What sort of jobs will matter in the future? Several factors have changed the marketplace and will keep affecting the business industry. Experts suggest that many jobs that exist today will become obsolete in the upcoming future. Similarly, many future careers haven’t emerged yet. So, which career a student in 2021 should pursue? Students are interested in future-proofing their skillset and acquiring abilities that’ll remain relevant post-pandemic.
Nobody can deny that technology is the most successful industry in 2021, and “digital skills” are more sought-after by employers than any other skillset. Besides, you can now pursue several degrees online without attending physical lectures to create a flourishing career.
So, let’s have a look at the highest-paying tech jobs of our era:
- IT Support Professional
Salary: Around $50,000
How many times during the lockdown have you called an IT guy to help you figure out why you’re getting no internet on your computer? Even employees sometimes encounter similar issues – let’s call them bugs – they can’t fix. So, they ask IT professionals for assistance. These individuals know how to troubleshoot hardware/software issues.
But why mention this degree when it doesn’t pay over 50k? Well, this degree helps you acquire the skills needed to advance in your career and earn a high-paying job. You can also pursue Google’s IT support professional certificate to hone your digital skills. With these capabilities, you can promote yourself to a better career in less than a year.
2. Online Advertising Professional
Salary: Around $60,000
If you seek to land the role of an online advertiser, a degree in digital media will prove highly beneficial for you. It will allow you to work in various settings transforming ideas into campaigns for brands. Digital marketing also enables you to work in one of the fastest-growing industries in the world today. Almost every organization now depends on these techniques to gain new customers and retain the current ones.
You’ll be working on advertising platforms, e.g., Google/Facebook ads while running campaigns digitally on other social media websites. A digital media degree will also help you understand the subtle art of content creation and acquiring quality backlinks by leveraging it. These skills will make you a well-experienced professional in the field of digital marketing.
3. Database Manager
Salary: Around $60,000
Organizations have thousands and sometimes millions of customers/subscribers they must manage regularly. These users churn vast amounts of data that are essential for companies. They utilize a DBMS (database management system) to make sense of this data, supervised by a database manager. This individual will establish data storage/retrieval systems for the company while troubleshooting DBMS errors. Pursuing a degree in database management can teach you all about the software/hardware requirements and necessary skills.
4. Cybersecurity Professional
Salary: Around $100,000
The current pandemic was accompanied by a fourfold increase in cybercrimes, as per the FBI. It seems that hackers leveraged the uncertainty associated with COVID-19 to attack more companies and steal their data. As more organizations store their information on the cloud, cybersecurity will become a primary concern for corporations in the upcoming future.
So, you can acquire a degree in cybersecurity to pursue a career in this growing profession. Getting a degree in cybersecurity will help you understand different techniques used to prevent hackers from infiltrating networked computers. Also, you’ll know how to discover vulnerabilities to identify an attempted penetration or any chance of potential data leakages.
5. Full-Stack Developer
Salary: Around $100,000
If you have worked as a back-end/front-end developer, a full-stack developer combines these two fields’ expertise. After mastering CSS and HTML, this professional develops programs for the server and the client. You’ll build the GUI portion of an app/site while working on its database simultaneously. A full-stack developer knows how to code/script, design an API, and implement data security measures. They also learn the basics of database techniques and website development. You can also check out this full stack developer course.
6. Cloud Architect
Salary: Around $130,000
Almost all industries depend on the cloud to store their information and create backups for data if it gets stolen/missing. So, they hire a cloud architect to direct the company’s cloud computing strategies. You must have a profound understanding of cloud technology and knowledge of Google cloud or similar platforms. As around 90% of companies are “on the cloud,” cloud engineers can expect many employment opportunities in different industries in the future.
7. Big Data Engineer
Salary: Around $130,000
Statistics show that people create around 2.5 quintillion bytes of data daily. Companies collect user-generated information in the form of “cookies” to harness valuable insights. It leads us to big data or data that can’t be visualized with traditional applications. So, organizations employ professionals who know their way around big data processing/warehousing technologies. You must understand NoSQL and Hadoop to become a data architect, which is a growing career.
8. Blockchain Developer
Salary: Around $150,000
The emergence of cryptocurrency contributed to the popularity of blockchain technology. Experts have recommended the incorporation of this technique to make the banking system more efficient and digitally secure. Blockchain technology has a decentralized structure that ensures more privacy, improved tracking, faster transactions, and diminished costs.
A blockchain degree has become – therefore – the latest trend among tech enthusiasts. Colleges now offer short-term courses that teach students the basics of this technology. Its applications don’t just include Bitcoin/Ethereum, but even mainstream finances can benefit from this technique. Hence, a blockchain degree will be worth your investment soon.
9. AI Engineer
Salary: Around $160,000
In the future, automation will dominate every business sector as it makes an organization effective by eliminating human errors. An AI engineer/architect serves a company by developing AI initiatives. So, you must have command over statistics if you wish to become an AI engineer and excellent programming skills. Also, you must understand how deep learning and neural pathways work. It has become evident during the last few years that future organizations will hire more AI experts.
Conclusion
We can see that information technology occupations have become the center of everyone’s attention in the United States. BLS estimated that employment in this industry would grow by 11% in this decade – much faster than average. Students find tech jobs lucrative because of the high salaries, job satisfaction ratings, and career advancement opportunities they present. A recent study indicates that professionals working in the tech industry make $97,859 on average annually. Now, there are several short-term and home-based courses available online for students wishing to pursue IT careers. These courses help you become a data scientist, a software engineer, a network architect, or even an intelligence engineer.