Should We Pay Students to Become Engineers?

No, I think this is a problem for the free market.

I keep hearing that there aren't enough scientists and engineers, but then I look at the pay for a graduate with a B.Sc., and it's a low starting salary - if there were really a shortage, the starting salary would be higher. Supply and demand. Paying students to become engineers would shift the supply curve, decrease quality and drive down starting salaries.

I thought we already did pay students to become engineers - it's called "employment".

If students don't feel that the long-term rewards of an engineering career are worth the up-front costs (time, effort, money), why would the taxpayers want to add an incentive? If engineers become scarce, then salaries should go up (assuming a free market) and more students will want to become engineers.