Chapter 3: Science & Engineering Indicators 93
New S&E Entrants
The most recent information on entry-level hiring indicates that the demand for college graduates fell sharply during the 1990s. (Click here for footnote 9.) Organizations that track entry-level hiring of college
graduates all report a reduction in recruiting by employers and in the number of job offers made to new bachelors degree recipients.(Click here for footnote 10.)Although all recent college graduates have been
affected by the decrease in recruiting activity, S& E graduates are faring better than those who majored in other disciplines (College Placement Council 1991).
Footnote 9:
BLS analyses and forecasts predict that the number of college graduates working in jobs traditionally not requiring a 4 year college degree will increase during the 1990s and into the next decade. See Shelley (1992)
and Hecker (1992).
Footnote 10:
The downturn in corporate recruiting on college campuses has been tracked and documented by Patrick Sheetz in Michigan State University's Recruiting Trends series, by Victor Lindquist in Northwestern University's Lindquist Endicott
Report, by the College Placement Council, and by Valerie Law who maintains the Job Opportunity Barometer for Graduating Engineer. College Placement Council data show the number of corporate recruiters visiting each college campus dropping
from an average of 42 in 1986 to 23 in 1993. The Job Opportunity Barometer published in March 1992 showed engineering recruitment down 22 percent from March 1991 to March 1992. The American Chemical Society in its 1993 employment outlook reports that
"the job outlook for newly graduated chemists and chemical engineers remains gloomy." (According to the American Chemical Society, however, there is one "bright spot"--demand for chemical professionals by drug and consumer product companies remains
strong.) Anecdotal information has also appeared frequently in the science press. For example, the June 8, 1992, issue of the Scientist contains a report on the dropoff in job offers at Caltech for students who specialized in aeronautics,
computer science, physics, and mechanical engineering.
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