Texas is home to more than three-quarters of a million great STEM jobs. In 2018, Texas will demand a total of 715,380 STEM jobs (up from 584,120 in 2008), an increase of 22% and five percent more than the national average. STEM jobs here are heavily focused on computer occupations (46% of Texas STEM jobs), engineering and engineering technicians (31%), followed by life sciences (13%). Learn more >
Led by fields such as computing, engineering, research, and physical science, estimates of job growth in STEM through 2024 are promising, significantly outpacing all other occupations. Approximately 80 percent of the fastest growing occupations are in STEM fields. In fact, Texas is expected to represent nearly 10 percent of future STEM opportunities in the nation.
Nine of the 20 biggest employers in Texas are STEM-related, representing millions of jobs around the state. Read the full list > In fact, 47% of area’s job openings were found to require STEM skills (9th highest percentage in the study that compared 100 U.S. metro areas).
- # 2 | UTexas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
- # 3 | Shell Deepwater Development Inc., Houston, TX
- # 4 | Dell Inc., Round Rock, TX
- # 10 | Lockheed Martin Corp., Fort Worth, TX
- # 12 | DXC Technology Co., Plano, TX
- # 14 | NASA-Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX
- # 15 | Texas Instruments Inc., Dallas, TX
- # 16 | Vaccine Research Center, Houston, TX
- # 17 | Dow Chemical Co., Freeport, TX
In 2015, Central Texas ranked #2 in nation for workers in STEM jobs and #13 in number of job openings per capita for STEM graduates. The Austin area ranked #5 for largest percentage of STEM workers and #7 for STEM-related employment growth. Dallas-Fort Worth and San Antonio area also ranked in the top 50 US cities for number of overall STEM jobs. learn more >
Not all of these great Texas STEM jobs require a four-year degree: middle-skill STEM jobs – those requiring more than a high school degree but less than a bachelors degree – currently represent 10.5 percent of total state employment. Nearly every identified middle-skill STEM occupation will see growth through 2022. Overall, the Texas middle-skill STEM workforce is projected to increase by 24 percent to nearly 1.5 million workers. learn more about middle-skill STEM jobs in Texas >
Of all available STEM jobs, about half are available to workers without a bachelor’s degree. More than 60 percent of middle-skill STEM jobs require six months or less of formal classroom training. In many instances, middle-skill STEM workers obtain workforce-related education and training in order to operate in highly specialized environments. In some fields, such as medical fields, middle skill workers make up 70% or more of the workforce. Some of the most-needed industries in our state include:
- Healthcare Practitioners and Health Occupations. Representing over 600,000 Texas workers, this group is projected to increase dramatically over the next decade. Additionally, this group is projected to represent 6.5 percent of Texas’ total employment by 2022. Examples of these careers include nurses, physical therapists, x-ray technicians, and health care aids.
- Construction and Extraction Occupations. With more than 600,000 workers, Texas has the highest number of individuals employed in this group in the nation. Construction and extraction occupations make up 5.5 percent of total employment in the state, but 11.7 percent of all construction and extraction jobs in the nation.
- Production Occupations, including Energy. There are over 100 occupations identified within this major group, from assemblers and fabricators to machine and chemical plant operators. The majority of production occupation workers are employed in various manufacturing industries. Employment is estimated to increase by 14 percent in the state by 2022, adding more than 100,000 workers.
An important step in choosing a career path is identifying your interests. Learning about your interests will help you identify opportunities to pursue and the topics you are most naturally drawn to, making school and work more motivating and enjoyable.
Think you might be interested in a cybersecurity career? Use Learning Undefeated’s National CyberSecurity Workforce Framework tool to explore more than 30 cyber jobs and see what appeals to you. learn more >
Information technology (IT) is the application of computers and telecommunications equipment to store, retrieve, transmit and manipulate data. IT jobs are critical across all companies, and particularly important to large corporations.The IT field is expanding exponentially with new jobs across the market. learn more >
Texas Biotech, Pharmaceutical & Life Sciences Companies provides a comprehensive list of companies with their locations (all over Texas) and specialties. learn more >
Explore our bioscience career video resources to learn more about the different roles in bioscience. Ignore all the Maryland hype and focus on the content. learn more >
From American Institute of Biological Sciences, check out the FAQ, browse career paths, or explore job openings to compare and contrast knowledge, skills or abilities with your own interests. learn more >
Great source for biotech & life science news in Texas. Learn more about the companies that call Texas home and the types of research or products you can find here…maybe even a future employer! Browse job openings to learn more about the types of careers available to you in Texas and match them to your interests. Pay close attention to which universities are doing the types of research you are interested in to find a school that fits your goals. learn more >
Explore Texas-focused occupation descriptions, info, and trends. learn more >
Texas A&M University Corpus Christi
The STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) Summer Institute is a place for K-12 students to learn about STEM related topics and STEM careers. STEMSI is offered by the School of Engineering and Computing Sciences at Texas A&M University – Corpus Christi and allows K-12 students to take week long camps during the summer to experience creativity in STEM related topics. learn more >
