The reason Americans aren’t applying to engineering or CS programs like they used to isn’t because they are lazy or stupid. It’s because those jobs are perceived as being difficult, not lucrative and lacking in prestige and security.
Isn’t that the definition of lazy, when you don’t pursue something difficult that is lacking in prestige and security? And you’re saying increasing the pay will change that? Not true. By your reasoning, high-paying jobs should have high enrollments in their university majors. That is not the case.
The easiest branch of engineering is civil. It has the highest enrollment. Why? Because it is considered the easiest. Civil engineering is among the lowest paid of the engineers that the supply meets the demand (one could say that there is more supply than demand).
Also, to draw on the illegal immigration component, saying that if you pay Americans more to pick lettuce that Americans will show up, that is not true either. I talk to landscapers who have a hard time hiring even though they pay very high wages (in excess of $20/hr.). They cannot keep an “American” on staff. (sidebar: does this mean I want open borders? no, but I don’t believe paying more will make someone necessary want to work).
IIT applicants who can’t quite make the cut frequently end up at MIT and Stanford.
Interesting perception. I would argue they make the cut at MIT and Stanford because we don’t have enough good quality students here to go to those universities.
Keep on telling yourself that some jobs are safe from outsourcing. Pathology and radiology work are being outsourced.
I believe the claim was not saying that engineering jobs were safe from outsourcing. The claim is that they are MORE safe from outsourcing because of several factors – language, quality control, and the ability to manage. Maybe for jobs that are somewhat “soft” in skills (like call centers) these can be outsourced and they can see a cost savings. However, from the companies I’ve seen try to use outsourcing to address complicated professions, like ENGINEERING, there is a furious communication problem. Try explaining to a guy over the telephone or even a tele-conference that you want certain designs implemented. I’ve seen it done. It usually ends up costing less to hire someone here. These are the limits of outsourcing.
I will not argue that outsourcing makes things here in the U.S. difficult, but the world is changing and you have to be able to change with it. Should you just give up just because your job has a 10% chance of being outsourced? Should we just give up hope altogether? No, we should make ourselves better than everyone else and look for opportunities whenever we can. And the other posts here have shown that despite outsourcing, there is a lot of opportunity that still exists. If you’re talented, good at your job, you’ll find and make your opportunities.
