Looking towards the future
The industries with the largest projected employment growth to 2015–16 are:
- Health Care and Social Assistance
- Construction
- Professional, Scientific and Technical Services
- Education and Training
- Transport, Postal and Warehousing
- Retail Trade
- Mining
- Administrative and Support Services
- Other Services
- Accommodation and Food Services.
More information on industry employment trends and prospects is available on http://skillsinfo.gov.au .
The occupational clusters with the largest projected employment growth to 2015-16 are:
- Carers and Aides
- Medical Practitioners and Nurses
- Construction Trades
- Electrotechnology and Telecommunications Trades
- Education Professionals
- Hospitality, Retail and Service Managers
- Sales Assistants and Salespersons
- General Inquiry Clerks, Call Centre Workers and Receptionists
- Engineers
- Hospitality Workers.
More information on occupational employment trends and prospects is available on http://joboutlook.gov.au .
There are many emerging technologies that will have a major impact on science and business in the future. Some of these are:
- biotechnology: the use of biological discoveries for the development of industrial processes and the production of useful organisms and their products in industries, such as agriculture and pharmaceutics, waste management and in the creation of renewable energy sources
- environmental management and materials technology: the investigation of chemical properties in metals, ceramics, polymers and other materials and the environmental impact of their use in commercial and engineering applications
- health informatics: the application of information technologies and computer sciences to accurately use, store, retrieve and exchange information in the health care field
- information and communication technologies (ICT): the combining of computers with telephone and internet technologies
- microelectronics: the development and use of very small circuits for products such as mobile phones and computers
- nanotechnology: the building of, or control over, materials and devices at the level of atoms and molecules, for application in manufacturing, electronics, pharmaceutics, medicine, textiles, fibres, agriculture, national security, aeronautics and space exploration, energy and the environment
- telecommunications (including photonics): the study and application of photons as a medium for transmitting information.