Aim. The main objective of this investigation is to explore perceived lack of Lithuanian STEM labour force supply. It is often believed that education systems are the bottleneck of economic growth and that by increasing the supply of STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) graduates we will get more and better payed jobs. But a growing body of evidence suggests that in many STEM fields there is an adequate supply or even oversupply of STEM majors. Still, technologically advanced capitalist countries advocate for more STEM workforce regardless of an overcrowded market. Echoing foreign neoliberal trends, Lithuanian education policy makers are on the same STEM shortage hype-train, and reforms are full steam ahead. Methods. To explore perceived lack of Lithuanian STEM labour force supply an assessment of STEM graduates’ (n=3720) occupational destinations one year after graduation and average salaries in those professions was conducted employing a descriptive statistical analysis. Results. Findings show that there is no general shortage of STEM labour supply; the majority (54% n=2023) of all recent STEM degree holders in Lithuania do not work in STEM jobs. The majority of graduates usually do not reach national average income one year after graduation. Conclusions. Persuasion of students to study STEM degrees based on better labour market outcomes is misleading and possibly unethical. The principal theoretical implication of this paper is the acknowledgment that low STEM graduate employment does not necessarily signify a failing education system. Rather, this is an opportunity to look beyond human capital and labour market discourse which, arguably, prevents STEM education to realize its revolutionary potential.

中文翻译：

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什么劳动力市场？STEM关键供应短缺调查：立陶宛案例

目标。这项调查的主要目的是探索人们认为立陶宛STEM劳动力供应不足的情况。人们通常认为，教育系统是经济增长的瓶颈，通过增加STEM（科学，技术，工程，数学）毕业生的供应，我们将获得更多，薪水更高的工作。但是越来越多的证据表明，在许多STEM领域中，STEM专业人才的供应充足，甚至供过于求。尽管如此，技术先进的资本主义国家仍然提倡增加STEM劳动力，而不管市场人满为患。立陶宛的教育政策制定者呼应外国新自由主义的趋势，在同样的STEM短缺宣传上大肆宣传，而改革正在如火如荼地进行。方法。为了探索立陶宛人对STEM劳动力缺乏的认识，对描述性毕业的一年后对STEM毕业生（n = 3720）的职业目的地进行了评估，并使用描述性统计分析对这些专业的平均工资进行了评估。结果。调查结果表明，STEM劳动力供应并不普遍短缺。立陶宛所有最近持有STEM学位的人中，大多数（54％n = 2023）都不从事STEM工作。大多数毕业生通常在毕业后一年都没有达到全国平均收入。结论。说服学生基于更好的劳动力市场成果来学习STEM学位是一种误导，甚至可能是不道德的。本文的主要理论含义是承认低STEM毕业生就业并不一定意味着教育体系将失败。而是