It has recently been found that not enough students are leaning toward science subjects compared to other majors. There are several reasons for this issue that will be put forward in the following paragraphs as well as an analysis of the effect this lack of scientists has on society.
First, the ongoing downward trend in employment markets for science majors is one reason that fewer and fewer students would like to major in science. In developed and developing countries these days most young people study because they want a well-paid job in the future so they can enjoy a good lifestyle. However, many prefer not to specialise in scientific areas since it is becoming increasingly difficult to find employment.
Furthermore, there is the issue of rising costs of laboratory equipment and facilities, particularly in developing countries where these commodities are usually imported. Although governments could subsidize these cost increases, they are passed on to science students through higher tuition fees. Students are not happy about spending more money for their education and some cannot afford to pay it. As a consequence, they prefer to study subjects like business administration or law.
As fewer students major in science, there might be a problem in the next few years in societies which lack experts in major scientific fields such as biotechnology, robotics and even computer science. In my country, for example, there has been a significant drop in student applications in these majors over the last five years. As a result, fewer professionals in these areas will enter the work market over the next decade, there will be less research and it will be difficult for the country to advance in terms of scientific research and technological development.
In conclusion, fewer students have been majoring in science owing to high unemployment rates and increased tuition fees. In turn, this will lead to a lack of scientific experts to help stimulate technological progress and thus economic growth in many countries