Scholarly research has increasingly examined the role of STEM (Science, Technology,
Engineering, and Mathematics) education, and that of creativity as a transversal skill. However, far
fewer studies have investigated the relationship between the two, particularly in secondary-school
contexts, and they have obtained inconsistent results. This paper contributes to the literature by
asking: To what extent is studying STEM associated with higher levels of creativity in a secondary-school
context? The study utilises a pre-existing dataset gathered in Malta (EU) from some 400 students aged
between 11 and 16 years old. It yields information on both the engagement in STEM (measured by
exposure to STEM chosen by students as optional subjects, and the enjoyment of STEM considered by
students to be their favourite subjects), as well as creativity levels (measured by Divergent Thinking
performance on Alternate Uses Tests). Correlation analysis revealed a strong positive link between
the two phenomena, lending support to the notion that STEM students tend to be more creative than
other students. Using regression analysis, a model is estimated to identify the possible effects of
engaging in STEM subjects on creativity, once the other co-determinants of creativity are controlled.
The results indicate that both the exposure to STEM subject/s and enjoyment thereof significantly and
positively predict creativity, even after controlling for the other possible determinants of creativity
(such as age, gender, parental education, and participation in creative activities). These findings offer
encouraging insights into 21st century education and for curriculum development as they suggest
that, in addition to having value in their own right, STEM subjects can contribute to the development
of creativity in young people.peer-reviewe