Dentistry jobs take two top-10 slots on magazine’s list of 100 best jobs

The median salaries the magazine listed for each of the two dental professions both slightly increased compared with last year, rising to $145,240 from $142,740 for dentists and to $70,210 from $69,280 for hygienists.

The top two jobs that knocked “dentist” down two pegs were both technolgy positions: No. 1, software developer, was No. 7 last year; and No. 2, computer systems analyst, was No. 4 last year. According to the magazine, this is the first time its top pick was a technology job.

The magazine ranks jobs based on criteria it considers to be most important to job seekers: 10-year growth volume, 10-year growth percentage, median salary, employment rate, future job prospects, stress level and work-life balance.

Various sub-lists rank jobs across a number of industry sectors. Among the “best health care jobs,” dentist is No. 1 and dental hygienist is No. 7.

The magazine noted that according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the source for most of the criteria measured to create the list, existing health care workers need to be retained, but more also are needed — especially to fill growing numbers of health care support jobs.

Here’s how the magazine summed up the dentistry profession: “The need for professionals to examine our teeth, fill and – gulp – refill our cavities isn’t fading. Patients also have a particular interest in cosmetic treatments from dentists, such as teeth whitening, and this also drives demand. The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts employment growth of nearly 16 percent between 2012 and 2022, with more than 23,000 new openings. A comfortable salary, low unemployment rate and agreeable work-life balance boost dentist to the No. 3 position on our list of Best Jobs of 2014.”

Despite losing the top two slots to tech jobs, health care jobs still dominated the overall rankings. Seven of the top 10 jobs were from the health care sector. For the second year, market research analyst was the No. 1 business job; school psychologist was the No. 1 social services job and public relations specialist was the No. 1 creative job.

Among the 18 jobs appearing on the list for the first time in 2014 were nurse practitioner, operations research analyst, information security analyst, nail technician and structural iron and steelworker.

“In this economy, it’s important to look for a job that offers long-term growth and stability,” said Jada A. Graves, senior career editor for U.S. News. “The Best Jobs of 2014 were developed to help job-seekers identify occupations within an industry that most suit their needs and talents — and also offer a good salary and opportunity for advancement.”

In addition to the rankings and data, the report describes each job and includes commentary from people in the profession.

Other related content looks in more detail at topics such as “High-Paying Jobs on the Rise,” “What it Takes to Land the Hottest Tech Jobs of 2014” and “Top Jobs for Work-Life Balance.” There also is analysis of earnings based on geographic area and in comparison with other jobs in the same industry sector. Unemployment statistics also are listed.