Science is a key factor contributing to a nation’s economic growth and social prosperity. However, there is a worldwide phenomenon of increasing students’ negative attitude towards science disciplines in many developed countries. Young people opt against science subjects due to several outdated preconceptions which affect their own choices as well as their society.
One of these preconceptions is that science streams are perceived as being more conceptually challenging and demanding. Thes fields of knowledge, namely mathematics, computer science, technologies, require students to put much effort and time for their studies. Moreover, they find it more difficult to score high grades in such fields. In my country, for instance, young people who are doing a course in biology have to conduct many experiments in laboratories and undertake much research which is time-consuming.
Another reason for students losing interest in science is the scarcity of high-paid occupations. They believed that scientists were paid significantly less than professionals in such prestigious areas as business and law. Therefore, many students disregard their aptitude for science with the aim of getting lucrative job opportunities and making a large profit.
The decline in science graduates can have considerable repercussions on societies which lack experts in major scientific fields such as biotechnology, robotics and even computer science. Consequently, there will be less research and it will be difficult for a country to advance in terms of scientific research and technological innovations. Meanwhile, economies around the world are affected by a deficit of graduates with technical skills and an oversupply of social science graduates resulting in frequent complaints of fresh graduates who cannot find a job.
In conclusion, it seems that fewer young people are majoring in science owing to the complexity of science subjects and the dearth of high income jobs. Thus, too many opt for a degree in social sciences creating an imbalanced society, where the number of scientists is decreasing and highly educated university graduates struggle to find a skilled job.