Benefits of An Allied Health Career

Working in any health care field can be very challenging, but with that challenge come the rewards of a career which affords you the ability to help people, feel good about your job, be in demand by employers, have workplace stability, and work with other professionals with a similar sense of purpose.

Allied Health Career Outlook

Health services is one of the largest industries in the country, with more than 11 million jobs.

About 13% of all wage and salary jobs created between 2000 and 2010 will be in health services.

9 out of 20 occupations projected to grow the fastest are concentrated in health services.

Most jobs require less than 4 years of college education.

Average earnings of non-supervisory workers in health services are slightly higher than the average for all private industry.

Earnings in individual health services occupations vary widely according to duties, level of education and training, and amount of responsibility.

Some establishments offer tuition reimbursement, paid training, child daycare services, and flexible work hours.

Healthcare establishments that must be staffed around the clock often pay premiums for overtime and weekend work, holidays, late shifts, and time spent on call.

Wage and salary employment in the health services industry is projected to increase more than 25 percent through 2010, compared with an average of 16 percent for all industries.

Employment growth is expected to account for about 2.8 million new jobs—13 percent of all wage and salary jobs added to the economy over the 2000-10 period.

Projected rates of employment growth for the various segments of this industry range from 10 percent in hospitals, to 68 percent in the much smaller home healthcare services.

Health services workers at all levels of education and training will continue to be in demand. In many cases, it may be easier for job seekers with health-specific training to obtain jobs and advance in careers. Specialized clinical training is a requirement for many jobs in health services and is an asset even for many administrative jobs that do not specifically require it.