President Obama’s State of the Union: What Industries and Education Can Help Your Career in 2011?

Jobs and the economy were the primary focus of President Obama’s State of the Union speech. The prospective federal job market is expanding and it is important to learn the steps to find a federal career.

Many of President Obama’s ideas won’t mean new jobs for at least another five years down the road. However, these jobs will likely be the wave of the future, so in order to prepare for this wave, think about what you will do today to prepare for the jobs that will be available, especially if you are thinking about your college major or preparing for a career change.

Specialized education and training in math, science, language and computer technology is becoming increasingly important. When attending college it is imperative to consider what jobs are available for graduates with that particular degree. In today’s innovative job market there are many growing hot job industries and fields to keep in mind when looking for a job or college major like:

  • Clean Energy
  • High-Speed Internet
  • High-Speed Rail
  • Exports
  • Domestic Construction
  • Biomedical Research
  • Research and Development
  • Renewable Energy
  • Electric Cars
  • Engineering
  • Information Technology
  • Global Business

If you are creative in your business or job, this will be important in your career for the future. Keep track of your creative ideas. This is also a keyword to use in your resume.

If you are currently a student in college, make sure that you take advantage of internships and other special programs. For example, if you are in your engineering degree now, make sure you get a project with an electric vehicle; this could help land a position in the future automotive industry. Write about this in your resume to demonstrate your past performance.

The government will always be hiring. Government positions will require specialized experience, depending on the positions you are seeking. You can read about federal jobs at http://www.usajobs.gov. You can find jobs by college major, job title, geographic location and agency name. Teaching positions are available if you have the right education and certifications. Also, some school systems are talking about top student performance salary incentives for teachers.

After this speech, education will be critical to succeed in all of these industries. Government jobs sometimes offer tuition reimbursement for students and parents who have student loans. Ask for this if you get a job offer.

As jobseekers continue to train to support these new industries, new training and education will be critical for career success. Jobs in curriculum design and planning, instructor-led programs, eLearning, distance learning and train-the-trainer will be also be on the rise to prepare people in all of these new industries.

Although the government will freeze federal salaries for the next two years, the government will be hiring more workers to support grants and programs for all of the ideas presented in this speech. The salaries will be frozen, but the career ladder positions in government will still get promotions. The government jobs are still the best in the country with excellent benefits and programs. The performance-based promotions to new grades will still be available to employees.

Engineers, international experts, contract specialists, IT specialists, administrative, accounting as well as many other professionals will be needed to support the enormous growth. Furthermore, the government is very interested in hiring new graduates to grow into these new industries.

President Obama’s speech included many new job and industry ideas. Most of the proposed jobs require specialized training and education. Pay attention to the industries, legislation and programs in support of these programs, and FOLLOW THE JOBS. In the meantime, look up courses and college majors that can support the new industries. A career strategy will be needed to succeed in these new industries. Start planning now, listen to President Obama’s additional speeches to see more activities and movement on these new jobs and training ideas.