Jobs of the Future

What U.S. jobs will be most in demand over the next decade? This question has become increasingly relevant to people who, in the face of job insecurity, want to retool their skills for the future. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) may provide help answering the question with the publication of its 2002-03 Occupational Outlook Handbook, which is due to be published online on December 17, 2001.
The BLS forecasts that the fastest-growing jobs between 2000 and 2010 will be in the field of "computer software engineers, applications," expected to grow by 100%, from 380,000 to 760,000 positions. The other jobs rounding out the top ten fastest- growing positions include, in descending order, computer support specialists, computer software engineers, network/computer systems administrators, network systems and data communications analysts, desktop publishers, database administrators, personal and home care aides, computer systems analysts, and medical assistants. In short, the fastest-growing jobs will be in the fields of computer technology and health-related services.
Of course, the fastest-growing jobs won't necessarily be the ones that add the most jobs to the economy. In terms of the sheer number of jobs that will be added, the top occupation on the list is "combined food preparation and serving workers, including fast food," which will grow 30%, from 2,206,000 workers in 2000 to 2,879,000 workers in 2010. The other top ten occupations with the largest job growth include, in descending order, customer service representatives, registered nurses, retail salespersons, computer support specialists, cashiers, office clerks, security guards, computer software engineers, and waiters and waitresses.
The events of September 11 may significantly influence the future of work, but no one yet knows how. The BLS states only that it "will continue to review its projections and as the long-term consequences of September 11 become clearer will incorporate these effects in subsequent releases of the industrial and occupational outlook." We can speculate, however, that there may be even greater-than-expected growth in security-related positions, from those who conduct background checks to those who work for the U.S. Marshals Service. There was certainly a spike in worker interest in such positions just after the 9/11 attacks.
The New York Times reports, "From Sept. 11 to 25, the Central Intelligence Agency received 9,766 rйsumйs on its Web site, up more than 250% from the corresponding period in 2000. Over the same two weeks, the United States Marshals Service was sent 500 job-related e- mails, five times what it received in the last two weeks of August. Kroll Worldwide, a company that specializes in corporate security services, also had a jump in interest from job seekers. It had 150 inquiries, three times what it usually gets in a two- week period."
Sophisticated technologies will also play a major role in occupational growth. New career paths will probably be blazed by integrating technological advances with existing disciplines. Newsweek magazine alludes to growing areas of specialization such as bioinformatics (the meshing of high-powered computing with biological research), genomics (the study of genes and their function), proteomics (the computer modeling of how human proteins are folded and the activity they perform), and programming artists (the creation of art via computer animation and virtual media).
There may also be considerable growth in jobs focused on protecting the increasingly crucial technological civilian infrastructure. Today, there are some military scenarios in which terrorists or other enemies are able to do grave damage to power grids and communications networks. The U.S. and many other nations may need to develop more specialists who can help companies reduce the vulnerability of their systems. It's possible that security-related jobs could join health-related services and computer- related positions as fast-growing occupations.


For more information on BLS projections, please see the following links:
http://www.bls.gov/emp/emppak1.htm
http://www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/2001/11/contents.htm
http://www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/2001/11/art4full.pdf
http://www.bls.gov/oco/home.htm