Tech leads the way when it comes to salary growth potential, as one might expect from all the headlines about the shortage of qualified people to work in the industry. NBC reports that looking at the long-range potential of a job can be more beneficial than chasing a quick raise today, particularly since a job’s salary growth potential may end up at a higher level than a current high entry-level paycheck.

A report from the Society of Human Resource Management also emphasizes that the highest growth potential doesn’t necessarily mean the highest salaries—something that it would be well for job candidates to remember. Careers with high entry-point wages won’t necessarily offer the opportunity to rise substantially higher—to grow considerably from median to upper wage earning levels. Also, some high-paying jobs haven’t grown as much in median pay over the past few years.

CareerCast has been tracking rates of median salary growth for the last five years, and has come up with the fastest-growing, highest-paying career opportunities not just by examining the data in its past CareerCast Jobs Rated reports but also by following the Bureau of Labor Statistics figures on national wage averages by percentile.

When considering career fields, candidates ought to know a number of things—including the fact that those who already have skills that are in demand and the ability to keep up with new technologies can command “high salaries with exceptional wage growth outlook.”

But there are other talents in demand, too, for career fields that need plenty of qualified candidates and can pay for them, too. In fact, the more they need to fill jobs, the more employers might be willing to pay.

Such jobs may not pay as much as the top-paying jobs on CareerCast’s list, or be in fields that you might expect, but that doesn’t mean they’re anything to sneeze at—a good salary with great growth prospects might provide not just enough to get by, but a nice cushion that can be helpful in paying off student loans or getting a jump on retirement savings without having to job-hop to get that leg up.

Here are 7 jobs with the highest potential for growth, based on their 2017 annual median salary.

Computer systems analyst

7. Computer systems analyst

Median salary: $87,220
Median in 2013: $79,145
Wage growth to 90^th percentile: 57.9 percent
Potential for job growth: 21 percent

Even back in the 2013 Jobs Rated report, computer systems analyst was one of the highest salary growth positions compared to 2017. That’s proved to be true, and is still expected to hold. In addition, the BLS reports wage growth over the course of a computer systems analyst’s career to $137,690 in the profession’s 90th percentile, which refers to the highest 10 percent of wage earners in the field.

Anticipated salary growth in the field highlights just how much demand there is for the profession—as well as how increasingly important the effects of computing technologies on the economy, and their impact on a variety of sectors going beyond IT.

Information security analyst

6. Information security analyst

Median salary: $92,600
Median in 2013: $88,590
Wage growth to 90^th percentile: 59 percent
Potential for job growth: 18 percent

Commerce, business and even the healthcare industry moving more activity online means vulnerability to attacks, which drives growth for information security analysts—a profession that wasn’t even tracked five years ago as part of the Jobs Rated report.

However, the job’s high-growth potential is visible in its growth across different wage percentiles in the field. The median salary actually jumps to $147,290 at the 90th percentile.

5. Mathematician

Median salary: $105,810
Median in 2013: $101,171
Wage growth to 90^th percentile: 51.5 percent
Potential for job growth: 21 percent

New advancements in statistical analysis are responsible for an expansion of the number of industries in which a mathematician can find work.

And while the yearly growth of wages has been modest compared to some of the other careers in this report, a 51.5 percent wage growth from the median annual salary to the 90th percentile is among the very highest of all careers tracked in the Jobs Rated report.

Online sales manager

4. Online sales manager

Median salary: $117,960
Median in 2013: $88,249
Wage growth to 90^th percentile: 42.7 percent
Potential for job growth: 5 percent

Thank the explosion in online shopping for the explosion in the wages for online sales managers. But while income has soared, job openings may not grow quite as quickly, projected to climb by 5 percent during the next several years.

According to the Pew Research Center, about 80 percent of American consumers shopped online in 2016. So it remains to be seen whether that comparatively slow growth of openings holds.

Operations research analyst

3. Operations research analyst

Median salary: $79,200
Median in 2013: $72,680
Wage growth to 90^th percentile: 67.5 percent
Potential for job growth: 30 percent

Operations research analyst was another new addition to the Jobs Rated report in the past five years, highlighting job market shifts. And the growth of these positions, emphasizes the significance that businesses and other organizations place on analytical models—the same factor that’s boosting both jobs and wage potential for mathematicians. Generally folks taking these jobs have a bachelor’s degree in a STEM-related field, such as math, engineering or computer science.

Physician assistant

2. Physician assistant

Median salary: $101,480
Median in 2013: $89,097
Wage growth to 90^th percentile: 40.1 percent
Potential for job growth: 30 percent

The need for medical personnel speaks to the explosion in health care, much of which is sparked by an aging boomer generation living longer lifespans despite chronic health conditions. While the education requirements vary, the payoff has substantial potential. One caveat: the job does not score highly for either work environment or stress, so keep that in mind if you’re considering a switch from one field to another.

Software developer

1. Software developer

Median salary: $102,280
Median in 2013: $92,820
Wage growth to 90^th percentile: 54 percent
Potential for job growth: 17 percent

Once again, tech triumphs, with software developers leading the way to the top. And, as one might expect from the proliferation of tech in our lives, there’s plenty of room to grow.

Instant Insights /

7 jobs with the highest potential for salary growth

More From HR Executive

Related Stories

Recommended For You