調查：工程學和化學專業就業最佳

Students wishing to safeguard their careers against changes in the job market should opt for science rather than arts degrees, according to a survey of undergraduates.

一項對本科生的調查顯示，希望降低就業風險的學生最好選擇讀理科專業而非文科專業。

Engineering and chemistry were considered to be the most ‘future proof’, as they are courses most likely to lead to an enduring and adaptable career.

工程學和化學專業的學生最有可能找到一份穩定又容易適應的職業，這兩種專業被認爲是未來就業的最佳保證。

Students polled by a college were broadly optimistic that their chosen courses would prepare them for a world in which the job market could change dramatically during their working lives.

這項由皮爾森學院（Pearson College）展開的調查顯示，大多數受訪學生對自己的專業持樂觀態度，認爲能順應未來變幻莫測的人才市場。

But opinion was sharply divided over which degrees were best for future-proof careers.

但哪些專業纔是未來職業生涯的最佳保證？學生各有觀點。

Eighty-two per cent of respondents believed engineering would help develop future-proof skills, with 74 per cent believing the same of chemistry and 73 per cent of computer science.

82%的受訪者相信工程學專業有助於培養能抵禦未來就業市場變化的“萬金油”技能，74%和73%的受訪者分別認爲化學專業和計算機科學專業可以培養出“萬金油”技能。

But just 33 per cent of undergraduates believed history would lead to a future-proof career, and 40 per cent English.

只有33%的大學生相信歷史專業能保證未來就業，而40%的大學生選擇英語專業。

However more than two thirds of students - 67 per cent - thought the world of work would be significantly different or completely unrecognisable in 20 years.

另外，67%（超過三分之二）的學生認爲20年後全球的工作環境將發生翻天覆地的變化。

The findings, published today, come after Education Secretary Nicky Morgan sparked controversy with claims that teenagers should steer clear of the arts and humanities and opt for science or maths subjects if they want to access the widest range of jobs.

這項調查結果發佈不久前，英國教育部長尼基·摩根（Nicky Morgan）在2014年11月發表言論稱，青少年如果未來想增加就業受聘機會，那麼應該避開藝術和人文專業而選擇科學或數學專業。這一言論引發諸多爭議。

She said that in previous decades students would only take maths or science if they wanted to pursue a specific career such as medicine or pharmacy, but nowadays that ‘couldn’t be further from the truth’.

她說，在過去幾十年，只有想從事像醫學或藥劑學這種特定的職業的學生纔會去選擇數學或科學專業，現如今這種想法已經“嚴重和現實脫節”。

‘If you wanted to do something different, or even if you didn’t know what you wanted to do…then the arts and humanities were what you chose. Because they were useful – we were told – for all kinds of jobs. Of course now we know that couldn’t be further from the truth, that the subjects that keep young people’s options open and unlock doors to all sorts of careers are the STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) subjects.’

“如果你想做點其他的工作，或者還不知道自己想做什麼，那麼你就會去選藝術或人文學科，因爲大家都說它們很有用——行行都受用。但現在我們知道，這種說法根本不符合事實：能靈活選擇未來職業、行行都吃香的專業變成自然科學、技術、工程學、數學等理工專業。”

She also described maths as ‘the subject that employers value most’ and said that pupils who study A-level maths will earn 10 per cent more over their lifetime.

她同時也認爲數學是“僱主最看重的專業”。學生如果通過高深級（英國中等教育高級水平課程）數學考試，一輩子能多掙10%的薪水。

‘These figures show us that too many young people are making choices aged 15 which will hold them back for the rest of their lives,’ she said.

“這些數字告訴我們，有太多年輕人在15歲就做出了會阻礙自己一生髮展的決定。”However the remarks prompted an outcry among supporters of the arts and humanities, with critics maintaining that creative subjects were vital to Britain’s economy.

然而，這些言論引發了支持人文藝術學科的人們的強烈抗議，他們認爲創作類型的專業對英國經濟有着舉重輕重的作用。

Later in the month, it emerged that a leading investment bank was aiming to hire a new generation of arts graduates because it blames ‘linear thinking’ mathematicians and economists for elements of the financial crisis. Royal Bank of Scotland launched a recruitment drive on campuses targeting humanities students to bring greater ‘diversity’ to its workforce.

摩根的言論發出後不久，蘇格蘭皇家銀行（Royal Bank of Scotland）就推出了針對人文專業的校園招聘會，聘用了一批新時代的藝術畢業生，力求爲銀行注入更多元化的血液。銀行表示，數學家和經濟學家對金融危機的分析都採用“線性思維”。

Outlining the move, Tim Skeet, managing director of RBS capital markets, said: ‘We still need the mathematicians and economists, we still need those disciplines but what we need to do is leaven it, we need an input from people who have left-field, blue-sky creative thinking, who can bring the ability to ask the tough questions. If going through this crisis we had had a few more people who could have said - look, explain that to me in plain English...I think we might have avoided some of the problems.’

蘇格蘭皇家銀行資本市場部總經理蒂姆·斯基特（Tim Skeet）說：“我們仍需要數學家和經濟學家以及這些學科的專業知識，但我們現在還缺少一種‘催化劑’，即可以發出尖銳問題的創意人才。如果在經歷這次金融危機之後公司有更多的人可以化繁爲簡地向我表述危機問題，我覺得我們就有可能避免部分問題。”

The poll of undergraduates, which questioned 1,000 students on the outlook for the jobs market, was commissioned by Pearson College, billed as the first institution run by an FTSE 100 company to offer degrees in the UK.

此次由英國皮爾森學院負責的就職業前景調查收集了1000名大學生的信息。該學院是第一家由英國富時100（FTSE 100）上市公司設立的學院，有頒發學位證書許可權。

As well as variations across subjects, men were notably more confident than women about their prospects, with 78 per cent saying their degrees would prepare them for future jobs, against 67 per cent of women.

除專業差異外還存在性別差異：男性明顯比女性對職業前景更自信，78%的男大學生認爲自己的學位可以爲未來的就職添磚加瓦，而這麼認爲的女大學生則只有67%。

Roxanne Stockwell, principal of Pearson College, said: ‘Undergraduates in the UK know they face a rapidly changing world – but they are confident that their studies will prepare them for the challenges ahead.

皮爾森大學校長羅克珊·斯托克韋爾（Roxanne Stockwell）說：“英國的大學生們都知道他們面對着一個瞬息萬變的世界，同時也相信自己所學的知識會爲未來的就業鋪好道路。對於所有正在聖誕假期期間準備大學期末考試和申請大學的學生來說，這都是非常正面的信息。

'That’s an incredibly positive message to all those students who are spending the festive season revising for exams and finishing university applications.

“申請大學的學生們選專業時要精明一點，確保自己所選的專業能培養出適應時代快速發展的心態和能力。”