10 promising careers

Joy Victory, of Payscale.com, says these 10 careers are in demand these days. Note that the average salaries listed are nationwide averages, not Tampa Bay averages ... Here are her top picks, along with our take here at LocalShops1.com:


Auditing. With all of the economic upheaval, businesses are being watched more carefully than ever, which makes auditing careers more secure than ever. median salary - $64,914

Job Counseling. Makes sense; more people unemployed, more people looking for help. Median salary - $54,426

Psychological Counseling. Self-worth is often tied to job, experts say; so with so many people losing their jobs these days, more are feeling identity crises. Median salary - $40,275

Public Relations. Keep in mind, this isn't all the fun, glitzy stuff, like promoting new products or stars. PR experts are the ones who have to explain the bad stuff, too, like layoffs and other budget cuts. Median salary - $44,334


Factoring. We'll let her explain this one: While this line of work is fairly foreign to most folks, now that bank loans are hard to come by, factoring allows small business to get funding based on their current accounts receivable -- the money they expect to have coming in. Factoring works well for retailers and other businesses that have big receivables.Median salary, commercial lender - $79,846

Healthcare technician. radiology technicians, lab assistants, home health aides. These jobs are almost recession-proof. Median salary, pharmacy technician - $32,531

Mechanical Engineering (and all engineering fields). In the U.S. we only graduate 70,000 engineers per year, but we're going to need 100,000 per year, experts say. Median salary - $71,490

Networking/System Administration. People who understand how to keep computer networks running smoothly are often the most important in a company. Think of the last big crash at work. ... median salary - $54,193

Nursing. Particularly in demand are physical therapy and similar "exercise science" careers, because aging Baby Boomers will be looking for ways to remain active long into their later years. Median salary, registered nurse - $53,840


Software Design/Development. We're becoming more tech-dependent, and companies are always looking for upgrades to their products. Just think what your cell phone was like three years ago, and how much more your new one offers. Median salary - $72,070

Source: All salary data is from PayScale.com. The salaries listed are median, annual salaries for full-time workers with 5-8 years of experience and include bonuses, commissions or profit sharing.

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