Like all across the country, employment options in South Carolina have seen some changes over the past years. Technology is rapidly influencing all sectors of our lives so let’s see what jobs are in demand in South Carolina.
Today, we see job opportunities that were practically unheard of a few decades back thanks to social media and video streaming services. Additionally, we see an increase in sectors such as healthcare, finance, technology, IT services, education, engineering, hospitality, and administration, just to mention a few highly popular options.
The healthcare sector remains the industry where all sorts of positions are most readily available, from entry-level openings to advanced medical specializations. Let’s take a look at some perhaps surprising popular career options in South Carolina.
Civil Engineer
Civil engineers are designing, constructing, supervising, operating, and maintaining large-scale construction projects and/or utility systems. They can be found working on projects that include airports, roads, bridges commercial, residential, or government buildings, tunnels, dams, sewage systems, or water supply systems.
These professionals usually will be working indoors in their offices, though they also will need to spend time at construction sites to monitor specific operations or to deal with problems onsite. Most civil engineers are full time employed. Civil engineers must first complete their high school or GED diploma. Then a bachelor’s degree is required, preferably in civil engineering (or civil engineering technology).
Besides a graduate degree, they must receive licensure, and to be eligible for advancement to a senior position, they may require more certificates as well. Although licensure requirements differ from state to state, must civil engineers, in general, be licensed in those locations where they work.
The professional outlook for these professionals is expected to grow by some 20 percent over the next decade, and this is much faster than the national average for other occupations, and as the national infrastructure is getting older, more and more civil engineers are needed to come up with solutions for aging bridges, to repair major roads, and to upgrade dams and levees.
Certified Nurse Aide
Most of the duties of a Certified Nurse Aide (CNA) revolve around helping the patients. The nurse aide will be responsible for assisting with patient meals, personal hygiene, bathing, changing briefs, emptying bedpans, and some basic physical therapy.
Many community colleges and vocational schools offer CNA programs that can be completed in a relatively short period of time of six months. You can also earn a bachelor’s degree first and specialize later on.
After nursing school, you’ll have to take a final exam that’s made up of two parts. The first part of the test is a written exam that will assess what you have learned in the classroom. For the second part of the test, you will actually have to demonstrate your hands-on skills. You will be expected to perform your job while being observed by a certified state instructor.
Certified nurse aides help people with tasks that may seem out of the ordinary. You may have to help some patients call their families. You might have to help certain patients going to the bathroom. And some patients can be extremely demanding, which means that you will need a lot of understanding and compassion.
You will have to help the patients get ready for bed, change them into their sleeping close, and help them with personal hygiene. Once the patients are in bed and asleep, you will need to continually monitor them to make sure they are safe and healthy.
Another big responsibility of the CNA is to record pertinent information. Usually, you will have a log to record their vital signs, any injuries, bruises, the patients’ mental state, and anything else that the facility requires. These logs are kept throughout the whole day and the information is added as it happens. You may take a free aptitude test to learn if this is the right career path for you.
Medical Lab Technician
Medical lab techs perform a wide variety of medical functions. These include collecting and processing medical specimens, performing lab tests and analyzing results, drawing blood, developing lab cultures, calibrating lab equipment, and recording and communicating results to the ordering physician.
Laboratory tests conducted can occur in many areas, such as clinical chemistry, hematology, immunology, microbiology, and urinalysis. Lab technicians also develop and monitor tissue and cell cultures.
In addition to conducting tests and analyses, the job typically includes the maintenance of test instruments to keep them operating within established guidelines, and the keeping of detailed records and reporting results. Medical lab technicians must adhere to strict guidelines to ensure a contamination-free test result, and for safety.
Education requirements for medical lab technicians vary, but more and more jobs are requiring a bachelor’s degree. Medical lab techs work to help doctors rapidly diagnose diseases and problems. The job requires strong communication skills, and the ability to clearly and accurately communicate test results.
Culinary Chef
Your high school diploma or GED allows you to get a chance to have a hands-on culinary arts training in one of the culinary arts schools in South Carolina. If you want to have a career in culinary arts, you will have to learn the fundamentals of cooking as well as management skills to run a restaurant or bakery.
Culinary arts schools in South Carolina have experienced chefs and bakers who will teach and train its students in the different fields of culinary arts in the school’s training facilities. Vocational training schools, technical trade schools, and community colleges offer the best culinary arts degree, courses, classes, culinary arts training programs, and culinary arts certification.
If you think that you the talent, the skills and creativity, then look for the best culinary arts school in South Carolina that you think is fit for you. Even though you already have the talent for cooking and baking cakes and pastries, you still need a good education and training in culinary arts to enhance your skills.
So if you want to become a master chef, master baker, executive chef, pastry chef, and sous chef, then you should find a culinary arts schools and select a culinary arts training program. Check also this page about the color of your personality and if that influences your career options.
X-Ray Technician
To become an X-Ray Tech, students generally need to complete an associate or bachelor’s degree, depending on the level you want to work. Many South Carolina radiology schools offer clinical hands-on programs where you can acquire the necessary skills and learn about clinical professionalism and competence.
X-Ray Techs (or Radiologic Technologists) are well-trained to use X-ray technology safely and efficiently. They help physicians in numerous ways to identify and diagnose illnesses in patients. X-ray images can pinpoint fractures in bones, for example, or determine if bone cancer or intestinal digestive problems are present.
Besides taking internal images of bodies, X-Ray Techs may also prepare patients for X-rays or similar procedures, position equipment and patients correctly for imaging, shield other body parts from radiation, and maintain and adjust medical equipment they’re working with.
The most common popular jobs in the X-Ray medical field are those of Radiologic Technician, Cardiovascular Technician, Ultrasound Technician, and MRI Technician.
Many universities and colleges offer bachelor’s degree-granting programs that include both classroom instruction and clinical work. These degree programs include courses in radiation physics & protection, anatomy, pathology, image evaluation, and patient care.
In South Carolina, completion of an accredited academic program is a requirement to become licensed. High school students wishing to get a position in this field, should take courses in anatomy, chemistry, biology, physics, and physiology.
In South Carolina, state licensure is required which is attained by passing the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists (ARRT) exam or the Nuclear Medicine Technology Certification Board (NMTCB) exam.
X-Ray Techs who obtained licensure are required to attend continuing education for 24 hours every two years to have their licenses renewed. The licensure is valid for two years.
Biochemist – Biophysicist
Biochemists and biophysicists are studying the physical and chemical principles of biological processes and living things. They usually study things such as cell development, heredity, and growth.
Biochemists and biophysicists, in general, are planning and conducting complex assignments in fundamental or applied research, and they often are responsible for laboratory teams and control work quality. They frequently are working on projects where they analyze or synthesize proteins or other molecules, enzymes, or work on DNA analysis and profiles.
This group of professionals is often researching the effects of certain substances, for example, hormones or drugs, and research or monitor biological processes, for example, in food and on tissues.
Biochemists and biophysicists can be found researching scientific papers, preparing highly technical reports, or providing recommendations that are based on, and in line with their research. Often, they need to present their research findings in detailed reports to engineers, scientists, researchers, or some other scientists.
Biophysicists and biochemists are required to have a Ph.D. to be able to obtain independent research and development jobs, and the majority of Ph.D. holders start out their professional careers working in temporary positions where they may conduct postdoctoral research.
There are also several entry-level positions in biophysics and biochemistry for qualifying bachelor’s and master’s degree holders. Practically all Ph.D. holders in this sector hold bachelor’s degrees in biophysics, biochemistry, or in a related subject field, for example, chemistry, physics, biology, or engineering.
Students interested in a career in this fascinating field should already at high school prepare for the right college education and take classes that relate to the world of physical and natural sciences such as math, biology, computer science, or chemistry.
Machine Operator
To become a Machine Operator you must learn how to use construction equipment and machinery. Usually, machine operators require several years of expertise and experience and they must have well-rounded problem-solving, computer, and math skills.
Machine operators must hold certification to do their jobs in South Carolina. They must keep their machines working at full capacity and check that they are well-maintained, stocked with materials needed for production, and they also need to perform periodic output checks.
Machine operators can be operating several machines, it all depends on the industry they’re working at. Machine operators that are employed in the construction industry will likely operate construction equipment, while other machine operators, or, machinists, can be working in factories or warehouses.
Machine operators generally are required to hold at least a secondary education credential (high school or GED diploma), and most positions come with extensive on-the-job training. Machine operators may, depending on their specific positions, be required to be licensed, and in many cases, certification is wanted as well.
Machine operators may be employed in a variety of settings. They often are employed at metals or plastic facilities, and they may be performing many assignments, from injection molding to drilling. Some machine operators work with a so-called ‘extruder’, a machine that forms wire from hot metal, and others may operate grinding machines, devices that remove debris from a top layer of materials.
Machine operators are often working with machines that can transform certain types of metal or plastics into specific consumer goods. Today, a specific type of process, called injection molding, is widely used. Machines are heating the plastic and inject this into a mold. When the mold is cooled down, it will be opened and the finished product is revealed.
Automotive Technician
To become an Automotive Technician you must have a strong knowledge of automotive parts, as well as how those parts work together. For those who possess a keen interest in car mechanics and love to do hands-on work, this would be a good choice for a career.
An automotive technician is more commonly referred to as a “car mechanic” and these professionals typically diagnose, perform maintenance on, or repair automobiles. When they perform diagnostic tasks, automotive technicians will use electronic equipment for testing and identify issues.
Additionally, automotive technicians use a range of specialist tools to repair your vehicle. They need to be able to deal with both mental and physical tasks as they will need to deal with customers (often mental issues), whereas repairs to automobiles require physical labor.
The technology in cars continues to become more sophisticated each year requiring those who work on them to need more specialized training. More and more, automotive technicians need to work on cars that include complex computer systems, and without the aid of diagnosis computer programs, their work on vehicles would become problematic.
If you are interested in becoming an Automotive Technician you will need to receive automotive training from an accredited automotive training program offered by vocational schools and community colleges. This will provide you the classroom and hands-on training needed to stay competitive in the automotive technician job market.
Automotive service technicians must have earned a secondary education degree (high school or GED diploma) and their professional education in post-secondary schools will last two years. This training will prepare them for a career in the world of auto techniques. When they have found a decent job, they must gain certification, and continuing education is required to keep up with developing techniques and industry requirements.
Post-secondary Teacher
In South Carolina, the position of a post-secondary teacher is very popular. Post-secondary teachers are instructing students in various academic or vocational subjects areas after they earned their high school or equivalent diploma.
Post-secondary teachers additionally are engaged in conducting research and they usually publish books and papers. These professionals are typically engaged in teaching courses in their specific subject field, they are instructing students who work towards a certificate or a degree or who are just following lessons to improve their career skills or general or specific knowledge.
Post-secondary teachers often carry out experiments and research to enhance their specific subject area knowledge in their field and publish their original research, analysis, and conclusions in academic magazines or books. They are required to set up an instructional plan or syllabus for the students’ coursework to make sure that everything is meeting educational and department requirements and academic standards.
Some 75 percent of professors and other post-secondary teachers work for universities, colleges, or vocational-technical schools and some 20 percent is employed by junior colleges. A small percentage of them work in computer and management training facilities, or in hospitals.
Most post-secondary instructors feel they have rewarding jobs, as they are at the center of a group that really takes joy in their subject field, and sharing their specific expertise is really appealing to many of these instructors.
Life Coach
The job of Life Coach is becoming more and more popular. To become a Life Coach, you should be inspirational, energetic, organizational, and highly motivational. Excellent listening and communication skills are also a must. You may also want to learn about left brain and right brain thinkers. This may help to see if becoming a life coach is good for you.
Life coaches must be certified to be able to work with their clients. They will identify fields where their clients can grow, both personally and professionally. In regular sessions, life coaches are helping their clients progress in life and meet their goals. The job of a life coach is a challenging one but highly rewarding.
The requirements to become properly educated as a life coach are depending mostly on your employer. Most employers, though, require some sort of post-secondary education and training in social sciences, human services, or life coaching, and many universities and colleges provide certificate and associate degree programs. For management positions, students usually need to have earned a bachelor’s or master’s degree in counseling, social work, or psychology.
There are times when things do not go as you wish. Maybe, you have a set notion about things and do not want to break free. A spiritual guide can help you realize that moving on with time is the best way to cope with difficulties and reduce friction both at the office and at home.
Basically, life coaching deals with day to day problems in a positive manner. There would be someone to listen to your problems without passing comments about your ideas and views. It is believed that listening makes a great difference in handling crises in relationships. A Personal development plan can help you cultivate the power of listening and not just talk.