What do burger flippers, call center workers, and many car wash workers have in common?
Over the past decade, a vast majority of their jobs have been taken over by robots. In fact, the more repetitive, routine, and simple a task is, the more susceptible that job is to takeover by an automated device.
Whether you call a machine that makes fast-food items on order at a rapid pace a robot or an automated food preparation device doesn’t matter.
The result is the same in that hundreds of job categories in multiple industries are turning into robot-only tasks as technology advances and costs for building and operating the hard-working machines come down.
For owners and entrepreneurs who use bots, the kicker is that machines never go on strike, file lawsuits, or call in sick. For workers, the big question is about how to build a career that’s robot-proof.
Fortunately, for college-bound people who have not yet chosen a career path, there are several excellent choices.
Everything begins with selecting the right degree, locating scholarships to cover some or all of the expenses, knowing how to avoid the wrong jobs, and preparing for interviews with prospective employers.
Here’s how to get started.
Get the Right Degree
Finding the perfect career path and jobs that are not easily usurped by automation means choosing the right degree, like computer science, engineering, pre-med, math, and similar subjects.
Step one, however, is covering the costs associated with earning a diploma. It’s a well-known fact that education costs are one of the fastest rising commodities in the area of personal improvement.
Before dipping into personal savings or college funds, it’s wise to locate and apply for relevant scholarships.
The good news is that you can do a full-scale search for scholarship money online in a highly efficient way and apply for dozens of opportunities simultaneously.
Believe it or not, vast sums of scholarship cash go unclaimed every year because no one takes the time to apply for it.
Avoid the Disappearing Job Categories
Customer service positions, data collection jobs, and most delivery-based occupations face the prospect of completely disappearing within a decade.
Keep in mind that the jobs themselves will still exist, but they’ll be performed almost exclusively by machines, not human beings.
One of the most effective strategies for avoiding losing your position to a bot is to avoid the major high risk work categories.
What are they? They include delivery services, most kinds of phone-based customer service, and data aggregation and collection.
Additional fields to avoid are loan underwriting, software development, entry-level marketing, basic health care, hazardous chores, and just about any type of repetitive task.
Take Positive Action
What’s more important than avoiding jobs that are likely to vanish? It’s preparing yourself for the ones that won’t.
Start by obtaining a relevant degree and creating a resume that attracts the attention of prospective employers.
Work with a professional resume writer to polish your career document into one that will land you the interviews you want and need.
Consider also consulting an interview coach who can prep you to ace any in-person or online meeting with a potential employer.
