Where the jobs are for future college graduates

While college does more than prepare you for a job, it’s a reality that career preparation is part of a college education.

With the average cost of college rising rapidly each year and student debt topping $1.2 trillion, it’s crucial for today’s college students to research what types of jobs they’ll be able to get after college and figure out how much they can expect to make, particularly if they have student loans to pay.

Research careers before choosing a major

One great resource for this type of information is the “Occupational Outlook Handbook,” released every two years by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. This document provides a 10-year employment forecast, projecting future job growth and salaries for various fields.

As part of its study, the Bureau recently released its list of the 10 fastest-growing jobs through 2022 that require a bachelor’s degree, CNBC reported.

While we wouldn’t recommend choosing a college major solely based on this list, it’s definitely useful for prospective and current college students who are evaluating what they want to study and what their future job prospects might look like.

Managers top list of fastest-growing jobs

General and operations managers topped the list of fastest-growing jobs, outpacing the second-fastest growing profession, elementary school teachers, by about 76,000 jobs.

While there’s not a specific major tied to that particular job, business and management majors would likely be prepared for a career in the field.

Besides those studying elementary education, students studying accounting and auditing, along with software development, can expect to see high job growth as well.

Check out the list below of the 10 fastest growing jobs and their current median pay, and be sure to check out the OOH website for more information about different careers, including salaries, educational requirements, job settings, and the projected outlook for the profession.

Occupation	No. of New Jobs (rounded)	2014 Yearly Median Pay
General and operations managers	244,000	$97,270
Elementary school teachers (except special ed.)	168,000	$54,120
Accountants & auditors	167,000	$65,940
Software developers, applications	140,000	$95,510
Management analysts	134,000	$80,880
Market research analysts, marketing specialists	132,000	$61,290
Computer systems analysts	128,000	$82,710
Software developers, systems software	83,000	$102,880
Construction managers	78,000	$85,630
Middle school teachers (except special, career/tech ed.)	76,000	$54,940