Do we actually need leaders with science backgrounds?
An article titled, “Let science lead: We need more leaders with science backgrounds” published as an opinion article in The Hill seems to be gathering a lot of momentum, having been shared over 48,000 times in about a month on various social media. The author argues that the coronavirus situation has highlighted the need for scientific knowledge in the top leadership of the countries. Thus, he calls for having more STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) Ph. Ds as heads of state citing the example of Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany, who holds a Ph.D. in Chemistry. The article further cites the data that only 7% of members of the 116th US Congress have a STEM major in college.
Is it surprising or anything to be worried about?
In my opinion, it is neither surprising nor desirable for STEM Ph.D. graduates running for public office. The single most compelling reason is that the skillset gained from a technical graduate program is not aligned with the skills required to be an effective policy-maker. It is, thus, not surprising at all that majors such as law and business are most represented among major world leaders. What is a common thread among Abraham Lincoln, Nelson Mandela, Mahatma Gandhi to even Barack Obama? They all studied law.
Most of the contemporary STEM graduate programs in leading universities worldwide trains young scientists in:
- Understanding a scientific problem deeply to come up with an accurate answer
- Asking the right questions
- Analytical thinking and numerical skills
- Patience and perseverance
- Ethics and integrity
While all of them are desirable, none (except the last) of them is essential to be a good leader or statesman. Most of the research and analysis behind a public policy is done by bureaucrats, policy analysts, think tanks, and advisors. On the contrary, most science Ph.D. programs do not train young scientists in:
- Having a strong vision (By nature, science is an exploratory endeavor and not utilitarian)
- People/teamwork skills (There is exactly one person who is fiercely committed to understanding a scientific question, the Ph.D. student themselves)
- Crisis management (Hypothesis testing is a time-consuming exercise and thus scientists don’t have to deal with contingencies)
- Communication skills (It’s desirable but definitely not essential)
If we notice closely, these are some critical qualities that are sought after in national leaders. While national leaders need to have a nuanced understanding of society, scientists tend to seek unambiguous answers. Excellent leaders are often associated with having a sharp vision, the ability to sell the vision to a large group of people, and in certain cases, mitigate adverse situations to be able to achieve that vision. Not just a state or country, these qualities are the prima-facie attributes for leaders of any business organization. Unsurprisingly, fewer than four CEOs of Fortune 100 companies and none of the CEOs of technology companies in the Fortune 500 list have STEM PhDs. Even in the case of the biotechnology industry, where the knowledge of science would ideally be desirable in top leadership, none of the ten largest companies is headed by a CEO with a STEM Ph.D.
Besides Chancellor Merkel, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern of New Zealand and President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan have also been hailed worldwide for their decisive leadership helping their respective countries tackle the coronavirus crisis. None of them majored in science in college. While certain scientists may turn out to be excellent political leaders (e.g. Dr. Chaim Weizmann), the expectation that more STEM PhDs to run for public office may not be a reasonable one.
