Same Career, Better Salary

Money or personal fulfillment? The challenge is to find a career that yields both. More and more job seekers are looking for more than a steady paycheck from their work. If you're like them, you want a career that's meaningful, satisfying, and stimulating. At the same time, you probably also have bills to pay and a family to support. With the right career training, you can have your dream and meet your responsibilities too. Take a closer look at the salary range within your chosen career field - wherever you are now, chances are there's still room to grow.

Careers in nursing, business, and creative fields such as the culinary arts and digital arts offer positions at various levels of technical ability, responsibility, and compensation. The more you know about types of jobs in fields like these and the salaries they command, the better position you'll be in to develop your career ambitions.

Business Still Pays
Historically business has been a field people enter to make it big, financially speaking. According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers, starting salaries for range from $36,409 for marketing graduates to $42,940 for accounting grads. That's not a bad start, but you can expect even bigger financial rewards as you move up the career ladder. Going back to school for an MBA can vastly accelerate your progress.

Positions in business may include marketing manager, the person responsible for helping to develop and implement a marketing strategy for a product or service. Financial managers also hold important positions in companies; they oversee the preparation of financial reports, investment activities, and revenue management strategies. And nearly every large organization employs an HR manager who oversees recruiting and hiring practices.

Business Salaries
Accountants and auditors $56,880
Financial analysts $70,500
Human resources managers $87,580
Marketing managers $96,680
Indulging a Passion for Haute Cuisine
In pursuing your passion you don't necessarily have to sacrifice good earnings. Many culinary arts graduates open their own restaurants. Others become a head or sous chef at an upscale restaurant, which tend to pay more handsomely than restaurants with less cachet.

There are also intangible benefits of being a chef today, such as the notoriety they enjoy over chefs from previous years. Pastry chefs are increasingly regarded as a type of artist, creating delicate works of art for people to enjoy during special times. Some of the greatest executive and sous chefs are celebrated to the same extent as a pop star or world-class soprano. They are celebrities, artists, and entertainers.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, salaries for head chefs vary greatly, depending on the type of restaurant and its geographic location. Chefs at upscale restaurants in San Francisco, for example, will likely make higher salaries than their counterparts in Boise.

Culinary Salaries
Cooks - private household $22,530
Manager of food preparation and serving workers $27,480
Chefs and head cooks $34,160
Food service managers $35,790 (in 2002)
Nursing: A Growing Field
Nursing remains a popular field due to its overall steady earnings and job security. Baby boomers are reaching retirement age, increasing the demand for nurses and heath care support staff throughout the United States. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, job opportunities are expected to be higher in nursing than in any other field.

Registered Nurses are assisted by nursing aides, orderlies, and attendants, who see to the personal care of patients. Medical assistant positions are also in high demand. Little training is required to become a medical aid, making entry into the field relatively simple. Nursing-related jobs may be found in hospitals, retirement facilities, physicians' offices, private companies, and government agencies.

Nursing Salaries
Home health aides $18,980
Nursing aides, orderlies, attendants $21,610
Licensed practical nurse (LPN) $31,440 (in 2002)
Registered nurses $54,210
Where Artists Earn More than a Living Wage
Digital multimedia design is one of those rare creative fields that offers relatively competitive salaries. Multimedia artists and animators use computer generated imagery and hand-drawn illustrations for use in films, commercials, print ads, and on websites. Film and video editors use editing software to put together pieces of a film. Set and exhibit designers create sets for films, commercials, and retail store multimedia displays.

Art directors may oversee a group that performs one or more of these jobs. Multimedia design jobs are often found in advertising agencies, film production companies, game design companies, or graphic design firms.

Multimedia Design Salaries
Set and exhibit designers $40,000
Film and video editors $50,690
Multimedia artists and animators $57,520
Art directors $73,240
With a little research and forethought, you can achieve a better sense of how to develop yourself professionally. If your current career doesn't satisfy your wildest dreams of personal and financial fulfillment, find one that does. Every career field has a range of positions. Find your niche, and the right mix of education and preparation can take you exactly where you want to be