Anthropologists

Employment of anthropologists is predicted to increase by 21 percent through 2020, according to the U.S. Department of Labor, or faster than the average for all careers. Most new jobs arising in the near future will be nonteaching positions in consulting firms, research institutes, corporations, and federal, state, and local government agencies. Among the factors contributing to this growth is increased environmental, historic, and cultural preservation legislation. There is a particular demand for people with the ability to write environmental impact statements. Anthropologists will have to be creative in finding work outside of academia and convincing employers that their training in anthropology makes them uniquely qualified for the work. For these jobs, they will be competing with people from a variety of disciplines.