Unpaid work and access to science professions

Area of Science:

• Science and Technology Workforce Studies
• Socioeconomics of Education
• Career Development in STEM

Background:

• Unpaid work is often promoted as a pathway into scientific careers.
• Concerns exist regarding socio-economic inequalities associated with unpaid positions in STEM.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the career success of UK science graduates entering paid versus unpaid roles.
• To analyze the impact of initial employment type on long-term salary and STEM field persistence.

Main Methods:

• Comparative analysis of UK science graduates' career trajectories.
• Tracking employment status, salary, and field (STEM vs. non-STEM) 6 months and 3.5 years post-graduation.
• Investigating the role of personal connections in securing unpaid positions.

Main Results:

• Initial unpaid work correlated with lower earnings and reduced STEM persistence compared to paid work.
• Graduates using personal connections for unpaid roles showed similar STEM persistence to paid workers.
• Securing any STEM position early on boosted persistence, but this effect was less pronounced for unpaid roles.

Conclusions:

• While unpaid work can be a disadvantage, personal networks can mitigate this effect.
• Early career entry into STEM fields is crucial for long-term retention.
• Unpaid internships may exacerbate socio-economic inequalities in the scientific workforce, impacting diversity.