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Tomorrow’s graduates will be facing a much different environment than the ones their parents entered in the last generation. As a result of our growing reliance on the Internet and inability to curb our fossil fuel appetites, there are dozens of jobs today that didn’t exist just 10 years ago – and they pay much better than more “traditional” jobs in many cases.
Thomas Frey, Senior Futurist at the DaVinci Institute, says that 60% of the best jobs in the next 10 years have not even been invented yet.
Carbon Accountant
Pay Package: $150K and up, according to MyCareer.com.au
Despite naysayers, global warming is becoming a universally accepted phenomenon and a worldwide effort is underway to curb the effects of greenhouse emissions. Before controlling carbon dioxide emissions, however, companies will need to measure their outputs. The field of carbon accounting encompasses developing carbon inventories, conducting carbon audits, and accounting for the costs of carbon offset trading into business strategy. The voluntary treaties on carbon reduction, such as the Kyoto Protocol, are likely to become mandatory and their reach will spread worldwide, so until global warming is dealt with, carbon accountants will be in high demand all over the planet.
Sustainability Officer
Pay Package: VPs earn close to $200K, according to Kiplinger
What started 10 or 15 years ago in the company kitchen with a separate recycling bin for plastics has grown into a science and a well-paying career. Similar to a carbon accountant, a sustainability officer oversees the company’s carbon footprint but also implements strategies to shrink it across the entire scope of operations, from reducing paper waste at the office printer to sourcing materials in order to cut down on shipping distances, from saving on lighting costs to buying or even producing green energy.
Big Data analyst
Pay Package: $50K and up
Advanced degree in statistics or econometrics, a genuine love of numbers, graphs and pie charts
Perks: Never having to deal with overly emotional colleagues.
We’re producing 2.5 quintillion bytes of data every single day, and 90 percent of it has been created in the past two years. It comes from web browser trackers, search statistics, internal sales reports, social media sites, GPS, exercise apps and everything else that’s connected to the global internet. This data can be incredibly useful in fields ranging from advertising to emergency preparedness. Technology has gone a long way in helping us catalog, store, and organize data, but companies need professionals capable of analyzing the data to give them a competitive advantage. McKinsey Global Institute says 190,000 more data analytics experts will be needed in the U.S. alone.
Tomorrow’s graduates will be facing a much different environment than the ones their parents entered in the last generation. As a result of our growing reliance on the Internet, there are dozens of jobs today that didn’t exist just 10 years agoClick To TweetWeb User Experience Manager
Pay Package: Starting at $30K
The concept of user experience management first appeared during Web 1.0, when websites struggled to attract and keep eyeballs, but the concept is as old as commerce: if your customers have a better experience with you than with the competition, you win. Just look at the success of Apple and Amazon. The idea has since spread to traditional markets, and everyone from local banks to government agencies is looking to experts to analyze and improve on customer experience.
Social Media Manager
Pay Package: Average salary is AU$89,000, according to employment site Adzuna.com.au
Qualifications: Degree in communications or relevant subject, experience managing companies’ online presence, understanding of public relations, and up-to-date knowledge of Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Pinterest, Instagram, et al.
Perks: Having the coolest newest apps; wielding the power to make and break careers
Just five years ago, the idea of someone spending 40+ hours a week on a site like Facebook and getting paid for it would have seemed preposterous. Managing a company’s brand and image was part of the duties of public relations departments, but today, corporations large and small hire savvy social media types to shape and control their online communities, track their enemies, and reinforce partnerships. While Facebook may eventually go the way of Friendster and MySpace, social media, and the amount of time and energy we all spend on it, is likely to stay, and so are the jobs.
Avatar Telework Manager
Pay Package: $80,000 and up
Location of Job: Remotely, but not always
Qualifications: HR experience, knowledge of remote working platforms, VPN, and security applications
Perks: Managing employees that love showing up to work
Broadband internet access is making more Australians mobile every day, and companies have begun to realize the benefits of having teleworkers: for starters, it gives them previously unattainable geographic reach in finding the right candidates. Teleworkers also save companies money: for every three teleworkers, one desk can be discarded, for example, cutting back on rent and utilities. In addition, time saved from commuting translates to extra time for employees to enjoy the rest of their lives – making them happier, more productive employees (in fact, teleworkers are up to 40% more productive than those chained to the cubicle). To manage this new global workforce, however, companies have a growing demand for experienced telework managers that have an understanding of this new work environment and its technological, organizational, and psychological challenges.
Alternative Currency Speculator
Virtual currencies such as Bitcoin are proliferating across the internet, and some of them have grown in value tremendously already: an Olso man who forgot about his $22 worth of Bitcoins from 2009 found out they were worth over $850,000 this October. Bitcoin is now accepted at several pubs in Britain, and the first Bitcoin ATM, complete with palm print verification technology, so it’s a matter of time before Bitcoin attracts currency speculators. Much like traditional currency speculation, these jobs will require little less than startup capital – but as companies begin to take over the market, a degree in economics and finance, combined with an understanding of factors that make virtual currencies move, will be necessary to prosper in the field.
Crowdfunding Specialist
Kickstarter and other crowdfunding platforms have proven that you don’t need to know venture capitalists to launch a new product (or make a movie, for that matter). But the money involved in crowdfunding is now well into the hundreds of millions, so professional managers are taking notice. As the concept becomes more widespread, and the competition between crowdfunding platforms increases, there will be a growing need for specialists capable of guiding a new company along. They will still need traditional education in accounting and finance, combined with intimate knowledge of these alternative sources and networks of contacts specific to them.
Privacy Consultant
Edward Snowden’s revelations have alerted the world over that we are being watched, by all the services we use for communication and leisure, and by the government. Thousands of identities are stolen every year. For businesses, particularly ones that deal with sensitive personal information such as financial accounts and medical records, protecting their company and employee privacy online and offline will become ever more important, and much like private investigators came in to find and secure paper trails, privacy consultants will test and reduce vulnerabilities in the 21st century. Combined with a background in technology, these careers will require an understanding of legal constraints and how they apply in the online world.
Space Pilots and Tour Guides
Recent grads may very well be eligible for careers in space tourism, according to UK’s Real Business. Thanks to people like Richard Branson and his Virgin Galactic enterprise, private citizens will soon be able to travel past the boundaries of our atmosphere. The skills required for piloting the crafts that will take them there are similar to a regular pilot’s but will require additional training. A slew of other associated positions will become available too – one program already offers a Masters of Science in Space Architecture.
How to prepare for the jobs of the future:
- Be workplace-ready: Choose an education provider that will support your development of professional skills.
- Take control: Plan and manage your career now to ensure you head in the direction you want to go.
- Stay current: As industries evolve with technology, choose to study with a provider that stays in touch with emerging trends.
- Be creative: Those that do something different stand out the most.
- Never stop: Education doesn’t stop with the classroom.
The ability to brand and promote yourself effectively becomes absolutely essential for young professionals to land the job, earn the raise, or get that much deserved promotion.
