Some people know what they want to do with their lives from a young age. Most of us, though, are not as lucky, and for students leaving high school for university, it’s often difficult to decide on a field of study. A recent documentary estimates that 15% of Millennials with a college or university degree remain unemployed, while 1 in 3 end up working an under-skilled job. When you factor in the average amount of debt students accumulate, it’s clear young job seekers and students need to consider future job prospects when choosing fields of study.

To help, here are the top 5 degrees with the best job prospects for this coming year and beyond.

  1. Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences

According to recent statistics, a career in pharmacy was ranked 3rd of the top 100 jobs in Canada for 2016. In addition to low unemployment rates, this feat is largely due to the fact that employment and wages are on the rise for Canadian pharmacists. Students enrolled in a 4-year Bachelor of Science degree in pharmacy can anticipate job opportunities to grow 38% in the next 5 years, as well as wages to increase by 9%. This makes the pharmacy degree an unmistakably good choice for students heading into post-secondary education.

Check out pharmacy jobs on Workopolis.


  1. Engineering

Although the engineering job market has been known to be quite competitive and stagnant in the past, Canadian Business expects petroleum and aerospace engineering to show considerable growth in demand and salary. For example, in the next two years, petroleum engineer jobs are anticipated to grow by a whopping 300%, and will continue to rise into the next decade. Aerospace engineering vacancies are currently in the thousands, and this number is not likely to fall as the majority of its industry members prepare to retire.

See Engineering jobs on Workopolis.

  1. Computer Sciences

With the continued digitization (and automation) of our world, degrees in computer sciences or software engineering are a safe bet. Careers in this field have flourished over recent years with the rise of the Internet, the explosion of social media, and app development. All of this is expected to continue, with an employee growth rate of 60% over the next five years.

Find computer science jobs on Workopolis.

  1. Nursing

It likely comes as no surprise that registered nurse was ranked among the top 5 health care jobs in Canada, and in the top 50 careers in Canada for 2016. With the Canadian population both aging and living longer, this trend is not projected to fall any time soon. In fact, Canadian Business has predicted the demand for the registered nurse is so high that it will remain strong into 2021, with more than one job available per job seeker. In addition, registered nurses can expect a career supported by a union, a stable income, and great health benefits.

Find nursing jobs on Workopolis.

  1. Information technology

A recent media outlet reports that jobs in technology are so highly in demand for 2016 and beyond, that experts are concerned there may not be enough job seekers to fill them! In fact, employment in information technology has risen 3.4% since last year and projections for the future are even higher! The Information and Communications Technology Council (ICTC) foresees the creation of over 200,000 tech jobs before 2020. This is great news for college or university students interested in the technology field or those enrolled in undergraduate programs relating to information technology management, information and communications, media or information technology systems.

Find IT jobs on Workopolis.