National Research Council

Computer Science and Telecommunications Board

Board on Testing and Assessment

Board on Science, Technology, and Economic Policy

Office of Scientific and Engineering Personnel

Committee on Workforce Needs in Information Technology

A look at any newspaper's employment section suggests that competition for qualified workers in information technology (IT) is intense. Yet even experts disagree on not only the actual supply versus demand for IT workers but also on whether the nation should take any action on this economically important issue. Building a Workforce for the Information Economy offers an in-depth look at IT. workers-where they work and what they do-and the policy issues they inspire. It also illuminates numerous areas that have been questioned in political debates: Where do people in IT jobs come from, and what kind of education and training matter most for them? Are employers' and workers' experiences similar or different in various parts of the country? How do citizens of other countries factor into the U.S. IT workforce? What do we know about IT career paths, and what does that imply for IT workers as they age? And can we measure what matters? The committee identifies characteristics that differentiate IT work from other categories of high-tech work, including an informative contrast with biotechnology. The book also looks at the capacity of the U.S. educational system and of employer training programs to produce qualified workers.

Building a Workforce for the Information Economy

A look at any newspaper's employment section suggests that competition for qualified workers in information technology (IT) is intense. Yet even experts disagree on not only the actual supply versus demand for IT workers but also on whether the nation should take any action on this economically important issue. Building a Workforce for the Information Age offers an in-depth look at IT. workers-where they work and what they do-and the policy issues they inspire. It also illuminates numerous areas that have been questioned in political debates: Where do people in IT jobs come from, and what kind of education and training matter most for them? Are employers' and workers' experiences similar or different in various parts of the country? How do citizens of other countries factor into the U.S. IT workforce? What do we know about IT career paths, and what does that imply for IT workers as they age? And can we measure what matters? The committee identifies characteristics that differentiate IT work from other categories of high-tech work, including an informative contrast with biotechnology. The book also looks at the capacity of the U.S. educational system and of employer training programs to produce qualified workers.

Policy and Global Affairs

Board on Higher Education and Workforce

Ad Hoc Panel on Graduate Attrition Advisory Committee

There is a growing concern among educators and policymakers about the level of attrition from Ph.D. programs in the sciences and humanities at some U.S. universities. Reliable estimates of graduate student attrition are difficult to obtain, however, because most information comes from the administrative records of individual institutions. This book provides a summary of datasets that could be used to analyze patterns of graduate student attrition and degree completion nationally, along with an analysis of recent studies on the subject. Based on this information, the committee examines the feasibility of designing a system to produce national estimates of graduate student attrition.

Measuring Graduate Attrition in the Sciences and Humanities

The Path to the Ph.D.

Committee on Attracting Science and Mathematics Ph.D.s to Secondary School Teaching

The National Research Council conducted a study to identify a set of incentives that state governments and local school districts can use to attract Ph.D. scientists and mathematicians to secondary school teaching positions. This project investigated the career ambitions of Ph.D.s in the physical and life sciences through focus groups and a national survey to determine the kinds of work conditions and compensation packages that would induce them to take positions teaching physics, chemistry, biology, and various electives in public high schools or positions developing secondary school science and mathematics curricula. The study conducted interviews with Ph.D.s who are already teaching in secondary schools to ascertain information from their experiences, with local school district administrators to assess what they are realistically willing to offer Ph.D. scientists to attract them, and with higher education administrators to explore programmatic changes they would need to institute to provide Ph.D.s with skills tailored to secondary school teaching. These investigations led to this report which describes the incentives local school districts could use in establishing pilot programs in this area.

Attracting Science and Mathematics Ph.D.s to Secondary School Education

National Academy of Sciences

Committee on Women in Science and Engineering

Who Will Do the Science of the Future? is the summary of a symposium on careers of women in science. The symposium incorporated three panels of presenters: one focusing on the next generation, Science for All Students; a second that looks in depth at the issues reflected in one particular field of science, computer science, reflecting an in-depth view of academic and industrial computer scientists; and a third that focuses on strategies and policies to recruit, retain, and promote career advancement for women scientists. Lastly, there was a plenary address on how to ensure women continue to advance into positions of leadership in science.

Office of Scientific and Engineering Personnel

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