According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, the fastest growing jobs through 2014 are:

  1. Home health aides
  2. Network systems and data communications analysts
  3. Medical assistants
  4. Physician’s assistants
  5. Computer & software engineers (applications)
  6. Physical therapist assistants
  7. Dental hygienists
  8. Computer & software engineers (systems)
  9. Dental assistants
  10. Personal aides

bls-chart1.jpgAn interesting (but not surprising!) factoid about this list is that of the Top 10 fastest growing careers; 60% of them require a college education. What’s more, the earning potential for non-degreed careers (1, 3, 9, and 10) is rated as either low or very low.

Let’s look at it from another perspective. The unemployment statistics reveal that the jobless rate is inversely proportional to educational level. In other words, the lower a candidate’s education level, the less chance they have of finding a job. The following chart illustrates this important point:

 

On the other end of the spectrum, of the Top 10 occupation with the largest decline, none of the occupations require a college degree and 80% of them are rated as low or very low paying. The only two careers in steep decline that rate a high pay ($28,500-$43,600 annually) are Farmers and Computer Operators.

The data suggests that a college education is worth the expense and time commitment. Very often I hear “I can’t afford to go to college.” My question to them is always “How can you afford not to?”

Speaking from personal experience in the Human Resources industry, I have more job openings for degreed candidates than for non-degreed candidates. In fact, not only can I place a degreed applicant faster but you can bet that they will make a lot more money…which is good for everyone!