Whether you’re fresh from school or looking to make a midlife career change, here are the top jobs to aim for
Whether you’re fresh from school or looking to make a midlife career change, selecting the right job is always a challenge. It’s a deeply personal decision—but perhaps we can make it a little easier by pointing you toward some intriguing opportunities. The annual Canadian Business Best Jobs ranking compiles comprehensive data on salaries, qualifications, and employment prospects to point you toward some of the fields with the highest pay and greatest potential. Scroll through our gallery counting down the Top 25 ranked careers on our list.
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25. Scientific Research Manager
Job Description:
As a scientific research manager, you’ll be in charge of the technical work done by the organization you work for, such as an architectural firm, a statistical service or a scientific department. You’ll plan and direct the firm or department’s activities, assign and review technical work and recruit staff.
Job Qualifications:
If you’re working in architecture or landscape architecture, you’ll need a related degree and licensing. Scientific managers will need a master’s or doctoral degree in science. Finally, you’ll need several years of related experience.
Salary:
The median salary for a scientific research manager is $100,000.
Career Opportunity:
A downside to this field is that it’s been shrinking, with 24 per cent fewer people working in this position than there were five years ago. The government predicts there will be more jobs than people looking for work by 2023, however.
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24. Head Nurse & Medical Supervisor
Job Description:
Anywhere nurses work — including hospitals, clinics, nursing homes and psychiatric facilities — there’s a head nurse. People doing this job might supervise nurses, coordinate care with other health services and administer budgets.
Job Qualifications:
You’ll need a degree or diploma in registered nursing. You might also need to take some courses in management studies. You’ll also need to register with a regulatory body in the province where you work. Finally, you’ll need to start by gaining clinical experience as a registered nurse.
Salary:
The median salary for a head nurse is $83,000.
Career Opportunity:
The number of people working as head nurses has grown by 33 per cent over the past five years. By 2023, the government expects there will be a balanced number of jobs and people looking for work in this position.
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23. Software Engineer
Job Description:
Software engineers write the computer code that allows you to read this job description, and develop the processes behind tons of other products and services. If you’ve got a thing for math and logic, you’ll love this field.
Job Qualifications:
A bachelor’s degree in computer science or a related field is usually required, though the field is also renowned for giving the self-taught a chance, should they prove themselves through skill or experience. However, if you’re looking for an advanced or specialized position, you may need further post-graduate education.
Salary:
The median salary for a software engineer is $90,000.
Career Opportunity:
Over the past five years, the number of employees in this field has grown by 22 per cent.
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22. Economic Development Director
Job Description:
These government workers are focused on how to make cities, towns and economic regions prosper. This mainly involves evaluating, planning and implementing economic policy, but it also means collecting data and creating programs. The category includes jobs like border services managers, analysts and tourism development managers.
Job Qualifications:
A bachelor’s in economics, business administration, commerce or public administration is required, with a master’s in one of those fields required for one of the more advanced positions. It’s also important to have several years of experience as an economist, economic development officer or researcher.
Salary:
The median salary is around $113,000, but your income is highly dependent on experience, responsibility, and which province or territory you work in.
Career Opportunity:
Currently there’s a job for every job seeker, but be aware that much of that opportunity is in smaller communities. Like small-town living? Your job hunt is probably going to be easier. Additional good news for job-seekers is that employment growth has lagged in recent years and a wave of retirement is hitting this field, so towns and cities will be competing for talented candidates.
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21. Aerospace Engineer
Job Description:
The aerospace industry plays an important and high-profile role in Canada’s economy. It’s also vulnerable to disturbances both domestic and foreign, such as government policy, foreign affairs and currency fluctuations. While few of the big manufacturers are Canadian, the extensive supply chain means there are plenty of small companies to work for. It’s also an engineering field where further specialization is commonplace.
Job Qualifications:
First, pick your engineering degree: Aerospace, mechanical, or something related. In some cases you’ll even need a master’s degree or PhD. After that, you’ll need to attain licensing by a provincial or territorial association of professional engineers. To be registered as an engineer, you’ll also need to pass a practical exam and do three or four years of supervised work.
Salary:
The median salary for this job is currently $90,000, with 20 per cent growth in wages over the past five years.
Career Opportunity:
At the less senior levels, there’s plenty of mobility to be found between engineering specializations. But to move up to supervisor ranks, you’ll need several years of focused experience.
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20. Construction Manager
Job Description:
Construction managers oversee building teams, ensuring projects are organized and on track for completion. They also do budget estimates, establish schedules, and mark out construction milestones.
Job Qualifications:
You’ll need a university degree in civil engineering or construction technology. If you want to make it to manager, you’ll have to work your way up through the ranks first.
Salary:
Construction managers are paid according to experience. They make a median salary of almost $80,000, which has increased 10 per cent over the past five years.
Career Opportunity:
There’s been an upward trend in the number of construction managers in recent years, but it’s employment heavily reliant on economic growth. A housing bust would hit this sector hard.
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19. Computer Systems Manager
Job Description:
Organizations that use computer and telecommunications software — in other words, pretty much all of them — need someone to manage it. Computer systems managers are responsible for planning and organizing data processing, hiring and supervising teams of technical employees and controlling their departments’ budgets.
Job Qualifications:
You’ll probably need a bachelor’s or master’s degree in computer science, business administration, commerce or engineering. You’ll also need several years of experience in the field.
Salary:
Computer systems managers make a median salary of $103,000.
Career Opportunity:
This is a fast-growing field, with 40 per cent more people working as computer systems managers in 2017 than there were in 2012. That may change as more people aspire to the position, however — five years from now, the government predicts there will be slightly fewer jobs than people looking for work.
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18. Specialized Engineer (e.g. agricultural or naval)
Job Description:
These specialized engineers work in fields that wouldn’t be the first to come to mind —agriculture, textile, biomedicine, and so on. But the work is still typical of an engineer: Managing processes, building equipment, supervising installation.
Job Qualifications:
To be an engineer, you’ll need at least a bachelor’s degree in a related discipline, or even a master’s degree or PhD. After attaining a licence from the province or territory’s association of professional engineers, spend three or four years doing supervised work, pass a practical exam, and you’re golden.
Salary:
Specialized engineers have a median salary of $85,000 and rising, but since this category includes several different disciplines there can be considerable variation.
Career Opportunity:
While it’s hard to move between engineering fields in this particular group (you’re not going to see many biomedical engineers hop over to textiles), there is a lot of teamwork involving sales, science, and management, making it possible for engineers to move on to those areas later.
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17. Mining & Quarrying Supervisor
Job Description:
A mining and quarrying supervisor oversees the workers extracting coal, minerals and ore out of the ground. They may operate heavy machinery, keep an eye on workers’ safety, and do administrative work like ordering materials and supplies.
Job Qualifications:
You’ll need to complete at least secondary school, with some advanced positions requiring you finish a college or university program in mining or engineering. It’s typical to first spend several years in the positions that you’ll be supervising. Many provinces and territories require a certification for positions like underground or coal mining supervisor.
Salary:
The median salary for this position is $80,600, and has seen a 25 per cent wage increase over the past five years.
Career Opportunity:
It’s no secret that mining plays a big part in Canada’s economy. The profession has seen a 19 per cent growth in employees over the past five years.
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16. Telecommunications Manager
Job Description:
Telecommunications carriers employ managers to maintain their facilities and oversee their operations. A telecommunication manager may oversee network installation, direct switching systems, and ensure their systems comply with regulations.
Job Qualifications:
You’ll need a university degree to match the field you’re working in, on top of several years as a supervisor.
Salary:
The median salary for a telecommunications manager is $85,000, which has increased by about 6 per cent over the last five years.
Career Opportunity:
The vast majority of these services, operations and facilities managers are employed in Quebec and Ontario, according to Statistics Canada. While the Information and Communications Technology Council (ICTC) predicts growing demand overall for those in information communications technology, telecommunications managers are said to be in lower demand than the field as a whole.
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15. Audiologist & Speech-Language Pathologist
Job Description:
Audiologists and speech language pathologists help people with hearing loss or communication disorders express themselves. You might work in a hospital or rehabilitation centre, or you could enter private practice. Job duties can include conducting diagnostic tests, developing rehabilitation programs for patients and doing research related to speech disorders or hearing loss.
Job Qualifications:
You’ll need a master’s degree in audiology or speech-language pathology. You’ll also need to join the Canadian Association of Speech-Language Pathologists and Audiologists and you may need to register with a regulatory body, depending on what province you work in.
Salary:
The median salary for audiologists and speech-language pathologists is $83,000.
Career Opportunity:
This is a growing field, with 48 per cent more people working as audiologists and speech-language pathologists in 2017 than there were in 2012. The government predicts there will be slightly more jobs than job seekers five years from now.
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14. Pilot & Flying Instructor
Job Description:
Pilots may be involved in air transport, or crop spraying, or aerial surveying, while flight engineers do pre-flight inspections and maintain systems and equipment. Flying instructors do what you’d expect: train new pilots or prepare them for licence examinations.
Job Qualifications:
Pilots and flight instructors must complete secondary school and be certified by a flying or aviation school. Different aircraft require different licences for pilots and flight engineers will need the Flight Engineer Licence from Transport Canada.
Salary:
The median salary for pilots, flying instructors and flight engineers is about $78,000, with a 12 per cent increase seen over the past five years.
Career Opportunity:
Few of the people who apply to flying schools actually get in—Quebec schools, for instance, only train around 150 to 200 pilots a year, according to Service Canada. The bar for training programs is high, making many candidates wash out of the program. Perhaps because of this, the government predicts labour shortages in the coming years. If you can make it to graduation day—no easy task—your job prospects are good.
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13. Dentist
Job Description: You know what a dentist does — hopefully you’re seeing one every six months. Dentists keep your teeth and mouth healthy by diagnosing, treating and preventing disorders.
Job Qualifications:
You’ll need one to four years of pre-dentistry university studies or, in Quebec, a college diploma in the sciences. After that, you’ll need a university degree from a recognized dental program. Plus, you’ll need to be licensed by a provincial or territorial regulatory body. Moving into specialized practice requires additional training.
Salary: The median salary for a dentist is $77,000.
Job Outlook:
This field hasn’t been growing very quickly, with just three per cent more people working as dentists in 2017 as there were in 2012. But five years from now, the government predicts there will be more jobs than there will be people looking for work.
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12. Statistician or Actuary
Job Description:
As our devices and internet habits amass exponentially growing amounts of data, the demand for people who can make sense of it is growing. Statisticians and actuaries use mathematical techniques to build models that solve problems and predict behaviour and outcomes.
Job Qualifications:
You’ll probably need a graduate degree in math or statistics.
Salary:
The median salary for statisticians and actuaries is $89,000.
Career Opportunity:
This is a fast-growing field, with 59 per cent more people working as statisticians and actuaries in 2017 than there were in 2012. Five years from now, the government predicts there will be an equal number of jobs and job seekers.
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11. Air Traffic Controller
Job Description:
As an air traffic controller, it’s your job to make sure traffic in an airspace is flowing correctly. You’ll use communications equipment to monitor air traffic, issue takeoff and landing instructions and alert emergency services when there’s a problem.
Job Qualifications:
You’ll need a highschool diploma and a radio telephone operator’s licence. You’ll also need to complete a training program run by NAV Canada, a privately run, not-for-profit corporation that owns and operates Canada’s civil air navigation system. You’ll also need an air traffic controller’s licence.
Salary:
The median salary for air traffic controllers is $85,000.
Career Opportunity:
This job has been growing at a breakneck pace, with 69 per cent more people working as air traffic controllers in 2017 than there were in 2012. The government predicts there will be 1.4 jobs for every job seeker five years from now.
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10. Marketing & Public Relations Manager
Job Description:
As a marketing or public relations manager, you’ll be responsible for a brand or organization’s public image. Job duties could include planning and directing advertising campaigns, initiating and analyzing market research studies and maintaining relationships with the media.
Job Qualifications:
You’ll need a university degree or college diploma in communications, public relations, marketing or journalism. You’ll also need several years of experience under your belt in sales, marketing, public relations or a related field.
Salary:
The median salary for marketing and public relations managers is $83,000.
Career Opportunity:
There were 49 per cent more people working as marketing and public relations managers in 2017 than there were in 2012. The government predicts there will be an equal number of job openings and people looking for work five years from now.
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9. Veterinarian
Job Description:
You probably wanted to be a veterinarian when you were six years old and our ranking suggests that was a forward-thinking idea. Veterinarians provide medical care for animals of all sizes, from the family dog to the giraffes at the zoo.
Job Qualifications:
Becoming a veterinarian is a lot of work. You’ll need two years of pre-veterinary university studies, a four- or five-year university degree in veterinary medicine and successful completion of a national certification exam. Plus, you’ll need a provincial licence to practice.
Salary: Veterinarians earn a median salary of $95,000.
Career Opportunity:
The number of people working as veterinarians increased by 17 per cent from 2012 to 2017. The government predicts there will be an equal number of job openings and people looking for work five years from now.
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8. Banking & Credit Manager
Job Description:
If you love money — and being in charge — this may be the job for you. Banking and credit managers oversee the operation of financial institutions like banks and credit unions.
Job Qualifications:
You’ll probably need a university degree or college diploma in business administration, commerce or economics. You may also need a master’s degree for positions that require managing large commercial loans. In addition, there will probably be some management training programs to complete. Finally, you’ll need several years of experience working in the industry before you’re eligible.
Salary:
Banking and credit managers earn a median salary of $95,000.
Career Opportunity:
The number of people working as banking and credit managers dropped 8 per cent from 2012 to 2017. By 2023 the government expects there will be a balanced number of jobs and people looking for work, however.
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7. Business Executive
Job Description:
Who doesn’t want to be the big boss? This job category encompasses a variety of high-level positions at companies and organizations — chief executive, financial and operating officers, executive vice-presidents and executive directors. You’ll need to make decisions about the organization’s mission and how to allocate resources, and represent it at official functions.
Job Qualifications:
No one’s going to hire you to be the CEO on the strength of your cover letter. You’ll probably need a university degree in a discipline related to the organization’s work, plus several years’ experience as a manager in the field.
Salary:
The median salary for this job category is $107,000, but executives at major companies make much, much more.
Career Opportunity:
The number of people working in positions encompassed by this job category increased 46 per cent from 2012 to 2017. Five years from now, however, the government predicts there will be slightly fewer jobs than people looking for work.
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6. Health Care Manager
Job Description: Take advantage of the huge growth anticipated in the health care sector as the population ages by becoming a health care manager. In this position, you’ll oversee the delivery of health care services in hospitals, clinics, nursing homes and other environments. Health care managers are responsible for supervising health care professionals, recruiting new hires, planning and evaluating service delivery and setting budgets.
Job Qualifications:
If you’re looking for a career change that involves minimal retraining, this is not the position for you. You’ll need to have the same education as the medical professionals you oversee, which could mean years of gruelling post-secondary and residency training as a specialist physician or nurse. Once you pick a medical specialization, you’re probably stuck with it — there’s not much mobility between different departments.
Salary:
Health care managers make a median salary of $96,000, but that varies greatly depending on the type of health care service they oversee.
Career Opportunity:
The number of people working as health care managers increased by 26 per cent from 2012 to 2017. The government expects there will be slightly more jobs than people looking for work in this position five years from now.
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5. Public administration director
Job Description:
Public administration directors oversee large branches of government services, ensuring that policies and programs are implemented. This means overseeing the development of said programs, monitoring and planning budgets, and hiring and training staff.
Job Qualifications:
You’ll need at least a bachelor’s degree in social science, law or business administration, on top of several years of experience in the field.
Salary:
The median salary is about $114,000, making it one of the highest paid jobs in government bureaucracy, with a 16% increase in wages over the past five years.
Career Opportunity:
Opportunities in this career are heavily dependent on the programs they’re based on. Governments create and cut programs based on priority, spending and which party is in charge—making some positions less stable than others.
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4. Pharmacist
Job Description:
Being a pharmacist isn’t as simple as just filling doctors’ prescriptions. It also means meticulously updating medical records, advising customers on how to take their medicine, hiring staff, and managing inventory.
Job Qualifications:
This job requires a degree in pharmacology. Once you’ve got that down, you need to complete an examination with the Pharmacy Examining Board of Canada (unless you’re in Quebec), and a period of apprenticeship or internship. You’ll also need to be registered as a pharmacist with your province’s college.
Salary:
Pharmacists in Canada can expect a median salary around $104,000. Over the past five years, wages for pharmacists have increased by about 10 per cent.
Career Opportunity:
The Government of Canada predicts there will be a balanced number of job openings and people seeking jobs as pharmacists five years from now.
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3. Pipefitting Supervisor
Job Description:
A pipefitting supervisor coordinates the heat, oil and water systems that run not just in your home, but in large industrial or commercial facilities, too. They order materials, schedule work activities and make sure everything’s working safely.
Job Qualifications:
You’ll need to finish secondary school at minimum, but after that, it’s a path familiar to tradespeople: a period of apprenticeship, followed by certification, and several years as a fully qualified worker.
Salary:
The median salary for a pipefitting supervisor sits at about $83,000, but first, you’ll have to receive lower pay as first an apprentice, then as a journeyman/woman. According to PayScale, an entry-level pipefitter can expect to make $28 an hour, while an experienced pipefitter has a median hourly wage of $40.54.
Career Opportunity:
Expect 1.25 open positions for contractors and supervisors in the pipefitting trades for every job seeker five years from now, according to Job Bank Canada. Over the past five years, the number of people employed in this job has increased 32 per cent.
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2. Engineering Manager
Job Description:
Engineers need someone to tell them what to do and that someone could be you. Engineering managers plan, oversee and evaluate projects. They work in both the private and public sector in a broad range of environments, including consulting firms and scientific research companies.
Job Qualifications:
You’ll need a bachelor’s degree in engineering for most positions. You’ll also need some experience under your belt as an engineer, ideally in a supervisory role. You’ll also need to be licensed as a Professional Engineer (P. Eng.) by the province or territory you work in.
Salary:
Engineering managers earn a median salary of about $109,000.
Career Opportunity:
There were 78 per cent more people working as engineering managers in 2017 than there were five years before that, a significant increase. By 2023, the government expects there will be slightly more jobs than people looking for work as engineering managers.
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1. Utilities Manager
Job Description:
Water, electrical power, natural gas—if it’s a utility, this category of managers are taking care of it. Whether it’s in the public sector or the private sector, utility managers are in charge of the facilities, plants, and distribution systems that bring the power to the people.
Job Qualifications:
A bachelor’s degree or diploma in the corresponding field you’ll be managing: electrical engineering for power utilities, oil and gas engineering for natural gas distribution, and so on. You’ll need to be experienced as a supervisor before moving up, though.
Salary:
The median annual paycheque of a utility manager comes in at about $114,000, with broad variation based on what kind of utility and municipality you oversee.
Career Opportunity:
The government predicts that for managers in manufacturing and utilities, there will be 3,100 new job openings through 2023, with only 2,900 job seekers to fill them. That spells opportunity, but since these are senior positions you’ll need to be able to demonstrate proven experience.
