The shortage of workers in science, technology, engineering and math is at a crisis level, according to two out of five Americans surveyed by Emerson, a St. Louis-based firm that manufactures products and provides engineering services.

Emerson today released the results of its fourth annual STEM survey of 2,000 Americans.

The company also pointed to research by the National Association of Manufacturing and Deloitte that found the US will need to fill 3.5 million STEM jobs by 2025, but as many as 2 million will go unfilled because of difficulty finding people with the skills in demand.

Emerson’s own survey found that 48% of respondents believe the number of STEM jobs in the US will grow in the next decade.

Other findings in Emerson’s survey:

• Less than 50% of parents say their daughters are encouraged to pursue a STEM career.
• 62% say manufacturers should do more to train and prepare their STEM workforce.
• Only 33% believe teachers currently have the resources they need to provide a quality STEM education.

Emerson has launched an initiative aimed at helping schools with STEM education called “We Love STEM.”

Separately, the TechServe Alliance reported last week that lack of available skills is constraining the growth of IT jobs.