Job: Biochemist or biophysicist.
Average annual salary: $86,580.
The life sciences and pharmaceutical industries desperately need research scientists. In San Diego, home to many life-science firms, biomedical researchers are in high demand, says Phil Blair, CEO of Manpower San Diego.
Farouk Dey, director of the Career and Professional Development Center at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, adds that pharmaceutical companies will keep driving demand for biochemists and biophysicists because of the rising health problems of an aging population. The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates these two areas of research science combined will add 37 percent more jobs by 2018.
One drawback: These positions often require you to extend your education to a doctoral degree.