After everything New York City — and the nation — has experienced over the last seven months, appreciation for those working in healthcare has only grown.
Whether it’s as a medical assistant, physician, or home health aide, a healthcare career is just as rewarding as it is vital to the community.
With it comes a litany of benefits for those thinking about jumping into such a line of work, but it’s important to do your research. When it comes to searching for careers in the field, healthcare is the general, vague term painted over the innumerable varieties of jobs and responsibilities available.
Here, we’ll take a look at the benefits of pursuing a career in healthcare and what New York City-area colleges those looking to begin their pursuit can look into:
Benefits of working in the healthcare field
Countless career options
As mentioned earlier, saying you work in the healthcare field is a broad description of many different jobs. With so many positions available, those looking to make a difference can find their perfect match — whether it’s hands-on, high-intensity work as an Emergency Medical Technician or the meticulous role as a pharmacist, there are options for all.
Job stability and growth
As there will always be a need for those in the medical field, there will always be jobs available for healthcare professionals to transition into should they ever want a new opportunity or challenge. Especially in a city of 8 million people, 62 hospitals, 2,600 pharmacies, and thousands of doctor’s offices and rehab centers.
There will only be more jobs available as time goes on, too. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), employment in healthcare occupations is projected to grow 15% from now until 2029, adding 2.4 million jobs around the country.
Unpredictable work environment
Working in the medical field, there will never be the worry of falling into a rut like many can at a desk job. Responsibilities and daily scheduling are as unpredictable as the patients and cases you run into.
Flexible schedules
Considering many healthcare institutions are open or on-call on a 24-hour basis, the right work schedule can be found for almost any situation to ensure a prospective employee can properly balance their individual personal, at-home life with their career.
Better pay
With a constant need for healthcare workers, compensation is always better than other professional fields of work. Per the BLS, the median annual wage for healthcare practitioners and technical occupations in May 2019 was $68,190. That’s nearly $30,000 more than the median annual wage for all other occupations in the economy at $39,810.
Colleges to build your path to professional healthcare success
SUNY Downstate Medical
Address: 450 Clarkson Ave., Brooklyn, NY 11203
Website: downstate.edu
Enrollment: 1,846
Popular majors: Nursing, Physician Assistant, Radiation Therapy
New York University
Address: 383 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10003
Website: NYU.edu
Enrollment: 51,123
Popular major: Nursing
Stony Brook University
Address: 310 Administration Building, Stony Brook, NY 11794
Website: stonybrook.edu
Enrollment: 25,989
Popular majors: Health Service Preparatory Studies, Nursing
Touro College
Address: 500 7th Avenue, New York, NY 10018
Website: touro.edu
Enrollment: 5,689
Popular major: Health Service Preparatory Studies
Hofstra University
Address: 100 Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY 11549
Website: hofstra.edu
Enrollment: 11,131
Popular majors: Public Health, Nursing
CUNY Brooklyn College
Address: 2900 Bedford Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11210
Website: brooklyn.cuny.edu
Enrollment: 17,410
Popular major: Health Professions
