Is your student’s major area of study going to lead to a secure career? The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics compiled data from 2004 to 2007 in order to predict the security of careers in more than 270 fields. At the top are health care, education, security, environmental sciences and government. Below is a glimpse into the future:

Health Care: As the U.S. population ages, the demand for health care professionals will increase. As well, an emphasis on activities involving physical fitness is creating a need for positions in athletic training and physical therapy. By the year 2014, health care positions are projected to increase by an astounding 52 percent for medical assistants, 40 percent for physical therapists, and 43 percent for dentals assistants – far surpassing the projected growth for most other career fields.

Education: Our nation’s focus on improving education is creating demand for teachers of all levels. Preschool, kindergarten, elementary, middle and secondary school teaching positions are expected to increase 18 percent, while postsecondary careers are predicted to rise 32 percent.

Security: Demand for private detectives and fire fighters will show considerable rise in the next seven years. Police officers and other security positions show growth as well. 

Environmental Sciences: It’s not only the Lobo community that is “going green” the entire nation is making efforts to become environmentally friendly. This bodes well for hydrologists, environmental chemists, and ecologists, along with many other positions in the environmental science field.

Government: The Federal Government currently employs more than 1.8 million civilians. To put it simply, the government is the nation’s most stable business. If it goes under, there are probably bigger issues to worry about than unemployment. As employees retire and new positions open up and as departments such as Homeland Security grow, job opportunities in the Federal Government will further bloom.

For more information, visit the following Web sites: 

http://www.bls.gov/oco/cg/cgs041.htm Government job security

http://stats.bls.gov/oco/ocos050.htm Environmental scientists job security going up

http://www.bls.gov/opub/ooq/2006/spring/table.pdf All occupations

http://nces.ed.gov/FastFacts/display.asp?id=37 Most popular college majors; National Center for Education Statistics

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