Quote:
Originally Posted by elschumacher
So, I've been the Business Head Captain for our team for the past 2 years, and what I've found is that FIRST thinks it does a better job about business kids than it does. Here's an example. Not for the first time, I was asked by judges what I wanted to do in college - IR and Business. It was extremely disheartening to me to see their polite nods and glazing expressions as they turned their attention entirely back to my co-presenter, a future engineer. I wasted a solid twenty seconds in a Chairman's presentation this year justifying my choice of major, and while it helped the presentation in the long run, I don't think I should have felt the need to justify my own future. Another example is the common question of "how many of your alums go into STEM fields?" Since I'm not a STEM-kid, I'm hurting the numbers - thus, because numbers matter, I'm damaging the awards pitch. It may not matter for much, but it's the attitude towards it mattering at all that bothers me.
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If FIRST is failing to acknowledge that business is a STEM field, then they are missing the boat. As an economist (and business/scouting team mentor) I can tell you that I use LOTS of math (and science & technology) in my everyday work. I know that business people use complex mathematics as well. Wall Street financial analysts use valuation and risk models that many engineers cannot comprehend. Perhaps FIRST if too focused on the "E" and not enough on the "ST...M".