Repository: UIHistories Project: SWE - Proceedings of the First International Conference of Women Engineers and Scientists [PAGE 244]

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SYMPOSIUM ON DEVELOPING ENGINEERING AND SCIENTIFIC TALENT Statement by William A. Douglass, President Careers Incorporated, New York

A great question mark hangs over the career of the scientist and engineer today. The "shortage," which has been one of the cliches that has been taken for granted for the past six to 10 years, is suddenly being questioned. Since the recent cutbacks in defense appropriations, since last December's "freeze" on the hiring of technical personnel by NASA contractors and subcontractors, since the switch from the cost-plus-fixed-fee to the incentive contract by the Defense Department, many people are suddenly wondering if maybe we actually have an oversupply of engineers and scientists. All of these things are causing some people to wonder whether we have put too much emphasis on engineering and science as a career for young people. New questions are being asked. Maybe we should forget about Federal aid aimed at scientific education? Maybe we should be hesitant about recommending a technical career to our young people? In my opinion these are dangerous thoughts. Just as the alarmists were overly dismayed by the "shortage" during the past five years, now these same alarmists are unduly fearful of an oversupply of technical people. I think what has been lost sight of in both instances is a balanced appreciation of what this country should offer a scientist or engineer and what an engineer and scientist should be prepared to offer his country. From my own observation, which includes an intimate acquaintance with the technical personnel requirements of most of the major employers in this country, there is absolutely no slackening of demand for men and women of ability. Nor is there any reason not to have complete confidence that this nation will need an increasing number of engineering and scientific people in the decades ahead. The panicky attitude which resulted in an attempt to substitute quantity for quality is on the wane, and I, for one, cannot help but feel that this is all for the best. However, I feel that the full advantage of this calmer approach to the technical manpower'problem will never really be capitalized upon unless we take a good hard look at the scientific manpower inventory of this country and make a determined effort to seek out scientific and engineering talent where the talent is. It is far better to concentrate on this group than to try to mold a heterogenous mass of raw material, many of whom are not necessarily the best prospects for a scientific education. Let me give just two examples of what I mean: First, there are in this country thousands of people with engineering degrees, who are underemployed because their training is out of date or in the wrong discipline. These people have already made a commitment to the engineering profession, and I think that one of the most important things both industry and government can do is to try to find ways of up-dating their skills so that we might once again make use of their talents. The Sloan Institute at the

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