Report finds STEM subjects most popular among school students

The Dukes Education survey asked 1,000 school students which subjects they most enjoy to measure how this would align with predictions for the future job market.

Dukes Plus found that over four in 10 students said they most enjoyed STEM lessons, including computer science, biology and maths.

Humanities topics were second favourite, but creative subjects, like art, music, and drama, were only chosen by a quarter of school students.

The interest in STEM was found to seemingly continue into further education, with online monthly searches for ‘computer science A level’ seeing a 21 per cent year-on-year increase.

Dukes Plus said that this interest is a positive sign given that STEM careers are estimated to grow in importance due to a greater need for climate change specialists, digital skills and medical staff in the future.

However, further research suggested that school resources are not fulfilling this growing demand for STEM studies. Recent research found that nearly nine in 10 parents said their children’s schools needed more high-quality maths and science teachers.

According to Dukes Plus, a greater focus on STEM at school will be critical for filling the current green skills shortage, which ranges from a scientific understanding of the natural world to clean energy engineering skills.

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Although global demand for green skills has risen by 40 per cent since 2015, only 13 per cent of the labour workforce has the necessary skills, according to the World Economic Forum.

While creative subjects were the least popular, creative industries are reportedly the third largest employers of STEM graduates and hire many humanities graduates. Dukes Plus also emphasised the fact that these subjects can provide young people with various soft skills that are likely to become coveted as jobs require the human qualities that AI can not provide.

In a statement, Alison Bissell, director of Dukes Plus Consultancy, said: “More than ever before, students are asking us how they can ‘future-proof’ their educational route. They’re keen to minimise the risk of their future degree being gazumped by a job market transformed by AI.

"The demand for computer science courses, particularly at the undergraduate level, is entirely out of sync with availability, whereas the humanities ‘stock’ is low.”

The report can be accessed and read in full here.