Investing 200,000 - 400,000 USD for their children to study abroad in the US, many parents worry about what major to choose to easily find a job in the future.
In response to this question, US-based career consultant Duong Van Linh said that in the era of strong AI development, career trends have also changed. 10 years ago, finance was considered a “hot” industry, but now, technology dominates.
“In the next 5-10 years, how will career trends change? Students and parents need to research carefully before making a decision,” said Mr. Linh.
In nearly 8 years of providing career counseling to hundreds of candidates, Mr. Linh has received many related questions. Some parents wonder: “In recent years, large corporations such as Google and Facebook have continuously laid off employees. Should students continue to pursue technology-related fields?”
In response to this question, Mr. Linh stated that technology corporations laid off a large number of employees because they recruited too much during the Covid-19 pandemic, more than necessary. After returning to normal life, companies must restructure and cut out parts that do not have much potential for future development.
“This is just a temporary restructuring. With the development trend of technology, in the next 5-10 years, the technology sector still has many good opportunities,” Mr. Linh said.
Top fast-growing industries include: Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning Specialist, Sustainable Development Specialist, Business Data Analyst, Cyber Security Analyst, Financial Technology Engineer...
On the contrary, the industries with the highest risk of decline are mainly repetitive industries that can be automated such as bank tellers, cashiers and ticket sellers, accountants... Experts believe that these will be the industries that will lose their future.
Meanwhile, occupations with growth prospects in recruitment in the next 10 years for international students include: Data scientist (recruitment demand growth in the period 2023 - 2033 is 36%), software development engineer (17.9%), information technology analyst (16.3%)... The salaries of these occupations range from 100,000 to 130,000 USD (about 2.5-3.3 billion VND).
For those who do not study these majors, according to experts, there will still be opportunities to find a job, but they need to equip themselves with some additional skills. For example, if they study business, economics, accounting, finance... candidates can equip themselves with additional knowledge related to business data analysis...
How to choose a school to have a high chance of finding a job in the US?
Regarding the necessary conditions to find a job after graduation in the US, according to Mr. Duong Van Linh, school support such as career services, co-op programs, rankings... usually accounts for 30%; personal efforts account for 70%.
Regarding school support, in the US higher education system, national universities (NUs) often have good job search support and business connection programs, and in-depth training.
However, the top 50 NU schools, especially in the computer science and data science groups, are often very competitive. “There are many cases where students achieve SAT scores above 1500, IELTS above 8.0, have many extracurricular activities but still fail, which is normal. Therefore, if aiming for competitive schools, candidates need to have a backup plan,” said Mr. Linh.
Meanwhile, liberal arts colleges (LACs) often have good financial support and focus on developing the whole person. Students who study at liberal arts colleges, choose the right major that is the school’s strength and suitable for their own abilities, can also find good jobs and be successful.
“The journey to apply to top schools and find a job in the US is very challenging. Therefore, the most important thing is to choose a major that suits your abilities, interests and is in harmony with social needs,” the expert said.
VN (according to Vietnamnet)