Discover the Jobs that Best
Fit your Interest and Talents

• Do you enjoy designing or building things? Would you like to work in a factory? Do you like using new technology? If you’re fascinated by the way things work, then you might enjoy exploring the manufacturing career cluster.
  
  
• Are you a NASCAR, boating, or BMX fan? Do you like to travel? Are you good at operating tools and machinery? How do people and products get where they need to go? Transportation, distribution & logistics professionals map out the routes, plan the schedules, and operate the cars, planes, trains, ships, buses, trucks, and other vehicles that deliver cargo to its proper destination.
  
  
• Do you enjoy helping others? Is science one of your favorite subjects? Are you interested in how the human body works? Health science professionals work in research laboratories, health clubs, and health-care facilities including hospitals, nursing homes, and physicians’ offices.
  
  
• Are you a good listener? Do you enjoy helping people with their problems? Are you interested in cosmetology, hair styling, or fitness training? The human services cluster is exactly what it sounds like—people helping people.
  
  
• Do you enjoy school? Are you active in school or community groups? Do you help your friends with schoolwork or studying? If you enjoy learning and like sharing what you know with others, then you might like a career in education and training.
  
  
• Do you like building things or drawing? Do you enjoy working with tools? Do you get good grades in math and science? Look around you. A team of architecture and construction professionals built every structure, housing community, park, and roadway you can see.
  
  
• Do you enjoy helping people? Do you like having rules to follow? Are you the leader of a team, club, or project? It isn’t easy being responsible for the safety and security of others, but it can be extremely rewarding. If you want to serve and protect your community or country, then Law, Public Safety, Corrections & Security could be the career cluster for you.
  
  
• Are you interested in news and current events? Do you take part in student government, organizations, and clubs? Do you like helping people with their problems? The government is the biggest employer in the U.S. So if you want to prepare for a career in a field with plenty of job openings, then consider government & public administration.
  
  
• Do you get good grades in math and science? Are you good at fixing, designing, or building things? Do you like working on projects as part of a team? What do iPods, cell phones, and your favorite video game all have in common? They were all created by talented STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics) professionals.
  
  
• Do you enjoy working with computers? Are you good at solving puzzles? Do you like taking machines apart and putting them back together? If you’re the family computer whiz, enjoy figuring out how things work, and want a fast-paced high-tech career, consider one of the new jobs being created every day in Information Technology (IT).
  
  
• Do you like to write, act, sing, or create visual art? Can you play a musical instrument? Do you love using new technologies? The Arts, A/V Technology & Communications cluster stretches as far and wide as your imagination.
  
  
• Are you interested in environmental issues? Do you enjoy gardening, camping, hunting, or fishing? Are you good with animals, or interested in biological sciences? If you enjoy nature, science, or simply working outdoors, you should know that there’s a big, wide world of career opportunities available in the Agriculture, Food & Natural Resources cluster.
  
  
• Are you good with numbers? Do you like earning and managing your own money? Are you the leader of a team, club, or project? A strong finance background can take you anywhere.
  
  
• Are you good with numbers? Do you like earning and managing your own money? Are you the leader of a team, club, or project? Check out the fast-growing, high-paying world of business, management, and administration.
  
  
• Are you good at convincing your friends to follow your lead? Do you enjoy art, writing, or public speaking? Are you friendly and outgoing? If you enjoy meeting new people and like selling things, then the Marketing cluster could provide the background you need to succeed.
  
  
• Do you like learning about different cultures and countries? Do you enjoy travel or sports? Are you friendly and outgoing? Students who like travel or sports, and who enjoy meeting new people, can find plenty of exciting career options in the Hospitality & Tourism cluster.

Manufacturing/Transportation/
Distribution & Logistics

Manufacturing:

Jobs in this high-tech field involve planning, managing, and performing the processing of materials into intermediate or final products. Nearly every product we wear, use, and drive was produced by a highly skilled team of manufacturing professionals.

What It Takes:

• Strong math, English, and computer skills
  
• Imagination and attention to detail
  
• Being organized and on time
  
• Time management and teamwork skills
  
• Ability to follow and give directions

Sample Occupations:

Machinist
Welder/Fabricator
Structural Iron/Steel Worker
Heating A&C Mechanic
Mechanical Engineer

Average Salary Range: $44,460 - $74,530


Transportation/Distribution & Logistics

This fast-moving career cluster also prepares people for a variety of jobs at warehouses and distribution centers, at seaports and airports, and in all branches of the military.

What It Takes:

• Strong math, science, and computer skills
  
• Attention to detail
  
• Being organized and on time
  
• Ability to think and act quickly
  
• Strength and coordination
  

Health Science/Human Services/
Education & Training

Health Science

Using their science and problem-solving skills, people in this cluster create new medicines, discover cures for diseases, heal and comfort the sick, and operate the high-tech tools that diagnose and treat illnesses and injuries.

What It Takes:

• Strong math, science, and computer skills
  
• Attention to detail
  
• Desire to help others
  
• Ability to work on a team
  
• Enjoyment in working with people

Human Services

The career opportunities in this field include social work, counseling, and family therapy; they also include being a manicurist, massage therapist, or funeral home director. If you’re a helpful person who wants to find a career in which caring counts, explore the options available in Human Services.

What It Takes:

• Strong English and public speaking skills
• Patience and compassion
• The ability to think and act under pressure
• Specialized skills such as hairstyling or massage therapy
• Love of working with people

Education & Training

There’s a high demand for talented teachers in Alabama in school classrooms; as corporate trainers; and as school counselors, coaches, and administrators.

What It Takes:

• Strong academic and study skills
• Enjoyment in learning new things and sharing knowledge with others
• Solid public speaking skills
• Optimistic, caring, and confident personality
• Love of working with people

Architecture/Construction

Whether you dream of designing a new building or wielding a blowtorch on a construction crew, opportunities are available throughout Alabama for highly skilled, hardworking people in this field.

What It Takes:

• Strong math, science, and time management skills
  
• Attention to detail
  
• Being good at following directions
  
• Satisfaction in working as part of a team
  
• Enjoyment in working with your hands and with tools

Law/Public Safety/
Corrections & Security/
Government & Public Administration

Law/Public Safety/Corrections & Security

Future job options include being an emergency medical technician, park ranger, attorney, or security guard.

What It Takes:

• Strong English and public speaking skills
• Ability to follow strict rules and meet ethical standards
• Being organized and on time
• Desire to help people
• Teamwork skills

Government & Public Administration

The wide variety of career options includes tourism and transportation, accounting and animal control. Wherever there is a local, state, or federal agency or office, there is a need for qualified employees.

What It Takes:

• Strong math, English, and public speaking skills
• Desire to help others
• Good listening and time management skills
• Enjoyment in working on a team
• Leadership, debate, or student government experience

STEM/Info Tech/Arts, AV Technology &
Communications/Agriculture/
Food & Natural Resources

STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics)

The STEM cluster prepares students for exciting and challenging careers—many of which haven’t even been created yet. Whether you dream of curing disease; developing new energy sources; or creating better, safer, faster ways to communicate, travel, and work, explore the possibilities available in STEM.

What It Takes:

• Strong math, science, and communication skills
• Focus and attention to detail
• Being organized and on time
• Being interested in using high-tech tools to solve problems
• Enjoyment in working on a team

Information Technology

In addition to having top-notch computer skills, people in this field need to be quick-thinking problem solvers who can clearly communicate instructions to others. For students who have what IT takes, jobs are available in nearly every industry across Alabama and around the world.

What It Takes:

• Strong math, English, and computer skills
• Problem-solving, organization, and time management skills
• The ability to adapt and respond quickly to change
• Teamwork skills

Arts, AV Technology & Communications

If you’re known for your creative flair or for expressing yourself well, a wide variety of career possibilities are available to you in Alabama or wherever your adventures take you.

What It Takes:

• A passion for your art or craft
• Perseverance and self-confidence
• Talent plus a willingness to improve
• Time-management and public speaking skills
• Practical experience

Agriculture/Food & Natural Resources

Across Alabama, students in this cluster are preparing for exciting careers as varied as aquafarming and landscape design, fighting bioterrorism and maintaining a safe water supply.

What It Takes:

• Strong science and business skills
• A desire to protect and responsibly manage the world’s resources
• An ability to be organized and on time
• Professional appearance
• Enjoyment in working outdoors

Finance/Business Management &
Administration/Marketing/
Hospitality & Tourism

Finance

Companies in every industry need accountants and bookkeepers, banks in every city need tellers and bankers, and investors around the world rely on financial planners and stockbrokers. If you like money, and want to make it work for you, consider the Finance cluster.

What It Takes:

• Strong math, English, and computer skills
• Attention to detail
• Being organized and reliable
• Love of solving puzzles and brain teasers
• Enjoyment in working with people

Business Management & Administration

With a solid business background, you could own your own company, work in a law or medical office, manage a store, or plan meetings and events. Or maybe you’d like to be an accountant, a personnel recruiter, or an agent representing an athlete, artist, or performer.

What It Takes:

• Strong math, English, and public speaking skills
• Attention to detail
• Being organized and on time
• Professional appearance
• Enjoyment in working with people

Marketing

Companies big and small need talented salespeople, customer service representatives, buyers, and brokers. This cluster is also the home of creative types, including web designers and fashion merchandisers. So if you like creating things to sell or have a knack for making a sale, check out the options available in Marketing.

What It Takes:

• Strong communication, math, and technical skills
• Creativity
• Organization and time management skills
• Professional appearance
• Enjoyment in working with people

Hospitality & Tourism

Whether they are front desk clerks or football referees, tour guides or travel agents, professionals in this fast-growing field find work wherever and whenever people gather to play and relax.

What It Takes:

Strong English and public speaking skills

Love of travel, sports, or learning about other cultures and languages

Being organized and on time

Professional appearance

Enjoyment in working with people