In the last school year, Spain has registered a lower enrollment of students in STEM professions (natural sciences, mathematics and statistics, information and communication technologies and engineering, industry and construction) compared to other European countries, a trend that has occurred both undergraduate and master’s degrees.
These are the latest data collected in the annual report of the Knowledge and Development Foundation (CYD), which each year makes an updated diagnosis of the Spanish university system and the contribution of universities to economic and social development. The 2021/2022 report reflects that in STEM fields, such as engineering, manufacturing and construction, and information and communication technologies, Spain has a lower weight in relation to the European Union.
Of all the fields of STEM, it is in engineering, industry and construction where there is a greater difference between the rest of the EU countries and Spain. The percentage of undergraduate students in these fields in the European Union in the 2021-2022 academic year represented 16% of the total, while in Spain it was 11.7%.
“These data contrast with the importance of these disciplines in the labor market and the response to the technological challenges of the future, so it will have to be taken into account in the design of the university offer and in the orientation of the students who have to choose degreeâ€, the report states.
According to the study, these types of studies currently obtain the best employability indicators. “Engineering graduates are the ones with the greatest job placement five years after graduation, with a proportion of people in employment of 92%,†the report explains. Despite this high employability index, enrollment in this type of degree has decreased in the last 20 years.
Despite these data, in a world as digitized and technological as the current one, professions in the field of engineering are and will be increasingly in demand. This is reflected in the data shared with this medium by the Spanish Engineering Observatory, which ensures that Spain will need to incorporate at least 200,000 engineers in the next ten years to cover the needs of companies, both in the industrial and services sectors.
This area is wide, since there are many types of engineering: chemical, civil, electrical, mechanical, computer… The offer to choose from is enormous. But most have a significant employability index. According to a report by the Adecco Institute, the fields of engineering and production and technology, information technology and telecommunications are the labor fields where the greatest number of job offers are present today.
Knowing the employability indices of this type of degree, it may be interesting to train in this field. At Emagister they have different degrees and master’s degrees in the field of engineering, such as the Degree in Industrial Organization Engineering from the Distance University of Madrid. The objective of this course is that, once completed, students have acquired all the necessary knowledge to be able to manage an industrial company.
Computer science is another booming sector. In this context, the Degree in Computer Engineering from the Miguel de Cervantes European University stands out, aimed at professionally training students in a competitive and global environment. In the technological field we also find the Degree in Engineering of Telecommunication Technologies and Services from the Distance University of Madrid.
For those who have already completed a degree and are looking for a higher specialization, Emagister also has options. The Master in Industrial Engineering at Nebrija University will allow students to be up to date with technological innovations. Another option is the Master in Electrical Engineering taught by INESEM Business School, aimed at learning about electrical installations.
