How quantiatively or STEM oriented do you consider yourself to be and has it improved your life?

[hwarang]

I've begun to study science / mathematics / computer science on the side to augment my business degree and it helps in the sense that it instills a rigorous mindset to which can be applied in many life situations. I feel like it's allowed me to learn harder concepts a lot faster now.

This isn't necessarily a STEM versus Liberal Arts thread.

 

[Joni]

I studied physics and computer sciences. I have no idea what you mean.

 

[hateradio]

I've always been very STEAM oriented. Art is my jam. But I know y'all don't care about that, unless the A is for anime. :p

 

[wandering]

I think having a foundational knowledge of STEM is absolutely an asset, but if anything what most people are lacking is proper education in the humanities.

 

[hwarang]

I think having a foundational knowledge of STEM is absolutely an asset, but if anything what most people are lacking is proper education in the humanities.

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I agree. I think it helps to understand the fundamentals of economics, philosophy, logic / rhetoric.
Lots of quantiatively oriented people I know are socially pretty awful and are taken advantage of in this regard. Their salary is usually stuck in a glass ceiling cause they don't know how to properly socialize

 

[GamerJM]

Growing up as a kid I thought I was a STEM kid, but when I was older I learned I wasn't really good at STEM at all, I just liked arithmetic (not actual math or anything more complicated than algebra, I just like working with raw numbers, not doing anything mathematicians actually do) and doing things on computers (but not programming or understanding how they work).

Basically, I was originally drawn to STEM subjects as a kid because I liked doing things like memorizing "12 X 12 = 144". As I got older I gradually realized more and more that math had way more to do with solving complicated puzzles that I wasn't very good at. So today, if I could study something as a hobby, it would probably be languages or philosophy because that's what I'm more drawn to. That being said I majored in econ since I thought it had a good balance of material that was doable for me to learn without causing much frustration (I originally dropped out of a CS program because I just couldn't do it no matter how much effort I put in) and usefulness on the job market.

What I ended up doing as a career is technically STEM-related (Consulting for IT for HR systems), but the level of science, technical know-how, math, or engineering one actually needs to know for it is very low.

 

[J_ToSaveTheDay]

STEM-favoring, perhaps, but not oriented. I was in a club called MESA (Math, Engineering, Science Association) for most of my grade schooling, from 6th grade to 11th, then I dropped out when it turned into a dedicated robotics club — I had a lot of shit going on my senior year and the robotics club was quite demanding and a little less generalized than I was comfortable with, so I dropped it. I worked on group engineering projects each year via MESA and also learned how to build my own custom PC via MESA during my Freshman year of high school.

I still keep a close eye on consumer technology and give a lot of intellectual authority to science-for-the-masses media, but my own career path and private life are not completely driven by it.

 

[Dervius]

I studied engineering to master's level, and currently work in a tech field.

I think an understanding of STEM concepts can certainly prove beneficial, but it isn't the holy grail some describe it as. The intellectual elitism I've seen in my career from 'technical' people has been awful when actually it's those who balance the hard and soft skills the best who seem to succeed in my experience.

If you're pursuing a STEM career, learn how to communicate properly and continue to develop those skills.

 

[Deleted member 14313]

In my four years of university I only took one course that wasn't mostly Physics, Maths, Biology, or Programming. So pretty much yeah.

 

[WhateverItTakes]

I've got a STEM degree, but I'm finding out in the real world the quantitative aspects are only helpful in quantative heavy jobs. And since my career path is more people focussed at the moment I'm not sure it's helping that much (I maaaay have fucked up some choices!). From what I can tell the soft skills, presenting, influencing, communicating, reading the room, are much more important overall. But if you can combine that with technical expertise you're golden.

But I generally feel like my brain is less sharp than when I was studying so maybe there's a spillover.

 

[Deleted member 11796]

I used to think I had a purely quantitative way of looking at things until I realized I was depressed and that's why I was creatively dead. Now I have a foot firmly in both camps after getting back in the saddle artistically.

I kind of regret getting an IS degree instead of going to art school.

 

[saturnineCarrier]

Non-native speaker here, what's that quantitative thing you people are talking about? Can't parse the meaning from context.

 

[Deleted member 23850]

Not as much as I would like to be.

 

[hwarang]

Non-native speaker here, what's that quantitative thing you people are talking about? Can't parse the meaning from context.

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The rigorous usage of numbers, equations, formulas etc

 

[mieumieu]

Probably, but also probably because I'm autistic and trans. It's almost a stereotype these days...

 

[Deleted member 29682]

I'm professionally involved in STEM and I'm reasonably good at what I do. I don't know if it's necessarily improved my life besides giving me a career path that I'm both competent and interested in. I used to be a raging STEMlord so it's naturally been a bit of a problem in the past.

 

[Fiction]

To the extent someone who's math illiterate can be, yes.

 

[Bradford]

I studied linguistics/Japanese, so no, I don't really consider myself STEM oriented. I wish I was more, and probably would have studied math or compsci even though I hate it if I got a chance to redo college.

 

[m_shortpants]

I majored in economics but have always been into technology. I've taken a lot of programming courses over the years so have developed a working understanding of how things work. I work as a solutions engineer so I'm now also pretty familiar with software architecture, and enterprise strategies for things like databases, security, data warehousing, and the general backoffice tech stack. I love what I do and it pays well, for which I'm very thankful. So I'd say yes it has improved my life quite a bit.

 

[Stranger Things]

Professionally? Majored in supply chain logistics technology, minored in computer information systems. Warehouse management requires a lot of information technology, automation, statistics, encryption, artificial intelligence, data analytics, etc. Lots of time spent coordinating with engineers, testing and updating applications, softwares in the area of resource planning, database modeling.

Personally? I've always been a very creative person, constantly reading fiction and using my imagination. I produce music and I can play multiple musical instruments. I would have definitely gone the art school route, but obviously going to a tech college was a more stable and practical goal.

 

[Goldfishking]

I studied physics and computer sciences. I have no idea what you mean.

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Same here. I've studied maths and computer science and I have no idea wtf people are talking about in here.

 

[Dr. Mario]

Got a master's in computer science. Always considered myself a very logical, introverted and conscientious person.
Then did a PhD in psychology. Now am a professor in Design. Enjoying this a lot more. Took up drawing again, my desk is a mess. I'm also just plain better at it I guess, though I still have a strong preference for quantitative research. Of course, compared to the others here I'm still that bookish STEM nerd, but that's okay.

 

[Deleted member 15240]

I am 100% a humanities person. I'm all feels all the time and I wouldn't have it any other way.

 

[Dan]

I spent a year doing a Computer Science A-level before dropping out of sixth form.

A year after that I embarked on what I would say is a very successful 25 year career in IT. Little of what I learned in school has really applied to my career. Getting a mindset for learning and application of that knowledge is fundamentally more important than the actual knowledge itself in my experience.

 

[Captain Tuttle]

I'm not STEM oriented at all, all soft skills baby and I'm in a somewhat technical field.
I've got a high level of Emotional Intelligence that's carried me far

 

[dude]

Poll is way too binary. I'm way more alright with art-related stuff and humanities , I think it comes more naturally to me, but I think I'm alright with math and STEM stuff. I learned computer science in high school and I can program my prototypes in Unity alright, and I like doing some math stuff and figuring code shit out... but it's not all of the concepts come very naturally to me, many times it takes a while for some of them to sink fully. So I'm OK with STEM and I like it and knowing how to code has improved my life, but I don't know if I'm "STEM-oriented."

 

[Interested Observer]

I am a data analyst for a tech company so yes.

 

[Glasgow Mega-Snake]

Not really. I'm not bad at it, either, I always had pretty good grades in stem subjects at school. But that's because in school mathematics etc was mostly about being able to understand the explanations in the textbook and redo the calculations following the examples you get.

I can do that. But the moment I'm supposed to think outside the box regarding a math related question or come up with a solution on my own, I realize I actually suck at it.

Mostly I'm really more of a humanities/languages/arts kinda person. I'm the guy who plays adventures for the story and checks walkthroughs for all the riddles that aren't obvious ¯\_(ツ)_/¯.

 

[KomandaHeck]

I'm far more artistically minded. I have a decent grasp on the key STEM oriented subjects but I definitely need more time to process the information than I do with topics like literature or history. I'm sure I'm capable of doing well in a more technical field if I committed to it but I have little interest in them academically.

 

[Nooblet]

Well I picked mathematics and physics in high school, did computer science from Bachelors to up till a bit of PhD before dropping out of that one, all that and being an INTJ makes me very logic and fact oriented. But I taught myself about economics, politics, arts and philosophy to kind of build up the areas of my personality where I'm inherently lacking.

 

[Aureon]

I'm in software development, so, yeah.

Excessive objectivity obsession has done some damage, but my professional life has certainly flourished.

 

[Fatoy]

If you mean how logical I am, I'd say that's something that's evolved.

As a child and a teenager I struggled with maths in a huge way, but excelled at languages and theatre. As a young man, I started wishing I'd tried harder with maths and science, and I became a lot more grounded and evidence-oriented in my thinking. As an adult, I still work in a creative field, but I've found myself more drawn to the research and analysis side than the pure creative aspects. I do still write fiction in my spare time - what little I have - but for the most part I probably come across as a very cold and calculating person.

 

[Deleted member 8752]

I studied engineering to master's level, and currently work in a tech field.

I think an understanding of STEM concepts can certainly prove beneficial, but it isn't the holy grail some describe it as. The intellectual elitism I've seen in my career from 'technical' people has been awful when actually it's those who balance the hard and soft skills the best who seem to succeed in my experience.

If you're pursuing a STEM career, learn how to communicate properly and continue to develop those skills.

Click to shrink...

Well said. Unless you can communicate the work you do properly and market yourself, STEM will only get you so far.

 

[defaltoption]

Voted no, I always thought I would be growing up but I have just never been good at math, science, and the one programming class I took I only passed because my teacher basically rewrote my Brick Breaker game for the final exam.

I basically gave up on it in high school and now that I stink at the thing I wanted to do (game dev) I kind of just wallow in nothingness.

 

[Addi]

I don't get the humanities vs STEM dichotomy, like humanities is touchy feely and teaches you to communicate and whatnot.
It can be dry as fuck too. You learn scientific method, logical thinking etc. Tons of people without people skills there too, lol.

 

[earthsucks]

i can't even add up two numbers.

 

[MrConbon210]

I have a degree in theme park management. I'm a straight idiot when it comes to STEM.

 

[mute]

Enough for a degree in stem and to use it to put food on the table.

 

[shaneo632]

I'm a big supporter of the sciences though never really studied them myself. I do often wonder if the thing we're lacking most in society is emotional intelligence though; your average person is so bad at being empathetic and understanding the wider systemic implications of their behaviours, and also interpreting smaller social cues.

 

[Rosebud]

0%. I'm studying Law, but I hate it too tbh

 

[Alcoremortis]

I'm defending my thesis for a phd in biochem/molecular biophysics in a little under two weeks, so pretty stem. However, I do spend a fair amount of time on the side reading nonfiction in other sciences, history, and classic literature, i play several musical instruments, dabble in various physical arts, write fiction, and generally keep the liberal arts side chugging along as well. I think they're both pretty important and I wouldn't want to give up either.

 

[Nephtes]

Employed in the software development industry for 15 years now, so I suppose yes...
But I was always terrible at math. My jam was literature, but unless you're J.K. Rowling, it's hard making money in literature.
So I figured I could get a foot in the door to the video games industry with computer science and eventually get a job writing/designing games...
The most I ever got to do though was write in house tools. Lame.
Now I make medical software and kind of wish I was teaching high school or college literature...

So yes, STEM... but it wasn't my first choice.

 

[The Albatross]

I'm a software engineer, so I guess I'm a STEM oriented person. But I studied the liberal arts in college (Poli Sci, History, Theology), so I'm not all in. I'm usually pretty critical of an over-focus on engineering, math, and science.

Non-native speaker here, what's that quantitative thing you people are talking about? Can't parse the meaning from context.

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The phrase "Quantitative" for describing people was popularized by Michael Lewis, the author of Liar's Poker, The Big SHort, and a handful of other popular Wall Street / Financial history books, to describe data scientists or computer scientists who specialize in trading algorithms at Wall street firms -- "A quant" for short hand. But the way it's used in the OP's title is awkward, so don't hold it against yourself for not understanding... It's not a common way to describe people. "Quantitative" is usually used as a type of data collection meaning "A lot of data," as opposed to "Qualitative," which is a small amount of high quality data, think "Quantity" vs. "Quality."

An example of both could be like in political elections. A poll would be a type of quantitative data -- you ask 7000 people the same questions and see what the data suggestions. Qualitative data would be like individual interviews where you ask them to give you their opinion on something, you might only ask 10 people, but you get a lot more information from each person. Both are important types of data collection and useful for analysis.

 

[Biggersmaller]

I have zero STEM skills. Somehow I'm still making a pretty good living for the last 15 years at an office job.

 

[mhayes86]

I consider myself STEM oriented. I originally started doing graphic design but it wasn't going anywhere, and then I learned that I could get a degree and career in IT. I do a lot of systems engineering, cloud architecture, programming, and automation. I love it, and yes, it has improved my life immensely. Other than that, I don't mind some math and love the sciences.

 

[Threadkular]

electrical engineer so yes

 

[low-G]

I went from watching Star Trek TNG and coding as a child to watching Star Trek TNG and coding as an adult, so very yes.

It makes me innately superior.

 

[RainbowIslands]

Working towards a Chem PhD (In physical chemistry), so... I guess yes? I wouldn't say I'm like 100% STEM/quantitative though, as I don't think I'm super good with numbers and equation back end of things. I like it when my research is more qualitative-- and it tends to slide that way. I like putting in the effort though and my brain has been rewired somewhat because of that.

Did graduate from a liberal arts college with a science degree but I also like dabbling in the arts (literature, music, art, playing instruments etc.) so I'm kind of in the middle but on the STEM side? One professor (in undergrad) did comment how I'm not the typical science-y person (like my appearance) because I designed a class tshirt for the year.

 

[Fugu]

For much of the past four years I have worked as a programmer. But I have a law degree and will soon be leaving the STEM people behind forever.

The only way to have any semblance of well-roundedness is to incorporate a diversity of sources. The STEM people who hold out their chosen field to the exclusion of all others as some kind of badge of honor are really deluding themselves.

 

[jfkgoblue]

I have an engineering degree and work in the field and still have no idea what a "STEM mindset" is.