Software developer tops list of U.S. News & World Report's annual best jobs rankings
![Portrait of Ben Tobin](/https/www.usatoday.com/gcdn/presto/2019/08/20/PPHX/ce0c0879-4886-4a83-b6d6-c3ccf762248c-Ben_Tobin.jpg?crop=2667,2667,x599,y0&width=48&height=48&format=pjpg&auto=webp)
Are you in search of the best possible job? Look no further than software developer, according to U.S. News & World Report's annual list, which ranked the position as its top pick for the new year.
The publication's Best Jobs of 2019 list takes seven factors into account, including median salary, employment rate and stress level. The median salary for a software developer is $101,790, and the unemployment rate is 1.9 percent, according to the most recent data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Though software developers have neither the highest median salary nor lowest unemployment rate on the U.S. News Best Jobs of 2019 list, the position's projected increase in demand – roughly 30 percent between 2016 and 2026 – and average stress levels helped it land the top spot, said Rebecca Koenig, careers reporter at U.S. News and World Report.
“Unlike some other jobs that do pretty well on the list, which are very demanding, software developer tends not to be a really stressful profession," Koenig said.
Other positions within the top 10 for the U.S. News Best Jobs of 2019 rankings include pediatrician (No. 8), nurse practitioner (No. 7) and dentist (No. 4). The No. 2 job on this year's list, statistician, jumped up four spots from last year's list. Koenig attributes this rise to the statistician's drop in unemployment rate – from 1.4 percent previously to 0.9 percent this year.
More:Susan Zirinsky named the first female president of CBS News as David Rhodes departs
More:Walmart's grocery pickup commercial features famous cars from Batmobile to Bumblebee
More:Dieting in 2019 isn't like grandma's weight watching, even if it's the same program
"You could have a great profession, but if you can’t get hired to do it, or there are tons of people trained to do it who are out of work, it doesn’t matter much," Koenig said. "So unemployment rate is definitely a considerable factor in figuring out which jobs are going to be among the top.”
U.S. News Best Jobs of 2019
Top 10, in order:
1. Software developer
2. Statistician
3. Physician assistant
4. Dentist
5. (tie) Orthodontist
5. (tie) Nurse anesthetist
7. Nurse practitioner
8. Pediatrician
9. (tie) Obstetrician and gynecologist
9. (tie) Oral and maxillofacial surgeon
9. (tie) Prosthodontist
9. (tie) Physician
Methodology
U.S. News draws data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics to identify jobs with the greatest hiring demand to calculate the best jobs. Jobs are then scored using seven component measures: median salary, employment rate, 10-year growth volume, 10-year growth percentage, future job prospects, stress level and work-life balance.
Follow USA TODAY intern Ben Tobin on Twitter: @TobinBen