A Top Job

One of the best jobs for 2012 is to be a clinical laboratory technician, writes Nathan Hellman at US News and World Report. "With steady population growth and the development of new lab tests, the job market for clinical laboratory technicians is expected to remain strong," Hellman says. Further, he notes that the median annual salary for a clinical laboratory technician was $36,280 in 2010, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. "There are few lulls in hospital laboratories," Hellman says. "Most of the time, clinical laboratory technicians are on the move, performing a test here and analyzing a fluid sample there. [Cathy] Otto [president of the American Society for Clinical Laboratory Science] says that while the job keeps people busy, it is not overwhelming."

Cross-posted at our sister publication GenomeWeb Careers blog.