Examples of "niche" jobs

[Poptart4]

Everyone on MN seems to work in a very niche job that very few people could actually do. Earning lots of money of course. But they can never say what this job is as that would be very outing

So out of curiosity, can someone please list a few of these niche jobs?

I know a professional contemporary jazz vibraphonist. He's in great demand.

prisonbreaker

I got into this when I traced my own son who I had to give up for adoption when I was 16 due to the way attitudes were in the 60s. I have reunited well over 100 people with their natural families and dozens of natural parents with their children. It is so rewarding.

Ooh, I've just thought of another one — I know a conductor! One who actual studied conducting, rather than a professional musician who conducts (not that they're not great, but there are a lot more of them!).

And I've also come across somebody who restores/makes replicas of and hires out historical musical instruments.

@Silurian

More often needed with geldings, *@NuclearDH* -- were you mostly riding mares?

I worked at a trekking centre with over 50 horses so a mix of geldings and mares.

[quote thosetalesofunexpected]@TheOrigRights

What "organism was it that you did so much forcus /Research on then?
Why was it such a niche subject for research that so few people were involved in this?

What ways does your kind of research, makes it beneficial in our modern society? 😕

I am just intrigued or is that too outing to give any more tantalising clue/s then?[/quote]
It would be outing to say which organism, but I can tell you that it is a model organism ie a non-human species which is easy to maintain in the laboratory used to study biological processes.

In learning how biological processes work in non-human species we can carry that knowledge into human studies.

There are many groups working on different model organisms.

PhD topics are always very niche. I once came across somebody who was training bees to be used for drug detection.

@PolkadotsAndMoonbeams

PhD topics are always very niche. I once came across somebody who was training bees to be used for drug detection.

By definition PhDs are niche in that they should be original research.

There are highly sort after very niche roles in Aerospace. If you are a highly qualified SME in your particular field in aerospace then you are like golddust.

I know 2 font designers, they design fonts for companies, advertising/brand agencies, and also sell them directly to the public. Never knew that job existed before working at an agency.

There's niche and there's identifiable. There are lots of people who work in, say, public engagement with science, but not many, say, COOs of third sector organisations aimed at promoting public engagement with science.

[quote FloconDeNeige]@Plausiblebigjobs
Are you in Geneva then?
I’m a scientist, used to work for CERN but now work for pharma, also in Switzerland.
Industry pays better than the UN agencies or other IGOs.

I’ve got specialist skills; PhD, MBA, bilingual but so have soooo many other people on the international professional scene.[/quote]
I was going to ask if she was in New York. Isn’t that where the UN is headquartered?

@Sindragosan

OK, I'm not in a niche job, but an example would be maintenance/programming of legacy systems still in use. Something no-one trains in anymore. Pays very well but risky as these systems are eventually replaced.

Yep. There are probably 8 people in the UK & Ireland who could do some of my job. It involves, in part, knowing DOS

@WoohooBeautiful
The UN HQ is in NYC. Geneva is the largest of the UN’s four international offices.

The UN isn’t an exceptionally high-payer (it’s public money after all), however salaries are very high in Switzerland so many UN Geneva roles would end up being 6 figures due to the country uplift.

Saw a TV report about a horse make up artist a few months ago.
She does the famous running black horses and is much in demand apparently.
Who knew 😁

@namechange2547

What does Clinical Prefusion scientist then do then?

this sounds intriguing

I am just really curious

or
Is it bit too far too outing to say anything extra etc then?

sheep scanner

I saw an asparagus reader on tv....I cant imagine theres many of them....or indeed much demand for them! 😂

She's an Asparamancer ! And no, I don't think anyone but our area would want one (though its just a bit of fun for the Asparagus festival - we also have a Plum charmer for the Plum festival)

My profession is pretty run of the mill (HCP) my actual job is pretty niche, not in as much as only I can do it (I have no additional skills other than being awesome ) but as in the opportunities for this actual role are few and far between.

I would only talk about the fact it was niche when on threads where others are berating me for not earning more.

The Ravenmaster at the tower of London

And globe makers . Handmade . That's very niche!

I believe that one operates a machine like an artificial pump for heart/lung that sends blood to all the tissues / organs? Of the body while a surgeon would be operating on a heart.

Important job ! And obviously alot more that the above is involved .

I only know this from needing a heart op in my 20's! X

@Poached

My ex husband worked on a farm but him primary responsibility was the care and maintenance of the anaerobic digester.

That’s not terribly niche.

The niche job, in my opinion, was that of the small team of engineers/divers that were periodically hired to perform repairs etc to the parts of the digester that could not be reached by mere mortals. In full diving gear they would have to plunge into the warm sludge to fix whatever part of the machine had broken.

Exdh tells me they are richly rewarded for this unenviable niche job.

Has just reminded me: we used to X-ray specific bones on deep sea divers looking for damage caused by continual exposure to that environment. It was well paid, but one bloke told me the serious money he earned was in diving into tanks of crude oil on board oil tankers if the outlet valves had seized. Apparently the oil destroyed their dry-suits so they were only good for one oil-dive!

Bit niche?

@Carrotcakeforbreakfast

I'm a radiographer which isn't niche in the slightest. However, previously to my current role I worked as a forensic radiographer and not for the NHS. I did CT scans on unexplained deaths, police investigations etc. I also specialised in cardiac CT on the deceased.

It isn't so unusual anymore however when I did it. ( pre children) I believe there were only 4 of us.

Ooh, one of my roles is in forensic radiography!

@Monkeybusiness1960

I do MRI scans in veterinary. Don't get paid much though, less than the equivalent job in NHS

My friend us a veterinarian radiographer, CT and MR. She gets paid £40k for a 4 day week. That's more than she'd get imaging NHS humans.!

I write scientific software - it's a pretty niche field, entry level is PhD (probably postdoc nowadays). Not many jobs doing it commercially.