Every two years the U.S. Department of Labor updates its Occupational Outlook Handbook, a primary resource for anyone searching for his or her first job or thinking of changing careers in midstream.
In the 2006–2007 edition, now up on the DOL's Web site, each job is broken down according to training and education requirements, salary info, expected job prospects, what workers do on the job, and the conditions in which they work. You can browse through the site's A-Z list or enter terms in the search engine to find information on the job you want.
Intrigued by the recent retirement of Alan Greenspan, we figured there must be an opening for an economist somewhere down the line and decided to look into job prospects. We were discouraged to learn that job growth for economists is expected to grow more slowly than average, and that an advanced degree is pretty much necessary. But the top 10 percent of economists earn more than $120,000 per year (the Fed Chairman can expect slightly more, we believe) and the travel isn't that bad.
Click on the Future Jobs section to see predictions on hot areas for future employment opportunities. Growth in education and health service sectors jobs will stay hot through the year 2014, according to the report, while government job growth will putter along at a modest pace.