Engineering professions of the future. The most popular and promising professions of the future. Smart environment designer

What professions will be in demand in a few years - this is the question facing millions of high school students and their parents. Not every student at the age of 15-16 is able to independently assess the prospects of the labor market, but everyone wants to get a sought-after profession. In this article we will tell you who to study after school, so that in the future you become not just another clerk, but a highly qualified and well-paid specialist.

Professions of the future

The labor market is changing very quickly, and these changes will continue. No one can say for sure what this market will look like in 10-20 years, but here are the conclusions that can be drawn based on the current situation in the world:

Now let's try to answer the question, how to survive in this market?

So, let's look at how you need to act to become a sought-after specialist and remain one for many years.

Now let's talk more specifically about the most current professions and see what new specialties may appear in the very near future.

See also video on the topic:

Forecast: the most in-demand professions of 2022

Most labor market analysts argue that Russia currently has too many lawyers, as well as designers and psychologists, while there are not enough agronomists, doctors and engineers. More than 85% of graduates of humanities universities do not have the opportunity to get a job in their specialty. What awaits us in the future and what professions will be in demand in a few years?

According to Nobel laureate Christopher Pissarides, there are only a few areas in the world in which robots will not be able to displace humans in the near future. These include:

• education;
• healthcare;
• personal services;
• real estate;
• housekeeping.

Robotics will soon invade all areas of human activity. You may think that this is reminiscent of the plot of a science fiction film, but believe me, the future is already knocking on our doors.

When answering the question of what professions will be in demand in 5-10 years, one cannot fail to mention new specialties that, according to forecasts, should appear in the very near future. These include:

• airship designer;
• cosmogeologist;
• bioethicist;
• IT medic;
• robotics engineer;
• architect of zero energy roads.

And that’s not all - the full list includes one hundred and thirty-six such professions!

This seems incredible, but let's remember how much our world has changed over the past twenty years - then people listened to music on cassette recorders, took photos on film cameras, and PCs and cell phones seemed like a luxury available only to the rich. But 20 years is quite a bit, but how far progress has come in these two decades!

But let's return from heaven to sinful earth. Perhaps in 20 years airship designers will be in demand, but what to do now if this is not taught anywhere yet? There is only one conclusion: when choosing who to study after school, you need to keep in mind the upcoming changes and choose professions in related fields in order to have the necessary background and, if necessary, quickly obtain a new promising specialty. And of course, when choosing a promising profession, you need to focus on your preferences.

Which professions will die out?

It is quite difficult to predict the “extinction” of a profession. For many years now, experts have been talking about the lack of demand for librarians, but they still continue to go to work. But despite this, the librarian profession is indeed on the endangered list.

There will also soon be fewer sellers, although they are unlikely to disappear completely. This is due to the growth of online shopping, which we already discussed above.

In addition, postmen, elevator operators and watchmen should soon disappear.

Journalists and reporters will be at risk of extinction, as well as other “sharks of the pen”, including copywriters, editors and proofreaders - the work of the former will be performed by social networks, and the duties of the latter can be automated.

The once popular secretarial assistants are also under attack - many businessmen today find it easier to hire an online assistant.

Doubles and stuntmen will “die out” and be replaced by modern web technologies. Their fate can be shared by museum workers - from ticket takers to tour guides.

And by 2030, the professions of lawyers, economists, accountants and managers (managers) may become irrelevant! Sberbank has already announced that it intends to replace no less than three thousand of its legal advisers with robots, and the Ministry of Finance proposed to reduce the number of accountants by half last fall.

In total, scientists identify more than 50 endangered professions, and among them there are specialties that are very popular today.

Changes in the labor market

Before deciding where to study after school, you need to understand what changes will occur in the labor market in a few years. We have already found out that robotics will be introduced into all areas of human life, but that’s not all.

• Experts say that the principles of work for doctors and teachers will change, and special programs will do all the paperwork for them.

• In addition to IT and eco-projects, the service sector will actively develop.

• The field of online education will continue to develop. More and more people will receive postgraduate education.

• At the same time, in some areas, it is not the diplomas that will be valued, but the specific knowledge and skills that the applicant possesses.

This is hardly a complete list of upcoming changes, but still this information will help you better navigate where our planet is heading.

Where to study after school

According to experts, in the near future the labor market will continue to demand

• engineers;
• doctors;
• technical specialists;
• chemists;
• biologists;
• IT specialists, programmers and computer software developers;
• specialists in the field of tourism and hotel business;
• ecologists;
• nanotechnologists.

If you get one of these specialties, you will definitely not be left without a job!

As for the currently popular marketers and PR specialists, financiers and lawyers, these professions cannot be called the most promising. It is quite possible to make money in these areas, but you need to understand that competition is very high, and only high-class professionals can achieve success.

It is impossible not to note another promising area - blockchain technology is being introduced into all areas of our lives, and it has already begun to be taught in some universities, including in the Russian Federation. This is a very interesting direction that will actively develop in the coming years.

If you want to know more about blockchain technology and making money with cryptocurrencies, here are 5 proven ways to make money in this area in the coming months

Whatever professions are in demand in the future, you need to think about your financial well-being today. For example, you can buy an apartment not only for yourself, but also to rent it out and receive passive income. A free book will help you with this “How to get a profitable mortgage”.

You can go further and make money on apartment buildings. It's not as difficult as it seems at first glance. Read about the secrets creating cash flow on apartment buildings. You can go from scratch to 150,000 rubles per month.

With the advent of the robot era, many professionals began to rightly fear that their jobs would soon be taken over by machines. Salespeople, drivers, accountants, lawyers and even journalists will experience serious competition from computers and artificial intelligence-based devices in the next 20-30 years.

What should a graduate study for today, so as not to find himself out of work later? In partnership with the NTI Olympiad and RVC, we have prepared a selection of professions of the future that you can study today and at the same time be in demand after the technological revolution.

Robotics Engineer

Engineering specialties will not lose their relevance in the foreseeable future. One of the most promising areas of engineering is the creation and maintenance of robots. In fact, this area could include a whole set of separate specialties - creators of home robots, industrial robots, medical robots and entertainment robots.

To master these professions, the future specialist must have a good understanding of automated systems, programming, process control, not to mention fundamental knowledge in the field of physics, mechanics and electrical engineering.

According to Cisco experts, the number of home robots in cities in developed countries is now doubling every 9 months. After 2020, industrial, home, children's and medical robots will become an everyday reality and necessity. Industrial production will become approximately 90% automated. Robots will completely replace people in the most dangerous jobs - in mines, during underwater and construction work. Combat robotics will actively develop.

Such promising industries will appear as the creation of neural interfaces for controlling robots, that is, technology that will allow you to command machines with the power of thought.

The basics of robotics can already be studied in Russian universities: similar courses and educational programs are available at MIPT, Tomsk State University, Tomsk Polytechnic University, National Research Nuclear University "MEPhI", St. Petersburg National Research University ITMO, Moscow State Technical University of Radio Engineering, Electronics and Automation, Moscow Institute steel and alloys, MSTU "Stankin", as well as at the Far Eastern Federal University and others.

In the future, roboticists will be trained at corporate universities, as well as at leading online educational platforms such as Coursera and the domestic Stepik.

Participants will be able to demonstrate their knowledge in robotics. As part of the “Intelligent Robotic Systems” profile, teams will have to create robotic equipment for a logistics center. Based on the TRIC constructor, it will be necessary to build a ground mobile platform configured to perform the main task, as well as obtain reliable information during the work. For the device, it will be necessary to write a control program that will allow the robot to independently move around a model depicting the territory of the logistics center

And as part of the “Water Robotic Systems” track, competitors will have to build two underwater robots and establish communication between them: one of the robots will have to follow data from cameras, and the other will have to receive signals from the first.

Food engineer

The world's growing population requires a solution to the problem of hunger. To provide food for all people, existing agricultural areas are not enough today. The challenge of food engineering of the future will be to create large quantities of proteins and carbohydrates on a small area of ​​land and with minimal energy consumption.

Food engineering is a cross-industry profession. Food technology specialist as a profession still exists today, but in the future the tasks of this specialty will change. Using knowledge in biology, chemistry, genetics and materials science, food engineers will have to literally design new products, preferably from cheap and widely available raw materials - from plants, algae, even waste.

Such experiments are now being carried out all over the world. In the USA, for example, in the Impossible Foods laboratory, how to obtain a complete meat substitute from plant products - not only in terms of nutrition, but also in taste and texture. Technology has made it possible to make burgers with patties that are said to be indistinguishable from real beef. However, it contains only soy, wheat, potatoes, coconut oil and flavorings.

Experts from the “Atlas of New Professions” indicate that the problem of world hunger in the future will be solved by representatives of two professions - GMO agronomists and city farmers. If the former will use biotechnology to create new products with specified properties, then the latter will develop mass food production in urban areas. Farms of the future will be placed directly on the roofs and walls of skyscrapers and in modular farms inside buildings.

As part of the program, young biotechnologists will also have to show their knowledge. Two age groups will compete in the “Engineering Biological Systems” profile - schoolchildren in grades 9 and below and schoolchildren in grades 10-11.

Juniors will need to improve the operation of the hydroponic setup. They need to create an algorithm for automating the collection of key indicators of aquaponic systems and automating the introduction of the necessary reagents into the installations.

In the older group, children will need to solve genetic problems, in particular, identify key point mutations in the gene under study with their subsequent detection by molecular biology methods in a laboratory test site.

Virtual Reality Architect

In fact, the entire IT sector will continue to develop rapidly in the coming decades. Information system developers, data specialists, interface developers (including the already mentioned neural interfaces), artificial intelligence specialists and other professionals of the digital era will be in constant demand in the foreseeable future. And all because computers will not learn to program themselves for a long time - not because they do not have enough “knowledge” for this, but because the goal of programming will always be human needs, about which no one knows better than the person himself. In other words, computers will not be able to predict for a long time which application, social network or video game people will be interested in.

A virtuality architect is a profession that requires thorough knowledge in all areas of IT. And this will be a typical profession of the future, when more and more activities begin to move into virtual reality. If today digital worlds exist more for entertainment, then soon people will be taught, worked and even treated in them, which means that specialists in creating entire worlds “to order” will be in demand.

Today, the basics of virtual reality programming are taught in many technical universities, including in Russia - at MIPT, MEPhI, NRU ITMO, Tomsk Polytechnic and Tomsk State Universities, Nizhny Novgorod State Technical University. R. E. Alekseev and others.

By the way, if you are interested in this topic, then there is a direction “Virtual and Augmented Reality”. Participants will need to create their own game from ready-made elements and in a given genre. In the process of creating an application, teams will need, using a starting set of content, not only to create a game application for a given topic, genre and setting and using the required technology, but also to develop a unique product with interesting mechanics, using the features of the technology.

Smart environment designer

The world's largest cities are rapidly getting smarter. In New York City, the street security system automatically detects the sound of gunshots and determines the location of the shooting. The city also has a system that predicts the likelihood of fires in buildings. In Moscow, a smart traffic management system reports traffic jams and regulates traffic congestion. In Barcelona, ​​smart waste containers notify the utility when they are full.

Existing Smart City technologies open up limitless opportunities for the development of the human environment. They will help make life in cities safer, more pleasant and more harmonious. The smart environment designer will create system solutions for cities. They will combine various networks, devices and sensors with the physical habitat of a person - home, street, transport, place of work.

This profession (which unites a whole cluster of narrow specialties) will require deep knowledge in IT, big data processing, the Internet of things and hardware. “Smart living environment” in the future also implies the integration of composite materials and sensors, that is, a specialist will still have to understand chemistry, materials science, and nanotechnology.

In addition, the designer of a smart environment must have very developed systems thinking - like an architect who conceived the construction of an entire city from scratch. Therefore, such a specialist also needs to have a good understanding of sociology and modern urbanism. Of course, this is one of the most difficult professions of the future, but also one of the most interesting and noble.

To begin to master the “architecture of the future,” you need to enter universities with strong fundamental and technical preparation, as well as show an interest in the humanities and sociological sciences.

Speaking about the professions of the future, one cannot help but imagine the future exploration of space and other planets. Despite the fact that over the past two decades children have no longer dreamed of becoming cosmonauts as much as generations of Soviet people, in the next 20-40 years the prestige of this mysterious and heroic profession will still grow. And even though in our country astronautics is still marking time and reaping the benefits of Soviet achievements, in the West private astronautics is already rapidly developing and the colonization of the nearest celestial bodies - the Moon and Mars - is being discussed.

Robots are actively used to work in space, and one would think that soon machines will displace people from this dangerous field of activity. However, the factor of simple curiosity should be taken into account: no matter how dangerous it is in space, people will never stop flying beyond the Earth's atmosphere.

The authors of the “Atlas of New Professions” believe that in the future the astronaut profession will be more specialized. There will be cosmobiologists who will study the behavior of organisms in zero gravity and on other planets, cosmogeologists who will explore and extract minerals on celestial bodies, and even space explorers who will lay routes in interstellar space. And as a separate type of business, space tourism will actively develop, because more and more people will be able to afford flights to low-Earth orbit or to the Moon.

Currently, future cosmonauts in Russia are trained mainly by aviation and technical universities, including military ones: Moscow Aviation Institute, Krasnodar Higher Military Aviation School (Military Institute) named after. Hero of the Soviet Union A.K. Serov, Moscow State Technical University. N. E. Bauman, Siberian State Aerospace University named after. Academician M. F. Reshetnev, St. Petersburg State University of Aerospace Instrumentation.

Unmanned systems developer

Developers of unmanned vehicle systems are now in demand among large technology companies. In June 2017, Yandex posted a vacancy for a driverless car developer. Applicants needed to be able to work with car sensors, controllers and activators, develop car control algorithms, design and test equipment. They were also required to have excellent knowledge of C++ and Python, experience in Linux programming and multi-threaded programming. Apparently, the company found the right specialist quite quickly, since the vacancy was soon filled.

Google, Facebook, Uber, Amazon and Microsoft are also actively developing their own projects to create unmanned vehicles, aircraft and other vehicles. Not to mention the many specialized companies and startups.

In the next 20 years, the demand for specialists in unmanned systems will only grow. In parallel, many specializations will appear - developers of drones for various purposes (military, postal, surveillance, engineering), developers of unmanned vehicles, developers of underwater drones and interfaces for controlling vehicles. At the same time, developers of intelligent dynamic dispatch control systems will be in demand; in other words, dispatchers for organizing drone flights. Analytics of data collected by drones will become a separate specialty.

The profession of unmanned systems developer is similar in complexity to the automotive industry. At the same time, in addition to deep engineering knowledge, the specialist will need to have an excellent understanding of programming and architecture of control systems.

Today in Russia such knowledge is provided at the Moscow Aviation Institute, Kazan National Research Technical University named after. A. N. Tupolev, Ulyanovsk State Technical University, Military Aviation Engineering University in Voronezh and Siberian State Aerospace University named after. Academician M. F. Reshetnev.

The profile “Unmanned Aircraft Systems” is provided, in which participants will be asked to write a program for a firefighting drone and test the drone in a testing ground.

Preventive Medicine Specialist

In the future, people will not stop getting sick, but they will get sick less often due to the development of preventive medicine, which is aimed at preventing the causes of the disease rather than treating the consequences.

Medicine will take a huge step forward in the next 20-30 years: many incurable diseases will be defeated, doctors will understand the mechanism of mental disorders, robotic prostheses with feedback will begin to be used with all their might - a person will be able to feel the touch of an artificial hand. Research in the field of genetics and biotechnology will make it possible to identify the prerequisites for the disease at a very early stage and stop them even before the onset of clinical symptoms.

Such developments are carried out in large companies and through the efforts of small startups. In the US, the Verily project, founded by former Google employee Andrew Conrad, is developing technology with which wearable gadgets - smart watches and bracelets - will be able to collect data on human health and analyze it to determine whether the owner is prone to dangerous diseases. The startup is also developing smart contact lenses that can detect blood sugar levels.

According to, in the next five years the market for medical gadgets will grow from 2 to 41 billion dollars.

A specialist in preventive medicine will have a good understanding of both medicine itself and IT areas - big data analysis and algorithmization. At the same time, future doctors will do most of their work online - medical consultations, prescribing treatment, prescribing medications, and even diagnostics will be carried out by so-called “network doctors.”

Experts from the Atlas of New Professions call network doctors one of the specialties that will appear everywhere before 2020. They will be focused on early diagnosis and prevention of diseases. It would be a professional failure for them to discover an advanced disease or even an acute disease in their patient.

Such doctors will see most patients via video link, so the concept of queuing at the clinic will become a thing of the past. Hospitals will remain only for high-tech treatment and operations, during which surgeons will be assisted by robots.

A number of leading Russian medical universities today train specialists who can retrain as specialists in preventive medicine or independently begin to develop medical systems of the future. These are the medical academies of Nizhny Novgorod, Smolensk, Novosibirsk, Krasnodar and the capital's medical universities - named after Sechenov and Pirogov in Moscow, named after Pavlov in St. Petersburg.

Financial technology specialist

Fintech is one of the fastest growing technology industries of our time. And yet, as of 2017, the industry occupies no more than 1% of the entire financial sector of the world economy. The volume of venture capital investments in fintech in the United States reached $13.6 billion in 2016. By comparison, the country's entire financial industry is $11 trillion.

Experts name five main directions for the development of financial technologies in the future - payments and transfers, loans and borrowings, capital management, insurance, and the foreign exchange market. That is, in all these industries the role of information technology will increase.

A specialist who combines knowledge of financial and technological instruments will be in demand more than ever in the coming decades. Areas such as the use of big data to assess risks in insurance, the use of artificial intelligence in asset management, the development of individual pension programs and others will be actively developed.

At the same time, some familiar professions in developed countries will become a thing of the past - accountants, cashiers and even, possibly, stock traders.

Good financial training with a technological component is provided by courses from the National Research University Higher School of Economics, the Russian Economic University. G. V. Plekhanov, Financial Academy under the Government of the Russian Federation, Russian Academy of National Economy and Public Administration under the President of the Russian Federation, St. Petersburg State University.

Participants will be able to demonstrate their knowledge in the field of fintech. They will have to create a decentralized application at the intersection of blockchain and Internet of Things technologies to ensure interaction between manufacturers of batteries for electric vehicles, service centers that provide quick replacement of batteries, and electric vehicles. Teams will have to develop a solution that can check replacement batteries for counterfeit, confirming the declared quality and current wear. Issues of economic interaction will also not be left aside: the service station is fully automated, which means that schoolchildren will have to transfer all monetary calculations to an automatic basis, including determining the optimal parameters for making transactions.

Online teacher

A teacher is an eternal profession, just like the professions of a doctor and a builder. And this is a profession in which humans will probably not be replaced by machines for quite some time. Even with the creation of full-fledged artificial intelligence capable of transmitting the experience of generations, we are unlikely to entrust the upbringing and education of children to a computer. Therefore, teachers will always be in demand. But this conservative branch of knowledge is changing.

Online pedagogy is becoming increasingly popular. Various advanced training courses and training in new professions attract thousands of students around the world. Platforms like Coursera are revolutionizing the educational process. In the next 20 years, people will receive a significant part of their knowledge on the Internet - independently or with the help of online teachers.

In addition to simple video communication (two-way or multi-channel), teachers of the future will use interactive tools that can receive feedback from students and immediately test their knowledge. The learning process will become even more “alive” than in a traditional school classroom.

Game forms of learning will be actively used, especially in primary and secondary school age. Virtual reality will become an important part of educational content - in it, students, accompanied by a teacher, will be able to simulate space, visualize abstractions and simply watch reconstructions of historical eras “as it was.”

Currently, again due to the conservatism of the teaching profession, online teachers are not trained anywhere. One can only predict that with the wider introduction of new educational technologies, traditional pedagogical universities after 2020 will pay attention to this still nascent branch of pedagogy.

Nanomaterials designer

Nanomaterials design, along with the development of robotics and biotechnology, will be another cross-industry profession of the future. These specialists will be involved in modeling the properties of materials and predicting their life cycle using digital tools. The materials designer will need to have a good understanding of nanophysics and nanochemistry and, of course, be able to program.

Nanomaterials will be used not only in industry, automotive and aircraft manufacturing, the creation of tools and equipment, but also in housing construction. Thus, houses created from composite materials with built-in chips will change the temperature of the walls in the room in accordance with the weather or the desire of the resident, as well as change color or transparency.

Nanotechnology specialists are trained at Russian universities - Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, National Research University "MISiS", Russian University of Chemical Technology. D.I. Mendeleev, Ural Federal University named after. the first President of Russia B.N. Yeltsin and other educational institutions.

Participants in the “New Materials and Sensors” profile can also demonstrate their knowledge in the specialty of the future. Teams will need to quickly create an active chemical substance, assemble a sensor system for it, and demonstrate their functionality.

Recycling specialist

Addressing environmental issues will be key to sustainable development in the future. Environmental specialists will be in demand in all sectors of production and transport. And environmental protection issues will also be resolved with the help of high-tech tools.

One of the promising industries will be recycling - processing materials and their reuse. Recycling specialists will be engaged in the development of new environmentally friendly and cheap technologies.

Today, recycling technologies are developing rapidly. Companies are investing heavily in this area, and the government is supporting progressive initiatives. Environmental specialists are trained by a number of large educational institutions, starting with Moscow State University. M. V. Lomonosov. Systematic understanding of ecology can be obtained at classical and technical universities with a specialty in “Ecology and environmental management.”

The question “Where should I go to study?” This problem is acute for graduates: often, upon entering an educational institution, they do not fully understand what kind of profession they are choosing. This misunderstanding may persist until graduation.

Unlike Russian schools, students abroad are not only prepared for admission to specific universities, but also carry out serious work on career guidance, identifying their talents and inclinations. Students of foreign schools study a wide range of subjects: from classical civilization and psychology to robotics and the latest business technologies. They can practice rowing or debating, play chess, or attend a Shakespeare club.

To choose a secondary school for your child abroad, contact IQ Consultancy. We will help you choose the educational institution that suits you, and we will also prepare your child in language and subjects so that he feels comfortable from the very beginning of his studies.

The older students get, the more disciplines they try. This means that the greater the choice - what they are interested in as a future profession, what they have an inclination for. As a result, by the age of 16, 90% of foreign schoolchildren already know what they want to become.
In addition, career consultants work with students in high schools in Europe and America. Educational institutions also cooperate with large companies. Schoolchildren get the opportunity to work in starting positions during the holidays and set specific career goals for themselves.

But enrolling in an interesting specialty is not enough - it is important to understand how and where to apply the acquired knowledge. Often, Russian graduates with deep fundamental knowledge lack practice. This leads to the fact that more than half of our graduates lose interest in studying by the end of their studies and work outside their specialty.

If you have already graduated from a Russian university, but want to change your specialty or get a more modern education in your field, consider enrolling in a foreign university. You can get a bachelor's degree in a new field, continue your specialized studies in a master's program, or take intensive professional courses in your specialty. Find out more from our consultants.

Foreign universities offer up-to-date knowledge and develop practical skills of students. Most higher education institutions are also research centers with their own laboratories, where students work on their projects and participate in the developments of large companies.

Studying at a foreign university gives you the opportunity to stay in another country (for example, Canada has soft immigration conditions for young professionals) and build a career at the global level. For those who do not want to leave their country forever, studying at a foreign university is an excellent experience and an important advantage for employment in Russia, especially since many foreign universities teach narrow specialties that do not yet exist in Russian universities.

For everyone today who is just going to receive either higher or secondary vocational education, the question of the demand for the chosen specialty is very relevant. After all, over the past 20 years, priorities have changed significantly and economists and lawyers who were popular in the 1990s are actively retraining and looking for new jobs.

We offer our Top 10 professions of the future– these are a dozen specialties, knowledge of which will definitely allow you to find a stable and well-paid job.

10. Electronics Specialists

Gadgets, computers, robots are increasingly filling our lives. But their creation requires qualified personnel, whose task is to work on highly complex and precise equipment. A clear advantage for a holder of an electrical engineering specialty is knowledge of the English language.

9. Marketing and sales

It is becoming increasingly difficult to find consumers for a wide variety of products, which means that the demand from employers for sales professionals is growing. The most in demand are specialists who combine education in economics, law and marketing.

8. Chemists

Energy, pharmaceutical, metallurgical and medical companies demonstrate high demand for specialists in the field of chemistry. Despite the complexity of the subject, it is chemistry that opens up broad prospects for the future professional.

7. Primary school teachers

The policy aimed at increasing the birth rate is bearing fruit - the number of first-graders is increasing every year. But there is a catastrophic shortage of teachers. Therefore, it is the primary school teacher who becomes one of the most sought-after specialists.

6. Environmentalists

The safety requirements for industrial equipment, transport, and energy units are becoming more stringent. Consequently, there is a growing demand for environmentalists, who are becoming more commonplace on the staff of any large enterprise.

5. Logisticians

Transport flows, information resources, distribution of inventories - any of these areas requires the presence of a logistician. For a logistics specialist, analytical skills, systems thinking, and speed of reaction are very important.

4. Engineers

Aerobatics is a combination of technical engineering education with economic or legal education. Because Russian industry is experiencing an acute shortage of personnel in middle management. Also, the engineer’s capitalization will significantly increase knowledge of English, German, and Chinese.

3. Registered nurses

Junior medical personnel are in great demand both in public medical centers and in private clinics. Today, the current workforce is rapidly approaching retirement age, and there is a severe shortage of young qualified nurses in the market.

2. Nanotechnologies

People in this profession are engaged in the creation of nano-robots, minimalist microcircuits, and engineering at the atomic level. Unfortunately, it is quite difficult to find an educational institution that teaches nanotechnology at a decent level.

1. Software and hardware developers

The most in-demand profession of the future allows you to realize yourself in many areas - creating and maintaining websites, working with server systems, and developing mobile applications. At the same time, highly qualified professionals are becoming truly in demand, because There are more than enough mid-level programmers on the market.

Once upon a time, the younger generation was taught: “All works are good - choose according to your taste.” Many people have not yet gotten rid of the idea of ​​equality of occupations. The best professions are often determined based on a direct survey of the population, although the labor market has long been the subject of special research. For example, the American magazine U.S. News & World Report's regularly compiles lists of the best professions, focusing on an integral indicator that includes the prospects of the profession (projected demand for it), the sense of satisfaction it brings, ease/difficulty of mastering, prestige and, of course, the income received . Many people would like to become a movie star or an astronaut, but these are hardly professions that the average person can realistically master. The choice comes from mass, publicly available occupations, the owners of which have reason to be satisfied with their chosen career.

To start a conversation about the professions of the near future, let's take U.S. News & World Report's 2009 list as a basis. Of course, it differs from the one that could be compiled for Russia. But most positions no longer look exotic; economically the world is becoming more and more united. We think the prospects for this labor market will be of interest to our readers.

ENGINEER

In a high-tech society, engineers are increasingly in demand. With an average income of $80,300 per year for an American engineer, the job prospects look good. The only people to be wary of are India and China, where thousands of skilled engineers are willing to work for a fraction of what their counterparts in developed countries earn. But while Asian talent will increase competition in the private sector, the public sector remains stable. (But in Russia, as a result of the collapse of the system of special and higher technical education, the shortage of engineers has to be replenished by inviting specialists from other countries).

A promising direction is energy efficiency. The main areas are building materials, heating systems, transport. In the US, the transition from gasoline to hydrogen is expected to create 675,000 jobs over the next 25 years. Hyundai has already announced the release of a hydrogen-powered car in 2012.

GENETIC CONSULTANT

Typically, genetic counseling is ordered by expectant parents to ensure that the birth of a child does not involve unforeseen risks. However, genetic counselors deal with the full range of problems related to the likelihood of developing a hereditary disease. Both doctors and holders of biology degrees come into this profession. Their work is free from the responsibility that the attending physician has to take on. The final decision on family planning is made by future parents; the consultant’s task is to convey to clients medical information that is not always clear to them and help them choose the right strategy. 90 percent of genetic counselors in the United States are satisfied with their work. In America, the right to it is given by a master's degree in one of the accredited programs and passing an exam in the American Society of Genetic Counseling (American Board of Genetic Counseling). The average salary is $67,000 per year.

PRIEST

In the USA, representatives of this profession always find work and do not complain about the lack of respect for their work. In Russia, the path of a priest seems even more promising, because the state supports a course towards the revival of spirituality.

There will always be critical moments in our lives - the birth of a child, marriage, personal crises, and finally death... Millions of people in such situations need the support of a priest. Strictly speaking, this is not work - this is life. People may need the help of a clergyman at any time of the day or night, and his duty is to give them this time without reserve. It is believed that a successful priest is an inspired speaker, but in reality it is much more important to be an inspired person who encourages people to discover the best sides of their nature. The “earthly” side of church service, living conditions vary depending on the confession, place of service, etc. If you are seriously thinking about such a vocation, it is better to ask for advice from a priest who inspires your trust. It seems that it is priests who are least likely to change their once chosen path.

MEDICAL EQUIPMENT SPECIALIST

The demand for hospital electronics service technicians in the United States has a long way to go. The technician not only repairs these devices: he installs them, configures them, and teaches doctors how to use the new equipment. He is in charge of a variety of equipment: from defibrillators and laser scalpels to tomographs. You need to understand both the hardware and the software product.

The advantages of the profession are quick learning (training usually takes two years) and a labor market that does not know recessions. People will always be treated, and it is unlikely that such a specialist will ever hear the word “reduction.” Disadvantages - it is a stressful job. You can be called to the hospital at any time. And you can leave only when the threat to the patient’s life has passed. And if the “artificial lungs” fail during surgery, you will have to fix the problem. And fast. The average technician with 8 years of experience in a US hospital makes $49,000 per year. Specialists hired by the equipment manufacturer earn significantly more - up to $90,000. If we transfer this work to Russian realities, the difference can be significant - something like between a district hospital and the interiors in which Dr. House and his retinue make their diagnoses. And yet nothing will stop progress; the need for such specialists will be increasingly felt in our country.

TEACHER-METHODIST

This specialty will always be in demand in America. No politician running for office would dare demand cuts to schools. In absolute terms and as a percentage of GDP, the United States now spends more on its school system than any other G8 country. Yet American students show very average results compared to their peers from other countries, so the issue of the effectiveness of school education is acute.

The responsibilities of the methodologist include reviewing textbooks, developing programs, and conducting classes with teachers. He does not experience the stress and strain familiar to school teachers. The annual income is not so high (on average $55,000), but it is considered very stable. In Russia, methodologists and instructors in information technology are especially in demand.

FUNDRAISING SPECIALIST

One of the professions that is far from Russian realities is a specialist in fundraising, collecting money for charitable purposes. In our country, activities of this kind are still very limited by a wary attitude towards any “acceptance of money from the population.” But the situation is changing quickly; quite a few fundraisers are already successfully operating via the Internet. Even in a weak economy (or because of it?), employment experts in the United States agree that more and more fundraisers will be hired.

LITERATOR/SPEECHWRITER

The demand for people who can competently, beautifully and logically formulate other people's thoughts - ranging from a speech at a birthday party to a book - is growing. Of course, this activity does not bring moral satisfaction, especially to people with talent and ambition. But it gives a wealth of experience based on meetings with a variety of people. And also brings money. In the USA, an experienced “ghostwriter” earns $55,000 a year. The amount may turn out to be more - depending on your luck with the customer...

AUDIOLOGIST

Deals with hearing disorders - diagnosis, treatment and correction (selection of hearing aids and their adjustment). One of the medical specialties driven by increased life expectancy. In the United States, growing demand for it is driven by the aging baby boomer generation. By the way, the most famous American with a hearing aid is Bill Clinton.

Russian companies are looking for people with higher education (“preferably medical, psychological or pedagogical”) to fill the position of audiologists. At the same time, part of the salary is a percentage of sales of hearing aids. In the USA they emphasize that the best prospects open up for holders of an Au.D degree. (Doctor of Audiology), the path to which takes 8 long years. It seems that in our country this is a profession at the intersection of medicine and sales, while in the Americans an audiologist is a real doctor. And while the average American audiologist earns $62,000 a year, a PhD holder can expect to earn $85,000 or more.

FIREFIGHTER

In the United States, the popularity of firefighters grew after September 11, 2001. In terms of prestige, their work is now second only to that of a scientist and doctor, but does not require higher education: firefighters are trained in just two years. And in Russia, this profession is of some interest - firefighters have high salaries by Russian standards, plus benefits. However, working conditions cannot be called easy and safe. It is not for nothing that doctors point out that the percentage of cardiovascular diseases among representatives of this profession is above average. However, firefighters have a very high level of job satisfaction - only priests are higher (data from surveys by the National Opinion Research Center).

STATE EMPLOYEE

A private company can fail and go out of business, but the state never can. At worst, it will raise taxes or print more money. The path is for those who value reliability, consistency and bonuses such as paid ballots, vacations “under the Labor Code”, etc. And although nowadays there are fewer and fewer people who want to devote their entire lives to a government career, this work is a good school and a launching pad for a career in business. A typical American official (career experience of 8 years) earns $58,000 a year. How much does ours have? Any number will cause controversy, so we won’t even try to calculate it.

STYLIST/COSMETOLOGIST

Research has repeatedly placed the profession of a stylist/cosmetologist in first place in terms of the sense of satisfaction that the work brings. A stylist/cosmetologist feels like a creator several times a day. And he constantly feels “advanced” in matters of fashion. Another advantage is the widest circle of acquaintances. Alas, the stylist spends almost the entire day on his feet (an occupational disease is varicose veins), and one can count on a decent income only after a circle of regular clients has formed. According to official data, the annual salary of a stylist in the United States is less than the national average - $33,000 (excluding tips and the fact that, after gaining experience and gaining a clientele, a stylist often begins to work for himself). For this reason, it is difficult to estimate the income of many homeworkers in Russia. Only one thing is known for sure: a doctor, undertaker and hairdresser will never be left without work.

HEALTH EXPERT

The high demand for this profession is associated with healthcare reform in the United States. So far, society and the government have more questions than answers. Should all insured people receive the same coverage, or can those who pay more choose more expensive treatments? If 47 million Americans get health insurance for the first time in their lives, will that create months-long waiting lists at doctor's offices? Health experts are looking for answers to such questions. Their services are needed by the state, non-profit organizations, the medical industry, and insurance companies. The work of experts is paid very highly: from $59,000 to $125,000. In Russia, labor protection and reproductive health of citizens are considered promising areas. The demand for child health specialists will increase.

UNIVERSITY ADMINISTRATOR

All over the world, teaching salaries at universities are being reduced, they are made part-time or temporary, and “teachers” are deprived of their former benefits. But administrative positions in universities remain untouchable, and the average salary of an administrator in an American college remains firmly at $61,000 per year.

It is believed that competition in this field is less fierce than in the academic environment. Administrators have high expectations. The need to survive forces educational institutions to look for more effective management schemes. Russia still has to build a new system of university management. And it is not always possible to predict what challenges you will face. In particular, in Russia they began to open programs for teachers and administrators of higher education on conflict management in a multi-ethnic student environment.

LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT

He not only creates flower beds and designs alpine slides on the estates of the rich, as is commonly believed. In fact, a landscape architect can participate in transforming a former industrial area into a harmonious urban environment. You cannot do without it when improving streets and roads, restoring historical landscapes and protected areas. It is also in demand in ecological construction, for example, when creating the now fashionable “green roofs”, which are planted with plants.

As we wrote quite recently (see “LB”, September 2009, “Key to the Start”), there is no economic crisis unable to change the deep attitudes of modern consciousness. One of the basic values ​​of our civilization is ecology, so landscape architecture will be in demand. In the US, an experienced specialist earns an average of $62,000 per year. In Russia, the demand for conventional landscape design is still growing rapidly.

LIBRARIAN

A modern librarian is a specialist in “query language” armed with computer knowledge, a navigator in the ocean of information and a skilled cataloguer. Moreover, in the United States, a variety of organizations are now acquiring their own libraries (often special ones) and need librarians (no less special ones): colleges, law firms, hospitals, legislative bodies, large companies, non-profit organizations, etc. New ones are emerging there jobs, while in public and school libraries familiar to this profession, new vacancies rarely open. The average annual salary of a librarian in the United States reaches $47,000. In Russia, work with catalogs and databases has not yet developed into a separate service.

SECURITY SYSTEMS SPECIALIST

Unfortunately, the demand for this profession suggests that the world is not becoming calmer. Installation and maintenance of security systems are becoming more complicated. A professional must understand video surveillance and access control systems, alarms, modern locks and communication devices. There are no educational institutions in this field; specialists are trained on the job over several months. It is clear that success awaits a person with “clever hands.” In the United States, the average salary for specialists in this profile is $43,600.

BUSINESS CONSULTANT

He appears when no one is looking for him, begins to answer a question that was not asked to him, and expects payment for an answer that is already known without him. There is some truth in this joke: like it or not, business consulting is in demand. And it depends on the professionalism of the consultant whether they will tell jokes about him or, on the contrary, will remember him with gratitude. One of the features of a career is its rapid rise. A recent university graduate advises corporate bosses, and they listen to him. This seems almost like a miracle if you don’t know that consulting companies select employees based on almost the only criterion - the ability to be persuasive. And the young talent will be provided with all the necessary information by well-informed employees, whom customers do not see. Salaries in business consulting are very high: they start in the six figures and reach maximum values ​​by the age of 40... More precisely, the average salary of a specialist with 8 years of experience is $138,000.

MEDIATOR

This is a mediator, a dispute resolution specialist who knows how to manage conflict while respecting the interests of both parties. Mediation is an interdisciplinary business science that requires knowledge of economics, law, psychology and information theory. The mediator does not decide who is right and who is wrong - he negotiates, stops the aggression of the participants, identifies on the basis of which a compromise can be formed, and upon reaching an agreement, controls the acceptance of obligations by the parties. In times of economic downturn, mediators are hired as a low-cost alternative to lawyers. In the United States, he is often invited by couples starting divorce proceedings. Average annual income is $59,700.

PROFESSIONS RELATED TO MEDICINE

Their demand is growing due to the aging of society against the backdrop of increased living standards. Of course, there will always be a doctor at the center of the health industry, but in the US, getting an MD is very difficult and very expensive. There are diplomas that can be obtained at a lower cost. A steady demand is predicted for highly qualified nurses (average annual salary - $60,200), occupational therapists ($63,800), physiotherapists ($70,200), and paramedics ($86,200).

Let's also name optometrists (diagnosis and treatment of eye diseases, selection of glasses and contact lenses) and pharmacists. The average annual income in these two professions is the same - $103,000.

ELECTED OFFICERS

It is believed that for American officials their work brings considerable moral satisfaction. What about material things? Its size varies significantly - from $0 (member of the city council) to $400,000 (US President). Due to the well-known Russian specifics, we won’t even talk about how much richer opportunities such a career provides in our country.

URBAN PLANNER

The development of urban areas requires specialists working at the intersection of architecture, construction, economics, sociology and regional policy. The planner sees the future of an area or city. The scale of work is no less than a microdistrict. Promising varieties of this work are traffic planning and planning for corporations. In the US, the average salary for a planner is $62,500.

SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGIST

The position of educational psychologist appeared in Russian schools about 10 years ago, and has now become common. Some schools employ several specialists. Their responsibilities include psychological diagnostics, correctional classes, and counseling parents and teachers. The problems faced by child psychologists are common to schools all over the world: from autism and aggression to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. The need for psychologists will increase. In the USA, their work is well paid: $60,700 per year.

And don't forget about the holidays!

SYSTEMS ANALYST

Optimization and automation of a company's business processes by improving the architecture of computer networks remains an attractive and well-paid occupation. The plus is the rapid growth of qualifications, the minus is frequent travel, because the company needs such a specialist only for the duration of the planned modernization. Russian educational institutions are already training specialists in this field. In the US, the average annual salary for an experienced analyst is $83,900.

USABILITY SPECIALIST

Preoccupied with the ergonomics of the devices used. Most often it finds application in the development of electronics, communications, and user interfaces. Responsibilities include interviewing potential users, identifying their needs and making recommendations to developers. From the outside looking in, it's an enviable job. Who else gets paid to play with new gadgets all day long or to figure out what the perfect sneakers are? They come to this profession from different fields - from psychology and design to computer science. In the US, an experienced usability specialist earns $96,200 per year.

VET

Veterinarians' incomes are rising. Let's clarify: the income of veterinarians treating small animals. In difficult times, people need peace of mind - and for many, the loyal gaze of a pet provides it. Getting your degree and license takes years of hard work, but there is no shortage of people interested in becoming veterinarians. Is it because they experience less stress than “human” doctors? An interesting detail: in the USA, 80% of future veterinarians are girls (the average salary in the industry is $79,800 per year).

INSTEAD OF CONCLUSION

Even a quick glance at this list shows that more than half of it consists of professions associated with ideas about a decent standard of living. No matter how the economic situation changes, a modern person strives to look good, wants his children to be taught by competent specialists, and to receive professional care in his old age. The second large group of top jobs are those driven by technological innovation, from security systems to business schemes. It is obvious that every year technological growth will increase the division of labor and will cause the emergence of new engineering and management specialties.

10 MOST PROMISING AREAS OF ACTIVITY, or Who is good to be in Rus'?

Western experts' forecasts give an idea of ​​what professions will soon be in demand in the world. What awaits the domestic labor market? What types of activities, according to our HR specialists, should we focus on in Russia?

1. MEDICINE

Medical specialists will always be in demand. Anna Krylova, head of the personnel selection group at the UNIT HR Center, calls pharmaceuticals and medicine one of the fastest growing and most promising industries in Russia.

2. PSYCHOLOGY

According to the forecasts of Svetlana Getmanova, a specialist at the Heidelberg CIS company, in the next 5-10 years, the profession of a psychologist will become one of the most popular in our country: “Sooner or later we will begin to feel more relaxed about going to a specialist for advice regarding our problems. And finally, let’s stop confusing a psychologist with a psychiatrist.”

3. TRANSPORT AND LOGISTICS

Our life is getting faster and faster, it is unlikely that anyone will dispute this. Naturally, in an accelerating world, specialists in the field of transport will be in demand. To get everything done, you need to move quickly.

4. INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

The same reasoning is true in relation to computer, Internet technologies and telecommunications, that is, to areas where we are talking about the speed of transmission and reception of information. Today, the work of virtually any company is impossible without IT specialists. And computer scientists will continue to be held in high esteem among us - at least in the next decade. Although in developed countries their functions are transferred to “cheaper” China and India. In Europe and the USA, for example, hardly anyone would consider a career as a programmer promising. “But in Russia they still have room to expand: we have a large country, we need to get to every village,” says Svetlana Getmanova.

5. MANAGEMENT

A specialist in the field of social management and mass communications, business coach Oksana Silantieva believes that in the next decade in Russia there will be an increased demand for high-level professional managers. Such a specialist must not only be a manager, but also have a good understanding of the area in which his work is related.

6. NANOTECHNOLOGY

All interviewed personnel officers are confident in the future of professions related to nanotechnology. After all, the application is inexhaustible: mechanical engineering, computer technology, food industry, medicine. Nanotechnology is used in the production of computer hard drives, dressing materials, components of internal combustion engines, long-life tennis balls, tools for cutting metals, antistatic coatings for sensitive electronic equipment... The list goes on. And the country that has made a breakthrough in this area is predicted to become a world leader. It is clear that attempts will be made, and no matter how much money you allocate from the budget for this, no matter how effective super managers you entrust this matter with, you cannot do it without specialists. As, indeed, at all times.

7. BIOTECHNOLOGY

Anna Krylova advises paying serious attention to biotechnology. Such specialists are already being used in a variety of fields - from medicine and pharmacology to the mining industry and agriculture.

8. AGRICULTURE, FOOD PRODUCTION

“Russian agriculture is now in a state of desolation,” regrets Svetlana Getmanova. “But it’s impossible to imagine that this will go on forever.” In the near future, we can predict the demand for qualified specialists in agriculture and food production.” And the Russian government puts this sector of the economy as a priority.

9. ECOLOGY, ENVIRONMENTAL TECHNOLOGIES

“The idea of ​​responsible consumption and production, ecology is just beginning its journey in Russia,” says Vladimir Vainer, director of the Gran Prix Advertising Research Center. “We will have to move from declarations to real programs.” If not the social responsibility of business, then the growing attention of the state to environmental protection will make environmental specialists in demand in Russia.

10. WORKING PROFESSIONS

Stanislav Kulikov, general director of the recruiting company PetroStimul, is convinced that blue-collar professions will soon be among the most in demand in Russia. At some enterprises, management is already ready to pay skilled workers a salary comparable to the salary of a middle manager. And the prestige of blue-collar professions began to slowly rise.

FINALLY

And about professions that are in demand at all times. Business consultant Pavel Ponomarev reminds: these can safely include hairdressers, civil servants, builders, workers in the entertainment industry, catering and (be it mentioned) funeral homes.

Mikhail Solomatin, Irina Sinyatkina

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