Chapter 6: Employment - Occupations of scientists and engineers

About one-third of employed people identified as scientists and engineers in the SESTAT surveys work in an S&E occupation. (See appendix table 6-1 and figure 6-1 .) Many of those who are not employed in science and engineering occupations are employed in occupations within the S&E enterprise, such as management, health-related occupations, and sales and marketing. Throughout the remainder of this chapter, scientists and engineers are defined in terms of occupation, not degree field, unless otherwise noted.[8]

Women

As with degree fields (see chapters 3 and 5), women and men differ in S&E occupation, with women constituting higher percentages of some S&E occupations than of others. For example, in 1999 more than half of all psychologists (64 percent) and sociologists/anthropologists (52 percent) were women, compared with about 10 percent of physicists/astronomers and engineers. (See appendix table 6-7.) Women also constitute higher percentages of some engineering occupations than others; for example, 16 percent of chemical engineers in 1999 were women, compared with about 6 percent of electrical and mechanical engineers.

Minorities

Asians, blacks, and American Indians account for larger percentages of some S&E occupations than of others. (See appendix table 6-8.) In 1999, Asians made up a larger percentage of biological scientists (accounting for 15 percent of total), electrical engineers (15 percent), computer scientists (14 percent), and chemists (13 percent) than of other occupations (e.g., they were only 4 percent of the social scientists, including psychologists). Blacks accounted for a higher percentage of mathematical scientists (6 percent) and social scientists (5 percent) than of other occupations; for example, they comprised only 2 percent of the biological scientists and 1 percent of earth scientists/geologists/oceanographers. Hispanics were more proportionally distributed among occupations, accounting for roughly 2 to 4 percent in most S&E occupations.

Minority women

The occupational distributions of minority women among S&E occupations generally resemble that of white women. Within each racial/ethnic group, higher percentages of female scientists and engineers than of male are biological scientists and psychologists, and lower percentages are engineers. About 40 to 50 percent of male scientists and engineers in each racial/ethnic group were engineers in 1999, compared with less than 20 percent of their female counterparts. Asian women differ from women in other racial/ethnic groups in that a relatively small proportion (2 percent in 1999) were psychologists, compared to between 11 and 17 percent of women in other racial/ethnic groups. (See appendix table 6-2.)

Persons with disabilities

Scientists and engineers with and without disabilities do not differ greatly by S&E occupation: 10 percent of the members of both groups in S&E occupations were life scientists, 8 percent of both were physical scientists, 10 percent of both were social scientists, and 39 percent of both were engineers in 1999. (See appendix table 6-9.) Similar proportions of scientists and engineers with and without disabilities were computer scientists (28 versus 30 percent).

Educational Field Versus Occupational Category

In many analyses of human resources for science and technology, there are two principal ways in which the data are presented: by educational field or by occupational category. Many times, these two separate concepts and the terminology to describe them are used interchangeably. For example, individuals with engineering degrees as well as individuals in the engineering profession can be referred to as "engineers." This all-encompassing nomenclature leads to confusion and a lack of precision, because, in fact, not all individuals with engineering degrees work in an engineering occupation and not all individuals who work in an engineering occupation have an engineering degree.

In the present analysis, educational field refers to the specific degree that an individual holds. However, an individual may hold multiple degrees. This consideration particularly applies among the population of scientists and engineers, of whom almost 40 percent hold more than one degree, often in more than one field. In the analyses in this chapter, educational field data refer to an individual's highest degree level (doctorate, first-professional, master's, or bachelor's) and/or field. Occupation data generally refer to the principal job an individual holds. Although people in the labor force may hold more than one job, in the analyses presented here, the focus is on what the respondent chooses to report as his or her principal job.

Scientists and Engineers Who Hold Second Jobs

In 1997, 12 percent of employed U.S. scientists and engineers (defined by degree or occupation) held second jobs (NSF/SRS 2001). Although the percentage of scientists and engineers with second jobs was relatively stable during the mid-1990s, there are notable differences in the demographic characteristics of those people who held second jobs.

Women were slightly more likely than men to hold second jobs (about a 1 percentage point difference). The percentages of women employed in second jobs were slightly higher than those of men for all degree levels. (See text table 6-2 .)

Among racial/ethnic groups, 12 percent of Hispanics, 14 percent of American Indians, and 15 percent of blacks held second jobs, compared to 8 percent of Asians and 12 percent of whites. Blacks and American Indians were slightly more likely than members of other racial/ethnic groups to hold second jobs at all degree levels.

Scientists and engineers with disabilities were slightly more likely to have second jobs (13 percent) than those without disabilities (11 percent). For all degree levels, persons with disabilities were more likely than those without to have a second job.

Asian S&E Doctoral Recipients

Among S&E doctoral recipients, Asians differ from members of other racial/ethnic groups in that they are overwhelmingly foreign-born. Foreign-born Asians account for 93 percent of the Asian S&E doctoral recipients in the United States; in contrast, approximately 12 percent of non-Asian S&E doctoral recipients in the United States are foreign-born. More than half (53 percent) of all Asian S&E doctoral recipients were born in the People's Republic of China, Taiwan, or Hong Kong. Another 24 percent were born in India, and 4 percent were born in Korea.

The occupational distribution of Asian S&E doctoral recipients is quite different from that of other racial/ethnic groups. Whether U.S.- or foreign-born, Asians are more likely than members of other racial/ethnic groups to be engineers, and they are less likely to be social scientists. For example in 1999, among U.S.-born S&E doctoral recipients, 19 percent of Asians were social scientists, compared to between 30 and 52 percent of members of other racial/ethnic groups. (See text table 6-3 .)

Footnotes

[8] See appendix A for the SESTAT classification of S&E and non-S&E occupations.

home | help | comments
introduction | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | technical notes | appendix tables