The most overrated and underrated jobs of 2014

If you think being an advertising account executive would be super-awesome, think again. According to a new list released by CareerCast, the job isn’t nearly as great as you might think. Neither is being an attorney or author.
Those rank among the most “overrated” jobs of 2014, according to the report.
Meanwhile accountancy isn’t getting enough love, and neither are civil and environmental engineering, which rank among the most underrated jobs.
The list has some surprises. I have to admit I thought ad executives – probably just because they have “executive” in their title – made way more money. On the other hand, I never really thought of bookkeeper as being among the most highly esteemed and coveted positions – not that there’s anything wrong with bookkeeping, it’s just not among my dream jobs – but that too ranks among the most overrated.
The overrated jobs were chosen based on a collection of criteria that includes difficulty breaking into the profession, high stress levels and poor hiring outlook. The jobs are all pulled from the company’s annual Jobs Rated Report.
Ad account execs will also be losing positions rather than gaining over the next eight years with a dismal hiring outlook of -1%. So everything about that job pretty much sucks, apparently.
And, while event coordinators may be seeing a lot of job openings, with a rosy 33% hiring outlook, the job is highly stressful.
Being a surgeon is also overrated due to the stress level, despite a high salary average.
The underrated jobs, on the other hand, have high growth potential, low stress and decent, if not amazing salaries. “While these jobs may not attract as much attention, they can be more fulfilling than a high-stress, high-profile career,” says Career Cast publisher Tony Lee.
We’ve translated the salary information for Canada from jobbank.gc.ca, unless otherwise noted.
CareerCast’s 10 Most Overrated Jobs:
ADVERTISING ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE
Average Annual Salary (via Payscale): $47,695
Projected Hiring Outlook: -1%
ATTORNEY
Average Annual Salary: $96,527
Projected Hiring Outlook: 10%
AUTHOR
Average Annual Salary: $56,160
Projected Hiring Outlook: 3%
BOOKKEEPER
Average Annual Salary: $38,126
Projected Hiring Outlook: 11%
EVENT COORDINATOR
Average Annual Salary: $42,994
Projected Hiring Outlook: 33%
MANAGEMENT CONSULTANT
Average Annual Salary (via Payscale): $77,544
Projected Hiring Outlook: 19%
PUBLIC RELATIONS MANAGER
Average Annual Salary (via Payscale): $60,413
Projected Hiring Outlook: 13%
SENIOR CORPORATE EXECUTIVE
Average Annual Salary: $87,360
Projected Hiring Outlook: 11%
STOCKBROKER
Average Annual Salary: $67,142
Projected Hiring Outlook: 11%
SURGEON
Average Annual Salary: $164,551
Projected Hiring Outlook: 18%
CareerCast’s 10 Most Underrated Jobs:
ACCOUNTANT
Average Annual Salary: $58,676
Projected Hiring Outlook: 13%
CIVIL ENGINEER
Average Annual Salary: $76,960
Projected Hiring Outlook: 20%
COMPUTER SYSTEMS ANALYST
Average Annual Salary: $73,590
Projected Hiring Outlook: 25%
ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEER
Average Annual Salary (via Payscale): $58,519
Projected Hiring Outlook: 15%
GEOLOGIST
Average Annual Salary: $89,440
Projected Hiring Outlook: 16%
LEGAL ASSISTANT
Average Annual Salary: $49,920
Projected Hiring Outlook: 17%
MARKET RESEARCH ANALYST
Average Annual Salary: $58,677
Projected Hiring Outlook: 32%
MULTIMEDIA ARTIST
Average Annual Salary (via Payscale): $45,388
Projected Hiring Outlook: 6%
PHYSIOLOGIST
Average Annual Salary: $65,998
Projected Hiring Outlook: 19%
VETERINARIAN
Average Annual Salary: $69,043
Projected Hiring Outlook: 12%