As a founding member of the Career Advisory Board presented by DeVry University, I’ve been closely following the Employment Situation data issued by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Unfortunately, as of the end of June, we’re continuing to see minimal improvement in job market health. Because employment gains in 2011 are not occurring as quickly as initially anticipated, job seekers must be more proactive than ever to ensure that they can earn a living.
If you are unemployed or among the 8.6 million involuntary part-timers in the U.S. right now, you may want to revisit the fields in which you’re seeking work. According to BLS, employment in professional and technical services continued to increase in June (+24,000). Health care employment continued its upward trajectory as well (+14,000), and in fact, employment in this industry has risen by an average of 24,000 per month over the prior 12 months.
Heading into 2012, healthcare will continue to grow exponentially. Due to an aging population and expanding healthcare to those who previously could not afford coverage, one in 10 U.S. jobs expected to be in this sector by 2018.
If you don’t have experience in an in-demand field, that doesn’t mean you can’t move into one. Be aware, though, that career change doesn’t happen overnight and for most people, it involves a gradual process of increasing commitment.
In developing a resume and other promotional materials for the field you want to pursue, think about how your current skills and talents apply to the responsibilities you’ll hold in the new job. Then, ease into a new career one foot at a time. Perhaps this means earning a paycheck at your current job while doing a part-time internship in your new field. Alternatively, you could pursue a degree program from an accredited university like DeVry that offers flexible online and in-classroom learning options to accommodate current work and family obligations.
Finally, don’t limit your search to large, established companies. According to payroll processing company ADP, small and medium-sized businesses were largely responsible for the 157,000 private-sector positions added in June.
This is excellent advice. The plan for how a job seeker can break into a health or technical career is certainly encouraging. Just by being at a job, paid or intern, in the field, a person would find out what one or two classes might give him a leg up over other applicants without having to complete an entire school program.
Also, the health industry includes all sorts of jobs, including plenty where no science skills are needed. Their clerical jobs, etc. are growing, too. In a down job market, here's a ray of hope if a person is willing to take a new direction.
Posted by: Gail Keller | August 02, 2011 at 11:16 PM
I'm Ready to Start working I just Know It's Going to be Exciting.
Posted by: Hassan Kamissoko | August 03, 2011 at 02:31 PM
it's hard to believe you get paid to write such tripe!
You should consider a new career
Posted by: kit archipenko | August 05, 2011 at 02:39 AM
great blog post. I am reposting on our Twitter feed @jpatrickjobs
speaking of high demand, high tech jobs are in huge demand and we have over 150 of them to peruse through... want more info, please check out our web site http://www.jpatrick.com.
Posted by: Elissa Jane Mastel | August 08, 2011 at 02:47 AM
lets get straight to the point i need a job right now,
Posted by: jason walker | August 08, 2011 at 03:33 PM
Don't be fooled by BLS stats. It's years between collection and publication date. Worse, much of its data is provided by self-serving professional organizations, who want more members and thus paint a rosier job picture than is real.
Besides, most of TODAY'S health care job openings are very low-pay. Yes, a decade ago, there was a shortage of garden-variety RNs, physical therapists, etc., but no longer. Indeed.com, which aggregates 5 million jobs, reports that while health care jobs are up 8% over a year ago, the vast majority are of the near-minimum-wage variety: medical assistant (the one who weighs you in the MD's office), phlebotomist (takes your blood) patient technician (wheels you into the operating room), etc. Most of the RN openings are for experienced specialists, e.g., in eICU, neurosurgery, etc, or are part-time/per-diem gigs.
Posted by: Marty Nemko | August 09, 2011 at 12:23 AM
@Marty: An interesting perspective, though anecdotally I've observed the market for new RNs and PAs to be extremely strong at the moment.
@Jason: Okay, what's your plan?
@Kit: Any suggestions?
@Elissa: I agree, and thanks for the resource.
@Hassan: You, go!
@Gail: These are fantastic suggestions. Cheers to your comment being right next to the post!
Posted by: Alexandra Levit | August 24, 2011 at 01:08 AM
My passion has been to help pelope declutter. I love to teach organization. But your good point was my need to do so and why. This is the layer of need I want to work on and find out what it is I really am suppose to be doing.Any help would be appreciated?
Posted by: rizqa | May 20, 2012 at 04:10 PM