Choosing what to study in university either as an undergraduate or graduate student is more than just about what you ‘like.’ There are many factors to consider before rushing into a specific programme. For most, university education is a means of attaining future employment. So, besides your interests, financial position, an important factor to consider these days is your degree’s usefulness in the future. University education is costly and time consuming, so logically you would like to study something that can secure your future. Here is a list of careers that have a high growth projection in the next decade. However, this does not necessarily mean that other degrees are null and void, or that other career paths are dead ends, just that these 5 careers will see the highest growth.
1. Lecturers, College tutors
Teaching might not seem cool to a lot of people, but this profession is rapidly growing. The education arena will always need teachers, and with the increasing number of people going to college for further studies and specialization, this field is growing. In the next year, this career is expected to grow at 23 percent as the demand for qualified college instructors grows.
College professors enjoy great flexibility in their work schedule and attract more additional jobs like consultancies and board membership. In fact it doesn’t even have to be college, as normal school teachers for primary and high school are seeing a job growth rate of 18 percent.
2. Financial Services
Accountants, Actuaries, Financial Advisers
In most colleges, those who love numbers are few and far in between. However, most companies require financial analysts and accountants to ensure that the company/organization’s finances correspond with government laws are regulations. Money management is complex and integral for most companies and with the growth of private firms, the need for financial experts will grow. It is not just companies who are in need of financial expert, employees also need expertise of perusal financial experts. Job growth for financial advisers is expected to be 41% over the next decade. In addition, a financial adviser makes a whopping $101,000 yearly.
3. Engineering Jobs
Project Engineer, Civil Engineer, Structural Engineer, Environmental Engineer, Oil & Petroleum Industry Engineers
Quality engineers are becoming increasingly hard to find. Most students avoid math and science majors in universities, deeming the subjects either too hard or too boring to pursue. As a result, you find that the number of engineering students is low yearly. Despite this, companies are actively seeking engineers and this field will see a job of growth from 24% to 31% over the next decade. Recent oil and gas discoveries in East Africa and the Gulf of Guinea suggest that this industry is set to boom. Moreover, with a minimum salary of at least $76,000 per annum, it is becoming an increasingly attractive profession. Contrary to what one might think, the work is low stress and the rewards are incredibly high.
4. Medical field
Physician assistants, Nurses, Medical Scientists, Doctors, Home Health Aide
If there is one field that will always be ripe with growth potential, it is the medical field. It is very rare to find a doctor or nurse who is out of work. Healthcare jobs are expected to grow by 21 percent in the next decade. The demand for nurses will rival the demand for doctors in the coming years, with nurse practitioners to increase by 23 percent in a decade. Not to mention that their salary is seeing some growth, now a nurse can earn up to $85,000 yearly. A relatively new field, physician assistant, has recently become one of the most sought after profession, with a job growth of 39 percent and an average salary of $92,000, it is no wonder this field is growing.
5. Technology Sector
App developers, Data Scientists, System Engineers
Information technology is undoubtedly one of the fastest growing fields, thanks to the rise of the internet, mobile phones, and all other digital gadgets. Most organizations are making the shift into digital platforms, more and more people have access to mobile phones and internet, and there is no doubt that the future will see more specialists in information technology. Some of the hot careers right now include data scientists, who earn an average of $118,000 per year. Data scientists are in high demand not just because it is a new field, but also because of their deep analytical skills and combination of data and business. While the career field of system engineer is expected to grow by 45 percent over the decade, with an average salary of $87,000, app developers are expected to grow by 22 percent with an average salary anywhere from about $72,000 to $116,600.
*It should be noted that salaries are not static and vary from country to country