There are many factors that people take into account when choosing a career: salary, opportunities to advance, personal interests, length of study required, and location. However, few individuals look at the job marketplace to determine which jobs are in high demand. These careers offer very competitive wages and benefits, while unemployment is scarce. Here are some of the fields and jobs where there are critical shortages of qualified staff to fill vacancies.
Engineering
There has been a noticeable decline in graduates who hold an engineering degree. Engineering is a broad field with multiple specialties. This makes it even harder to find employees. The period between 2016 and 2026 will see a 140,000 increase in vacancies. Interns can start as technicians with an entry-level income of $43,000 per annum with a senior technician making $77,900 p/a.
Let’s take a deeper look at two types of engineers: project engineers and quality engineers. As the name implies, project engineers oversee projects such as large construction and development assignments. A good deal of their time is spent on-site to monitor that tasks are carried out correctly with the right materials and within a specified timeframe. They are also responsible for planning the project, proposing and managing the budget allocation, and overseeing the workforce and other specialists involved. A senior project engineer with experience can earn as much as $120,850 p/a.
Quality engineers are responsible for the ongoing improvement of processes, quality standards, and safety in diverse industries such as manufacturing and civil engineering. They manage teams of quality control and quality assurance employees. When something goes wrong, the quality engineer will investigate the root cause and improve processes, equipment management, supply chains, or any aspects that contributed to the problem. Salaries range from $72,950 to $118,300 p/a.
Vacancies in the Accounting Domain
Many vacancies in accounting are not being filled or are open for a long time before a suitable candidate can be found. This was evident in middle-sized and large accounting firms where there was a dearth of strong applicants. A public accounting associate at the senior level can expect to earn anywhere from $78,647 to $94,312 p/a. The income range for senior tax accountants is 76,545 to $92,902 p/a.
Financial analysts are particularly in demand. This is reflected in the earnings for senior positions of $84,490 to $101,317 p/a. These experts have extensive knowledge and experience in making profits from investments with e.g., bonds and stock. Financial analysts typically work for pension funds, banks, and insurers. They have to be brilliant with figures, they must be logical, good communicators, and have the ability to solve problems.
Healthcare
Healthcare is the fastest expanding sector in the economy. It is expected to increase jobs by 20% from 2016 to 2026. This equates to 3.5 million vacancies that will need to be filled. We take a look at three careers in healthcare that are experiencing a staffing crisis.
Pharmacy technicians work with pharmacists in hospitals, clinics, or retail pharmacies. They are responsible for managing the inventory of pharmaceuticals and dispensing prescription medicines to patients or clients. A new pharmacy technician will earn an hourly rate of $15.41 which increases to $20.71 with seniority and experience.
Nurse practitioners are helping to fill in gaps caused by a shortage of doctors to deliver primary care. In 2019, there were 270,000 qualified US nurse practitioners and the numbers continue to grow. Although each state handles duties and responsibilities differently, the general tasks of the nurse practitioner are to perform assessments of patients, request and interpret lab tests, diagnose conditions, and prescribe medicine. Wages range from $41.88 to $58.40 per hour. A degree is required, and aspiring nurse practitioners can study online through Wilkes for a nursing qualification.
Registered nurses represent one of the biggest crises in terms of shortages of key personnel. Wages vary from $31.70 to $42.26 per hour. RNs provide direct nursing care to patients, maintain records, supervise other nurses and aides, and provide education on disease prevention. They can ask for lab tests to be done and interpret them, but they cannot prescribe medication.
Human Resources
Available positions in human resources (HR) will experience a 10% increase in the decade spanning 2016 to 2026. Recruiters are needed desperately and can earn an annual salary of $59,447 at the entry-level. This increases to $80,429 for senior recruiters.
The human resource generalist is responsible for the full spectrum of HR functions and managing the entire department. Thus, their skills and experience must cover all these duties, which is why it is difficult to find sufficient suitable applicants. Some of their tasks include ensuring mandatory training, recruitment processes, safety training, applying psychometric tests, conducting performance evaluations, implementing orientation programs, dealing with labor, disciplinary, and grievance issues, and making sure all legislation is complied with. Salaries for the senior incumbent go up to $135,960 p/a.
Careers in the Life Sciences
The biopharmaceutical sector in the United States has 854,000 staff. This is a huge industry but is still expected to grow by more than 10% by 2026. Clinical data managers earn between $59,000 and $111,000 p/a. They obtain and report data from clinical trials, working in teams to collate and present information.
Drug safety specialists play their role when pharmaceutical trials are being conducted. They ensure that everything is done in accordance with legislation. The drug safety specialist must report on negative outcomes of clinical trials and big cases and determine if medical products are safe for consumption. The job requires a relevant bachelor’s degree and on-the-job training before qualifying and being able to practice. The salary range is from $54,000 to $107,000.
A medical writer creates training manuals and writes academic papers in the field in which they specialize. Their articles may appear in medical or scientific journals. They can also do ghostwriting for scientists and doctors. Medical writers earn between $75,000 and $146,000 p/a.
Medical laboratory technicians make an income of $35,000 to $66,000 p/a. They conduct tests on substances such as blood and urine in a laboratory to determine if diseases or abnormalities are present in a patient. These technicians also handle blood transfusions and ensure that donor and recipient blood is a match.
If you are still deciding on which career you want to pursue, you now have some idea of jobs with a high vacancy rate that you may want to consider.
