or admission?”
Max Yan ‘25, a freshman at Stanford University, has witnessed this unspoken pressure to “hyperfocus” on STEM classes at university in hopes of one day creating a start-up. However, despite pursuing a math major, he still engages in various English and humanities classes to maintain balance in his life.
“I think there are definitely a lot of people who try to do everything they can to secure a job, and sometimes, it becomes unhealthy,” Yan said. “I don’t think I’m necessarily in that camp right now, but it is something on my mind.”
Ashton points out that the intrinsic good in different experiences outweighs the tangible and material goods in finding a high-paying but often unfulfilling job in STEM.
“I think it’s important to acknowledge (the tradeoff) and then maintain autonomy and make decisions about what you’re going to prioritize,” Ashton said. “It’s college admissions now, but after that, it’s going to be a job. And after that, well, it’s a slippery slope. We should think through that framework and ask ourselves: ‘What experiences do we want to have?’”
Yan similarly stresses that the purpose of college is more than just preparing students for the job market. There are many different classes — both STEM and humanities — at students’ disposal to explore their interests.
“The point of college education is not just to get a job,” Yan said. “There’s a lot more to college than that.”
Fortunately, the school prepares students to make these sorts of long-term decisions by presenting different opportunities through classes, clubs and extracurricular activities.
“We hope to equip you guys with the agency to make choices,” Ashton said. “St. Mark’s is a school that’s going to make all sorts of opportunities available to (students), so you really (get to) pursue those things that pique your curiosity.”
The Character and Leadership education also encourages students to chase fulfilling and balanced lives. At the end of the day, finding meaning in a career is far more important than any materialistic reward gained from accomplishing some goal.
“We continue to place priority on developing your character and who you are as young men and equipping you to apply those concepts in your life today and into the future,” Ashton said. “The concepts of this framework come together to inform daily decisions that each of us make that will help us then continue to move towards a sense of balance.”
