Carlsbad, CA (April 29, 2017) – As the world becomes more quantitative and data-focused, mathematics takes center stage, with Statistician topping the best jobs of 2017, according to the new CareerCast Jobs Rated report. In total, four of the top 10 best jobs of 2017 are built on math, including Mathematician, Data Scientist, and Operations Research Analyst.
“The demand for workers with math skills spans a variety of professions and industries, including marketing, banking, government, sports, retail, and healthcare,” says Kyle Kensing, Online Content Editor, CareerCast. “Those with math and analytic skills are highly prized for their ability to develop solutions that uncover hidden solutions to business challenges.”
Healthcare jobs also feature predominately among the best jobs of 2017 with three landing in the Top 10: Medical Services Manager, Occupational Therapist; and Speech Pathologist.
The No. 6-ranked best job of 2017 is controversial: University Professor (tenured). While many tenured Professors have rewarding and fulfilling careers, others who want to teach at the university level find it difficult to find full-time employment. Certain faculty positions are in high demand, such as instructors in medicine and science, but many universities have cut back on the number of full-time professors they employ, hiring adjuncts instead.
Newspaper Reporter and Broadcaster, the two lowest-ranking jobs of 2017, have remained in the bottom 10 for the past several years. These professions have taken on heightened importance and increased scrutiny. Journalists covering politics, in particular, have been under extreme pressure as they strive to credibly cover the news and keep our nation informed.
“Both of these industries have felt the years-long squeeze of diminishing job prospects, due to declining advertising revenue that has impacted the newspaper, radio and television industries,” says Kensing.
Other examples of this year’s worst jobs are professions that make the world a safer place.
Firefighters and Enlisted Military Personnel face high stress and dangerous work conditions, without particularly high pay to compensate them.
Other jobs at the bottom of the Jobs Rated report are facing hard times, such as Taxi Drivers, who are competing with ridesharing companies like Uber and Lyft, and Retail Salespeople, who have seen many major chains closing.
CareerCast’s 10 best jobs of 2017:
|
Profession and how it fared in 2016 |
Annual Median Salary |
Growth Outlook (to 2024) |
|
1. Statistician (+1) |
$80,110 |
34% |
|
2. Medical Services Manager (new to list) |
$94,500 |
17% |
|
3. Operations Research Analyst (new to list) |
$78,630 |
30% |
|
4. Information Security Analyst (-1) |
$90,120 |
18% |
|
5. Data Scientist (-4) |
$111,267 |
16% |
|
6. University Professor (tenured) (+32) |
$72,470 |
13% |
|
7. Mathematician (-1) |
$111,100 |
21% |
|
8. Software Engineer (-1) |
$100,690 |
17% |
|
9. Occupational Therapist (+2) |
$80,150 |
27% |
|
10. Speech Pathologist (-1) |
$73,410 |
21% |
CareerCast’s 10 worst jobs of 2017:
|
Profession and how it fared in 2016 |
Annual Median Salary |
Growth Outlook (to 2024) |
|
200. Newspaper Reporter (no change) |
$36,360 |
-9% |
|
199. Broadcaster (-1) |
$37,720 |
-13% |
|
198. Logger (+1) |
$36,210 |
4% |
|
197. Enlisted Military Personnel (-1) |
$27,936 |
N/A |
|
196. Pest Control Worker (+1) |
$32,162 |
-1% |
|
195. Disc Jockey (+2) |
$30,080 |
-11% |
|
194. Advertising Sales Person (-1) |
$48,490 |
-3% |
|
193. Firefighter (+2) |
$46,870 |
5% |
|
192. Retail Salesperson (+2) |
$22,040 |
7% |
|
191. Taxi Driver (+1) |
$23,510 |
13% |
To read the full report, visit CareerCast.
CareerCast.com’s Jobs Rated Report has been published annually since 1988. The report utilizes a wide range of criteria such as income, outlook, environmental factors, stress and physical demands to rank 200 U.S. jobs annually. Each year the 200 professions included in the report are evaluated for relevance in today’s workforce. To see the full rankings of all 200 jobs and the report’s methodology, visit CareerCast.
About CareerCast.com
CareerCast.com, created by Adicio, is a job search portal that offers extensive local, niche and national job listings from across North America; job-hunting, career-management and HR-focused editorial content; and videos and blogs; and provides recruiters with the ability to post jobs directly to more than 800 niche career sites. CareerCast.com also compiles the Jobs Rated Report (http://www.jobsrated.com), where 200 jobs across North America are ranked based on detailed analysis of specific careers factors.