Chapter 3: Science & Engineering Indicators 93
S&E Unemployment and Underemployment
Although scientists and engineers are less likely to be unemployed than other types of workers (the overall 1993 third quarter unemployment rate was 5.9 percent), S& E
unemployment rates have been increasing for the past couple of years,(Click here for footnote 7.)--especially among engineers (see "Engineers: Shifting Employment Opportunities and
Trends")--and are higher than those for other professional specialty occupations, including physicians, lawyers, and teachers. (See appendix table 3-11.) The 1993 (third quarter) unemployment
rate for all engineers stood at 3.8 percent; for all natural scientists, it was 3.0 percent; and for all mathematical and computer scientists, it was 2.2 percent. (See figure 3-9.)
In addition to unemployed scientists and engineers, there are also underemployed S& E professionals. Although data on S& E underemployment are scarce, the most recent data on doctoral underemployment suggest that few Ph.D. scientists and
engineers--fewer than 2 percent--are underemployed (SRS forthcoming [a]). (Click here for footnote 8.)
Footnote 7:
In the most recent American Chemical Society survey, 1.9 percent of the respondents reported that they were without jobs but seeking employment, the highest unemployment rate registered by this survey since 1983, when a 2.2 percent unemployment rate
was recorded. See Brennan, Rawls, and Zurer (1992).
Footnote 8:
The definition of underemployment used here refers to doctorate holding scientists and engineers who are either (1) holding part time positions when they would have preferred working full time, or (2) working in non S& E occupations when they
would have preferred S& E jobs.
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