Best careers with high wages & job opportunities at this present time?

[Starzinhereyes]

Just out of complete curiousity. Is it still law, medicine etc... Dc are still relatively young & it's too soon to tell where there interests lie... DH is a firm believer that tech is a safe gamble if dc are that way inclined...
Also when I was young business & commerce was always a safe bet...
So in your opinion what careers are paying the most & have the most plentiful employment opportunities after uni?

Just to state I'm not trying to push dc in any direction I'm just genuinely interested, tks!

Medicine/dentistry will always be most stable in terms of income and demand, although with personal risks as the past year has proven. I think it also offers the highest quality of life since there's very little work travel involved and most doctors can (eventually) decide their own hours.

Law is closely connected with business, so a pandemic wiping out clients would have a knock-on effect. Architecture is also quite stable, we know quite a number of architects/structural engineers and their projects were surprisingly not very affected by the global crisis.

I think new industries like blockchain technology, NFT, crypto, defi also have huge potential because there are so few people that understand it. It's growing faster than anyone can create official courses for, the the entry will probably be mathematics, IT or business.

It's fascinating isn't it.. My dc will be at that stage in 10/15 years time & God knows what may have changed again by then.

Don't forget trades and apprenticeships if they're not academic/want something more hands on.

Some of the most successful people I know started as apprentice mechanics, roofers, carpenters. Now either have their own successful firms and or are high up with the motor manufacturers. No student debt and they started earning at 16 too.

Keep an eye on how the jobs market goes in terms of what's available in or out of London and housing costs. A lot of people who've moved to London for work might seem to earn a lot, but they're also paying a lot of money for substandard rental accommodation a long way from their workplace.

I think it's things that can't be automated, but also where you can set up in business for yourself. Be your own boss.

So yes, dentistry, medicine, or tech related to those fields.

Speaking as a solicitor, law is over saturated with graduates fighting over limited training contracts and pupilages. It obviously depends on the area you work in but salaries are not what they were. If you work in a magic circle firm you'll be earning £150k when newly qualified but that isn't the norm.

Personally I wouldn't be advising my kids to go down this route because qualifying is extraordinarily expensive now. Assuming £50k for an undergraduate degree and then a further £20k for postgraduate studies and you're in debt to the tune of £70k before you start.

My friends that are doing very well for themselves in terms of excellent work life balance and solid incomes are GPs and Accountants. The Accountants pretty much set their own hours and it’s been very flexible as they’ve had children. The GP friends I have all work part-time (they are also married to other GPS!) and pick up extra out of hours shifts occasionally for a fantastic amount of extra pay. I genuinely regret not pursuing Medicine now! I know I would have wanted to be a surgeon though so no worklife balance and hard to be there for children in the way I wanted to. The other thing I’ve noticed is how many GPs and Consultants are going private either part-time or eventually full time. One Consultant (Endo) I know charges £350 for an hour’s consultation and, due to specialising in menopause and female hormones, she’s been able to stop working for the NHS and has a 3 month waiting list. I think more and more private medicine will be the way forward whether we like it or not. I pay £50 a month to a private GPs and consider it a bargain.

Dentists are also doing very well but imo have been put at much greater risk than most GPs this pandemic. My Dentist friends also have a nice life.

Another option would be Nursing. Advanced Clinical Practitioners in GP settings make a very decent income. I know one who is frankly rubbish at her job, got awful grades at school, didn’t do A-Levels, did the bare minimum when she did her Nursing Degree and is now on £70,000 a year. She’s the Lead ACP at the Surgery she works at and has been able to also purchase buy to let properties so she’s set to do very well financially and can retire early.

Law and Psychology students have not fared so well ime.

Engineering/Architecture?
One that not many people think of if they are science-inclined.

(DS1 wants to be an architect atm - he's 4, he was going to be a farmer last week)

Various financial professions which calculate things like insurance and pensions - they’ll be stable. So actuaries, risk professionals etc.

Also massive steps forward in terms of tech - coding etc. That’s something to get in to as well

Interesting - not many doctors I know in the NHS seem to be that happy with their quality of life. Workload, weekend on call and organisational politics are the main complaints.

Property surveying.

Tech, coding, AI, biotech. Areas I'm hoping that my DC might go in!

Cor, I’m married to a GP, it is an exhausting & frankly miserable job, at the moment anyway. I wouldn’t encourage my kids into it. I wouldn’t say you can pick your hours (unless you only do ad hoc out of hours), & you have no flexibility - definitely need a partner who will take off time for parents evening, sick kids etc... I’m thinking going into the trades would be better!

I'm surprised by the first comment - maybe consultants have a nice working life but being a junior doctor, for 10 years or so, sounds absolutely hideous and worth no amount of money! I know someone who wasn't even granted their own wedding day off (and there was no way to book holiday far enough in advance for a wedding, it really was unavoidable that it had to be booked then the leave request submitted when on that rotation).

Engineers are as highly valued as doctors in other countries but forgotten about in the UK. They can earn excellent salaries and work life balance seems okayish. Friends working in IT also seem to be making plenty of money.

Couldn't agree more with the PP who mentioned vocational skills. All of the carpenters, plumbers and electricians I know are out on their own doing really well with minimal overheads.

Great skills to have and always in demand.

On the other side, all the big earners I know are in tech, data, programming, that sort of thing.

Architecture takes ages to qualify and there are then a glut of people, it's really not a route to riches.

Coding is a tricky one, as there are some great secure and well paying jobs, but a lot of the basic to middle stuff is going to become automated or outsourced to cheaper countries in the next decade. Young people should learn it as understanding the building blocks of technology is important but for most it's not going to make their fortune. Climate change, information security and health are going to be really critical given the current demographic, political and environmental issues we face.

Engineering is often a good university choice because you can go into directly related jobs, but also the numeracy and structuring skills involved are often good for jobs in wider business afterwards.

I work in a technology-driven role and think that some of the most important skills for young people are still going to be people skills and critical thinking. Having one or both of those things can help make you less automatable, and/or more likely to be at the strategic and management level Vs the outsourced middle and lower level. Hopefully, a good side effect of those two things will also be making overall better relationships and life decisions and generally being a better person, living a happier life!

Cyber Security

Watching with interest. From what I've seen computer science and software development are good degrees that seem to hold their earning power.
For non academic pupils plumbing and locksmith apprentices have great potential. I needed both recently and they said the pandemic hasn't affected the demand at all. The plumber is booked up until October!

Thanks for all the replies very interesting reading...

Medicine and law are two areas I wouldn't want my dc to go into. Great pay eventually maybe but from what I've seen poor work-life balance.

I think mechanics who can repair electric cars will be raking it in. It will be more tech than actual getting your hands dirty I presume.

If they’re any good at maths- actuary. DH is one and we’d encourage DS if he was interested.

I’m another solicitor who will be putting her child off law.

Personalised medicine. Jobs in pharma which connect tech and people will boom

Veterinary medicine will provide excellent job opportunities and security post-Brexit, as it will be more difficult for foreign vets to come & work in the UK.