10 best jobs in IT and engineering

IT and engineering are two industries that remain stable and growing as the economy continues to recover, according to data from CareerCast. Jobs in IT and engineering are not only in demand, but they’re also growing ahead of the national average estimated by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. And as technology changes rapidly, new job titles and required skills emerge constantly.

This fast-paced growth also lends itself to new job opportunities without many qualified job seekers to fill the roles. CareerCast uses data scientists as an example. It’s a relatively new field and it’s quickly become crucial to most organizations. The only problem is that it’s so new, there aren’t enough people with the right skills to fill the roles, thus increasing demand and competitive pay.

Based on CareerCast’s data, here are the top 10 jobs experiencing fast growth and high demand in IT and engineering.

Biomedical engineering is a fast-growing field, especially as technology becomes vital to biology and medicine. The BLS predicts that biomedical engineering jobs will grow 27 percent by 2022, which it states is much faster than the average for other industries. The job requires developing and designing biomedical equipment as well as ensuring the equipment is safe and functioning properly. You’ll also find yourself writing reports and manuals for the same products you design and test.

PayScale data suggests the average median salary for biomedical engineers is $62,986, but it’s influenced by location and experience. The reported range of salaries starts at $45,414 and goes up to $98,694, but as you become more senior in the role, the salary ranges will increase.

Data science is a hot field as companies scramble to cash in on data analytics. It’s a fast growing field, and the BLS predicts by 2022, it will grow by 15 percent. The role involves, as the name suggests, working closely with data; storing it, analyzing it and making it accessible for businesses to exploit.

According to data from PayScale, the average salary for data scientists is $93,338, with a range from $63,092 to $137,712 per year. Location also affects the salary for this role, with data scientists in San Jose, Calif., reporting the highest salaries at $117,226 per year. Other California cities, including Mountain View, San Jose and Palo Alto, report salaries well above the national average.

Software engineers are in high demand; The BLS cites that in 2012 there were 1,018,000 jobs in software development and that number is expected to grow 22 percent by the year 2022, which will add a total of 222,600 jobs. While software engineer can encompass a number of skills and duties, generally speaking you’ll be writing code to create applications, debugging programs, modifying and writing new software as well as testing and creating documentation for software.

Location greatly effects pay for this job title, but the average median salary is $78,669, according to PayScale. The reported salary range starts at $54,300 and goes up to $121,697, and as you become more senior that range grows. Software engineers in Mountain View, Calif., have the highest reported salaries at $108,537, with a salary range of $87,337 to $160,534 per year.

Network and computer system administrators are responsible for helping clients or employees with issues regarding hardware and software. Part of the job also involves installing, maintaining, troubleshooting, upgrading and configuring different aspects of tech in the workplace including, but not limited to, data centers, file sharing services, cloud storage and internet services. It’s an in demand job, with the BLS predicting that jobs in this field will grow 12 percent by 2022.

The average reported salary for network and computer system administrators, according to PayScale, is $57,542 with a range of $37,356 to $88,000 per year. Skills associated with higher pay include Microsoft SQL Server, Linux, Microsoft Word, Cisco Networking, Microsoft Access and UNIX.

Petroleum engineers spend their time working with oil and natural gas and overseeing drilling for these resources. Generally, petroleum engineers will work for an oil company, in a research laboratory or sometimes a university. It’s a fast-growing job, with the BLS predicting that jobs in this sector will grow 26 percent by the year 2022, adding an additional 9,800 jobs to the field.

The average salary for a petroleum engineer is $99,546, according to PayScale, with a reported salary range of $64,114 to $195,448 per year. The highest paid petroleum engineers report working in Bakersfield, CA where the average yearly salary is $111,705, with a salary range that goes up to $236,090 per year.

Computer programmers spend time writing code and turning the vision of software developers and engineers into reality. As more companies turn to proprietary software, whether for internal or external use, computer programmers are increasingly in demand. The BLS predicts that by 2022, computer programming jobs will grow by 8 percent, adding 28,400 jobs to the current 343,700.

The average salary for a computer programmer is $58,426, according to PayScale data, with a reported salary range from $34,465 to $90,211 per year. Location will greatly affect your pay, however, with computer programmers in San Francisco reporting the highest average salary as $78,540, and a salary range from $40,060 to $126,587 per year.

Technical writers are the people who write journal articles, instruction manuals and documentation for any software, hardware or technical concepts. They’re focused on helping people better understand complex technical instructions and concepts, which becomes increasingly important as tech becomes vital to nearly every industry. The BLS predicts that technical writer jobs will grow 15 percent by 2022, adding 7,400 jobs to the industry.

The average salary for a technical writer is $54,357, according to PayScale, and the reported salary range starts at $36,197 and goes up to $85,217 per year. The highest paid technical writers report living in San Jose, CA where the average yearly salary is $76,372, with a reported salary range from $44,903 to $123,919 per year.

Civil engineers are the lifeblood of an organized city as they’re responsible for building, maintaining and repairing a number of vital structures including buildings, airports, bridges, roads and sewage systems. Because those structures will exist for quite a while, it’s a field that promises job security and growth. The BLS predicts that civil engineering jobs will grow 20 percent by 2022, adding 53,700 jobs to the current 272,900.

Civil engineers earn, on average, $61,795 per year, with a reported salary range of $46,196 to $93,182 per year, according to. Location does affect pay, with civil engineers in Washington, DC reporting the highest average salary of $73,273 with a range between $54,018 to $118,025 per year.

Web developers are responsible for testing and documenting web software, writing code for web pages as well as databases and servers. You’ll need a good handle on programming languages like HTML, CSS and JavaScript, just to name a few. The BLS predicts a strong future for this field, with a predicted growth of 20 percent more jobs by 2022.

The median salary for web developers, according to PayScale, is $55,542 per year, with a reported salary range of $33,459 to $85,605. Location greatly affects salary for this job, with the highest paid web developers reporting living in San Francisco, CA, where the average salary is $78,405, with a range from $49,736 to $119,414 per year.

Environmental engineers work on developing environmental solutions to problems like recycling, waste disposal, air pollution, water quality and general public health. It’s a quickly growing industry, according to the BLS, with a predicted 15 percent increase in jobs by the year 2022.

The average salary is $62,463, according to data from PayScale, and the reported salary range starts at $48,938 and goes up to $97,720 per year. Environmental engineers working in San Francisco and Washington, D.C. report the highest average salaries for this role at $72,343 and $72,721 per year, respectively. Skills also play a role into the average salary for environmental engineers with project management and regulatory compliance both associated with higher pay.