Best Careers for 2012
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Web Designer
Web designers are crucial in business today making them in high demand. Web designers aren't your typical graphic designer, they design websites that can be viewed by many different devices including phone, televisions, and computers. They design websites in a way that will help businesses represent themselves out on the web. They are responsible for the aesthetics of a site and how the content is presented. Web designers spend a lot of their time using programs like Adobe Photoshop and also coding websites using HTML and CSS. Many web designers also have a basic understanding on how to work with different programming languages. They will also find themselves using javascript libraries such as jQuery.
Salary Information
Established Web designers can make around $76,000 per year. Many web designers are self employed and make much more.
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Criminal Investigator
Criminal investigators are all over television and in books. Criminal investigator's lives are usually portrayed as exciting and never boring. But what do real criminal investigators do? Criminal investigators solve crimes with the help of informants, suspects, and witnesses. They take evidence gathered and use it to solve crimes that have been committed. They are in charge of keeping records and background information on criminals. Their main objective is to gather enough evidence to help convict criminals of their crimes. There are many different criminal investigation specialties depending on they types of crimes that are committed. Some of them include burglary, domestic violence, homicide, missing persons, narcotics, computer crimes, and fraud. Each type of investigation requires special skills and experience.
Salary Information
Established Criminal Investigators can make around $100,000 per year.
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Network Administrator
With the world becoming more and more connected, there is a need to keep the world connected. Computers, phones, and offices in general need to connect to networks, either wirelessly or through a wired connection. These networks are very important and data stored within the network are stored on servers. Some companies have their own server rooms solely dedicated to storing the company servers. The servers and the networks require network administrators to maintain the hardware and software that run these networks to keep connected to the world. When you become a network administrator, you will be in charge of maintaining these networks, and troubleshooting problems that may arise with the network. Most companies are very dependent on the people who keep their technology running so they can continue to run their businesses.
Salary Information
Established Network Adminstrators can make around $106,000 per year.
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CPA
Do you create detailed budgets and stick to them? If you answered yes, you may want to consider switching careers because you would make a great certified public accountant (CPA). Certified public accountants track the spendings and earnings of organizations. They create reports, analyze budgets, and make sure companies adhere to generally accepted accounting principals (GAAP). Certified public accountants keep records, and create reports for, management, the public, and the government. The information in these reports is vital to managers as they make decisions and decide on business strategies. The public needs reports prepared by accountants so they can make wise investment decisions and make the investments that many corporations depend on. Governments need these reports so they know how much a business must pay in taxes.
Salary Information
Established Certified Public Accountants can make around $105,000 per year. Many web designers are self employed and make much more.
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Environmental Engineer
Environmental engineers have emerged within the last 20 years or so. Environmental engineering is relatively new. Environmental Engineers typically solve problems that help preserve the environment, natural resources, and wildlife. The results of Environmental Engineers benefit the communities they work in, but their efforts may also have a larger reach into the world community as a whole. Science and engineering play a big part in this career. It is an excellent choice for people who love solving problems, improving areas, and making lives better. Environmental engineers depend on their working knowledge of biology, hazardous waste, statistics, geology, hydrogeology, public health ecology, chemical engineering, agricultural engineering, civil engineering, and so many more subjects.
Salary Information
Established Environmental Engineers can make around $116,000 per year.
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Forensic Psychologist
Do you have a passion for the criminal justice system and an interest in the workings of the human mind? Forensic psychologists have interesting careers that combines the criminal justice and psychology fields. This line of work is extremely rewarding because it allows you to help make individual’s lives better and help improve and protect communities. People with this job usually work in the criminal justice system and often act as expert witnesses. Forensic psychologists work with judges and attorneys to help them understand psychological aspects of court cases. To to this, they work in one of three areas: family court, civil court, or criminal court.
Salary Information
Established Forensic Psychologists can make around $117,000 per year.
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Software Developer
A software developer is one of the most important people in the creation of the electronic devices you use every day. They may be computers, phones, cameras, electronic books, and a host of other electronic devices, but most likely a day doesn’t go by without you using an electronic device running sophisticated software. To understand the job of a software developer, you need to understand the difference between software and hardware. As a software developer, you will use a variety of tools to create software. Careers in software development use a variety of programming languages such as C++, flash, and Java. There are many different tools out there for you to use as a software developer.
Salary Information
Established Software Developers can make around $132,000 per year.
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Registered Nurse
Nursing is the largest occupation in the health care industry, with more than 2.6 million nurses in the United States. Nurses are responsible for treating, educating, and helping patients. One of the reasons that nurses love their careers is because of the high level of interaction with patients, nurses often have more patient interaction than doctors or any other position in the health care industry. The majority of nurses work in hospitals.
Salary Information
Established Registered Nurses can make around $94,000 per year.
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Special Education Teacher
Special education teachers have the very rewarding job of teaching children and youth with cognitive, physical, and emotional disabilities. These educators teach academic, social, and life skills so their students can reach their fullest potential. People with this career work with children who struggle with mental retardation, autism, brain injuries, hearing impairments, visual impairments, health impairments, or one of many other disabilities. Special education teachers can work in preschools, or elementary, middle, or secondary schools. Sometimes these teachers work with children in a classroom that is specifically for children with disabilities and sometimes they work with a child with special needs in a general education classroom. Special education teachers may also work with a general education teacher to teach a class with both general education and special education students. Teachers who work with younger children sometimes even work with children and their parents in their homes.
Salary Information
Established Special Education Teachers can make around $84,000 per year.
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Massage Therapist
Massage therapy is an exciting field where a massage therapist uses a variety of massage techniques to help others. If you become a massage therapist then you will reduce your client’s stress, treat injuries and pain. Many people also seek out a massage therapist for relaxation and consider it an essential part of recreation. Careers and opportunities in massage therapy are expected to grow. The demand for massage therapists is expected to increase due to the number and popularity of health spas is increasing. A massage therapist enjoys regular clientele, since people often receive massages on a regular basis. Massage therapy is a great career if you want to help people and you can even start up your own business with a steady client base.
Salary Information
Established Massage Therapists can make around $69,000 per year.
Forensic Psychology Salary
Forensic Psychology is a field that combines the exciting vocations of psychology and criminal justice. Over the last several decades, law enforcement personnel have learned the importance of psychology in their work. Forensic psychologists create new policies, evaluate mental state and competency, and testify in the courtroom. With so many applications of forensic psychology in the real world, it is no wonder that the demand for more forensic psychologists grows every year. If you have ever considered working in this exciting field, now is the time! Demand is growing, and employers are more willing than ever to pay a generous forensic psychology salary to get the best in the field.
Forensic Psychology Salary
Forensic psychologists put in extensive time and training to master the skills they need to succeed into the workplace. Because of the time commitment, forensic psychologists earn one of the highest salaries in the criminal justice field. Your salary will depend on where you work, your specialization, and your experience. In 2011, the average forensic psychology salary was $60,000. Nearly all forensic psychologists earned more than $45,000 a year, and that includes forensic psychologists who are in their first year of work. The average income for an experienced forensic psychologist is $73,000, which translates to a whopping $35 an hour! Of course, with a little more training and experience, you can earn over $100,000 a year.
Why Does the Salary Vary?
Forensic psychologists work in varied roles within the criminal justice network, so a forensic psychology salary depends greatly on what work you choose to do. If you choose to work in research or policy development, you will need less education. A bachelor’s degree usually suffices. If you are dedicated to working in the public sector, you will find that your starting income is lower than that of your colleagues in the private sector, but only for the first 3 years. After that, you can expect to benefit from a higher forensic psychology salary and better job security. Of course, one of the best advantages of working as a forensic psychologist is variability. If you find that you do not earn enough where you are, or simply want a change, you can find work in a completely different area and all of your training, certifications and work experience follow you.
For many of the best careers, your income is much higher if you live near a big city, such as Chicago or Los Angeles. The income disparity between large metropolitan areas and smaller rural towns emanates from cost of living differences. However, after tossing both extremes out of the salary comparison equation, the median forensic psychology salary is fairly even between all of the states. Even if you live in Wyoming or Rhode Island, you can still expect a salary near the national average.
How Do I Earn a Forensic Psychology Salary?
Forensic psychologists do more than train to understand the human mind. They learn how to apply their psychological training in the world of criminal justice, making them some of the best-trained professionals in the workforce. Most of the training comes through the education system. Most employers require a master’s degree, and a doctorate degree raises your salary by a considerable amount. Many employers also seek those who have procured certifications and have completed internships or other training. Many schools today cater to forensic psychologists, helping you to reach your career goal faster than ever. You do not have to feel like your dreams are out of reach. Online education makes it easier than ever to become a forensic psychologist so that you can get closer to that high forensic psychology salary.
