HFES Members' and Students' Career Influences: A Survey

Surveys were sent to 150 members and 150 student affiliates of HFES asking how they first learned about the field and what or who was the major influence in choosing their career. Approximately half learned about it as undergraduates and about a third as graduate students, usually from a professor. About a third learned about it during work or internship. The survey also asked respondents to indicate what examples they would use to represent the field to a naïve listener. Most frequently cited examples included applications in human-computer interaction, aviation/space, ground transportation, and the workplace.