What jobs and career categories offered the most cleared job openings in 2016? We crunched the numbers of all of our 2016 job listings, and here are the top positions. Learn more about these career categories and what openings you can expect.
1. Systems Engineer
If you’re wondering why ‘systems engineer’ is consistently the most in demand cleared job, you need only look to two words – cybersecurity and Snowden. Cyber threats continue to increase, even as Edward Snowden’s breaches prompted a 20 percent reduction in the size of the cleared workforce, and an exodus of professionals out of cleared work and into the private sector.
Think all of the cleared sys admin jobs are in Washington, DC? Think again. They’re looking for Senior VDI Engineers in Charleston, SC., Network Administrators in San Diego, Calif., and thousands of other positions.
2. Military-Contractor
As career categories go, it doesn’t get more broad than ‘military contractor.’ This is one of the most eclectic career categories on the ClearanceJobs site, but also the most promising for veterans looking for how they can put their military skills to use.
Careers here include Nimble Fire Onsite Coordinator. (Want to help oversee JIAMDO war games? This one is for you). Other careers are Electronics Technician. Job location? Hawaii. These careers can really help ease the transition back to civilian life, because you’re generally joining a team of other military veterans or in direct support of service members.
3. Software Developer
For awhile recruiters were saying that software developers with the right skills and a high level security clearance could basically command whatever salary they wanted. Demand is high, and so are the number of openings. If you speak JIRA, JAVA and Python, search the more than 1200 software developer openings.
While the top jobs of 2016 are heavily focused on IT, keep in mind that the nearly 20,000 job openings on ClearanceJobs.com cover a variety of careers, from linguist to electrician.
4. Engineering – Military Software
The demand for software skills slightly edged out hardware skills (which ranked 10th on our list). Software engineers support a variety of military and government agencies. Sample job openings include a SATCOM Software Engineer and Mobile Software Engineer.
5. Project/Program Management
Do you like managing a budget? Telling other people what to do? Finding inefficiencies? Than a program management career may be the right one. The path to a program management career is diverse, but most program managers have attained their PMP certification, and have at least 5-10 years of work or military experience under their belts.
If you’re looking to apply for a program management position, you’ll need to demonstrate your proven leadership experience or technical expertise. The career category is broad, but the jobs themselves are niche. You may need to have expertise in the government acquisition process or a specific computer program. Carefully read any job postings before you apply, and tailor your resume accordingly.
6. Systems Administration-User Admin
Combine jobs #1 and #5, and you get the user admin. Like a technical lead and compliance officer in one, this career category includes positions involving database management and server configuration.
7. Security-Network Management
IT security is one of the fastest growing career fields, and comes with the perk of virtually zero unemployment. Job opportunities include security network manager, cybersecurity engineer, and vulnerability manager. Many security professionals get their start in other IT fields, and use those careers to build their security expertise.
8. Network/LAN/WAN Admin
Want a bevy of subordinates who can’t talk back (unless we’re counting 1s and 0s)? Consider a job managing networks. A local area and wide area network manager keeps an entire network or group of users online. You’ll be responsible for upgrades, diagnosis and troubleshooting. Many network administrators have a four year degree in computer science or a related IT field. There are also associate’s degree programs in network management.
9. IT Software-Programming
Are you bilingual? And in this case, we’re not talking about Spanish or German, we’re talking about computer programming languages. Software programmers use computer languages to develop programs. Programming languages include Java, C++, Visual Basic, and dozens more. Rather than focusing on a specific software programming language, however, look for a degree program that grounds you in computer basics and gives you the tools to use a variety of programming languages. Because yesterday’s FORTRAN is today’s Python. Search software programming job listings to see more about what’s required for these positions.
10. Engineering- Military Hardware
As a military hardware engineer you may develop, design or test military programs or computer equipment. Engineers are always in-demand in the aerospace industry. As a military hardware engineer you may work on aircraft and ships or IT systems in server rooms. Most cleared engineering programs come with a degree requirement. There are dozens of engineering concentrations and a variety of college options, however.
