Yesterday's visionaries struck gold in computers, digital media, and finance. Where will opportunity strike tomorrow? The economy is in the midst of a historic transformation, as businesses and individuals adjust to a new landscape of market demand. Here's a look at some of the career opportunities taking shape for the next generation.

Most Likely to Succeed: Five Career Paths for a New Economy
News of economic downturn seems to have missed the following sectors of the economy. Each of these fields is gearing up for a bright future, buoyed by rising demand and resources.

1. Healthcare providers can't hire enough qualified workers to meet the rising demand for medical care and health services. New treatments and an aging population stand as a virtual guarantee of continued growth in the healthcare profession.

The federal reform bill is likely to transform healthcare administration, creating new opportunities for people in the right place with the right training. Medical records technicians and medical database administrators, for example, will be first in line to answer the call for electronic health records (EHR). The effort to digitize health records and create integrated databases of health information is a centerpiece of the effort to streamline health services. You can train for this up-and-coming career with an associate's degree in health information administration or a bachelor's degree in medical informatics or computer science. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), medical records technicians earned a mean annual wage of $32,960 in 2008, and database administrators brought home $72,900.

2. Environmental careers are poised for growth, as government funding and private investors funnel new resources into the field. With incentives like job security, higher pay, and interesting work, it's easy being green.

Environmental scientists can expect rising demand for their expertise. The BLS forecasts job growth of 25 percent between 2006 and 2016. Environmental scientists will take on some of tomorrow's most pressing problems, monitoring pollution and develop solutions for preventing and reversing damage to our natural resources. A bachelor's or master's degree in environmental science, earth science, or hydrology can prepare you to meet the demand for scientists. For a quicker route, complete a two-year associate's degree in applied science and become an environmental protection technician. Environmental scientists earned a mean salary of $65,280 in 2008; technicians reported earnings of $43,180.

3. Cyber security is a rising field, as governments cope with the threat of terrorism and businesses cope with corporate espionage and data breaches. The BLS reports, "Demand for computer security specialists will grow as businesses and government continue to invest heavily in 'cyber security,' protecting vital computer networks and electronic infrastructures from attack."

Computer security specialists design and implement security measures to protect data networks against security breaches. An associate's or bachelor's degree in computer or network security offers training in the technology and techniques available to fight cyber crime. Computer support specialists earned a mean annual salary of $46,370 in 2008.

4. Global business will continue to expand, as companies look abroad for new talent and new markets. Asia is already supplying U.S. businesses with highly trained workers; the next generation will see the region emerge as a locus of innovation, too.

Offshoring is here to stay; make the best of this powerful phenomenon by pursuing a career as an offshoring manager. Offshoring managers may coordinate joint ventures among U.S. and international firms or oversee an offshore team on behalf of an onshore company. An MBA in international business offers the perspective and credentials to move into this specialized management role. Salaries vary for offshoring managers; the Department of Labor reports a mean annual wage of $79,500 for administrative services managers.

5. Education is always in demand--and a new economy promises to raise the education bar even further. The adult continuing education sector should experience particular growth, as workers retrain for new career roles.

Corporate trainers plan and direct on-site training courses to help employees build valuable career skills. These continuing education programs may focus on leadership, management skills, technology training, global business practices, and more. Corporate trainers typically hold a bachelor's or master's degree in human resources development, business administration, education, or a specialty field related to the courses they teach. Training and development specialists earned a mean annual wage of $54,830 in 2008.

The new economy is just around the corner. Are you ready to make the most of tomorrow's opportunities? Follow one of these forward-looking career paths to make the most of the forces driving economic change today.

The health care industry consists of the following nine segments:

Hospitals
Hospitals provide complete medical care, ranging from diagnostic services, to surgery, to continuous nursing care. Some hospitals specialize in treatment of the mentally ill, cancer patients, or children. Hospital-based care may be on an inpatient (overnight) or outpatient basis. The mix of workers needed varies, depending on the size, geographic location, goals, philosophy, funding, organization, and management style of the institution. As hospitals work to improve efficiency, care continues to shift from an inpatient to outpatient basis whenever possible. Many hospitals have expanded into long-term and home health care services, providing a wide range of care for the communities they serve.

Nursing and Residential Care Facilities
Nursing care facilities provide inpatient nursing, rehabilitation, and health-related personal care to those who need continuous nursing care, but do not require hospital services. Nursing aides provide the vast majority of direct care. Other facilities, such as convalescent homes, help patients who need less assistance. Residential care facilities provide around-the-clock social and personal care to children, the elderly, and others who have limited ability to care for themselves. Workers care for residents of assisted-living facilities, alcohol and drug rehabilitation centers, group homes, and halfway houses. Nursing and medical care, however, are not the main functions of establishments providing residential care, as they are in nursing care facilities.

Offices of Physicians
About 37 percent of all health care establishments fall into this industry segment. Physicians and surgeons practice privately or in groups of practitioners who have the same or different specialties. Many physicians and surgeons prefer to join group practices because they afford backup coverage, reduce overhead expenses, and facilitate consultation with peers. Physicians and surgeons are increasingly working as salaried employees of group medical practices, clinics, or integrated health systems.

Offices of Dentists
About 1 out of every 5 health care establishments is a dentist’s office. Most employ only a few workers, who provide preventative, cosmetic, or emergency care. Some offices specialize in a single field of dentistry such as orthodontics or periodontics.

Home Health Care Services
Skilled nursing or medical care is sometimes provided in the home, under a physician’s supervision. Home health care services are provided mainly to the elderly. The development of in-home medical technologies, substantial cost savings, and patients’ preference for care in the home have helped change this once-small segment of the industry into one of the fastest growing parts of the economy.

Offices of Other Health Practitioners
This segment of the industry includes the offices of chiropractors, optometrists, podiatrists, occupational and physical therapists, psychologists, audiologists, speech-language pathologists, dietitians, and other health practitioners. Demand for the services of this segment is related to the ability of patients to pay, either directly or through health insurance. Hospitals and nursing facilities may contract out for these services. This segment also includes the offices of practitioners of alternative medicine, such as acupuncturists, homeopaths, hypnotherapists, and naturopaths.

Outpatient Care Centers
The diverse establishments in this group include kidney dialysis centers, outpatient mental health and substance abuse centers, health maintenance organization medical centers, and freestanding ambulatory surgical and emergency centers.

Other Ambulatory Health Care Services
This relatively small industry segment includes ambulance and helicopter transport services, blood and organ banks, and other ambulatory health care services, such as pacemaker monitoring services and smoking cessation programs.

Medical and Diagnostic Laboratories
Medical and diagnostic laboratories provide analytic or diagnostic services to the medical profession or directly to patients following a physician’s prescription. Workers may analyze blood, take x rays and computerized tomography scans, or perform other clinical tests. Medical and diagnostic laboratories provide the fewest number of jobs in the health care industry.

Environmental scientists conduct research to identify, abate, and eliminate hazards that affect people, wildlife, and their environments. These workers analyze measurements or observations of air, food, water, and soil to determine the way to clean and preserve the environment. Understanding the issues involved in protecting the environment—degradation, conservation, recycling, and replenishment—is central to the work of environmental scientists. They often use this understanding to design and monitor waste disposal sites, preserve water supplies, and reclaim contaminated land and water to comply with Federal environmental regulations. They also write risk assessments, describing the likely affect of construction and other environmental changes; write technical proposals; and give presentations to managers and regulators.

Environmental scientists who work on policy formation may help identify ways that human behavior can be modified in the future to avoid such problems as ground-water contamination and depletion of the ozone layer. Some environmental scientists work in managerial positions, usually after spending some time performing research or learning about environmental laws and regulations.

Many environmental scientists do work and have training that is similar to other physical or life scientists, but they focus on environmental issues. Many specialize in subfields such as environmental ecology and conservation, environmental chemistry, environmental biology, or fisheries science. Specialties affect the specific activities that environmental scientists perform, although recent understandings of the interconnectedness of life processes have blurred some traditional classifications.

What is cyber security?

It seems that everything relies on computers and the internet now — communication (email, cellphones), entertainment (digital cable, mp3s), transportation (car engine systems, airplane navigation), shopping (online stores, credit cards), medicine (equipment, medical records), and the list goes on. How much of your daily life relies on computers? How much of your personal information is stored either on your own computer or on someone else's system?

Cyber security involves protecting that information by preventing, detecting, and responding to attacks.

What are the risks?

There are many risks, some more serious than others. Among these dangers are viruses erasing your entire system, someone breaking into your system and altering files, someone using your computer to attack others, or someone stealing your credit card information and making unauthorized purchases. Unfortunately, there's no 100% guarantee that even with the best precautions some of these things won't happen to you, but there are steps you can take to minimize the chances.

What can you do?

The first step in protecting yourself is to recognize the risks and become familiar with some of the terminology associated with them.

Malicious code - Malicious code, sometimes called malware, is a broad category that includes any code that could be used to attack your computer. Malicious code can have the following characteristics:

• It might require you to actually do something before it infects your computer. This action could be opening an email attachment or going to a particular web page.
• Some forms propagate without user intervention and typically start by exploiting a software vulnerability. Once the victim computer has been infected, the malicious code will attempt to find and infect other computers. This code can also propagate via email, websites, or network-based software.
• Some malicious code claims to be one thing while in fact doing something different behind the scenes. For example, a program that claims it will speed up your computer may actually be sending confidential information to a remote intruder.

Viruses and worms are examples of malicious code.

Vulnerability - In most cases, vulnerabilities are caused by programming errors in software. Attackers might be able to take advantage of these errors to infect your computer, so it is important to apply updates or patches that address known vulnerabilities.

Global business opportunities and requirements have
spurred demand for international sales managers, senior
managers of international affairs, overseas operations spe-
cialists, directors of international accounting, and export/
import trade representatives. Domestically, business fail-
ures and personal credit problems have created the need for
bankruptcy coordinators at a variety of loan and consumer
finance establishments. At another level, concerns about
business disruptions resulting from natural and other disas-
ters have provided opportunities for specialists who prepare
contingency plans that address possible risks.

Training specialists plan, organize, and direct a wide range of training activities. Trainers respond to corporate and worker service requests. They consult with onsite supervisors regarding available performance improvement services and conduct orientation sessions and arrange on-the-job training for new employees. They help all employees maintain and improve their job skills, and possibly prepare for jobs requiring greater skill. They help supervisors improve their interpersonal skills in order to deal effectively with employees. They may set up individualized training plans to strengthen an employee’s existing skills or teach new ones. Training specialists in some companies set up leadership or executive development programs among employees in lower level positions. These programs are designed to develop leaders, or “groom” them, to replace those leaving the organization and as part of a succession plan. Trainers also lead programs to assist employees with job transitions as a result of mergers and acquisitions, as well as technological changes. In government-supported training programs, training specialists function as case managers. They first assess the training needs of clients and then guide them through the most appropriate training method. After training, clients may either be referred to employer relations representatives or receive job placement assistance.