Newspaper reporter: Worst Job of 2013

Journalists landed dead last in a ranking of best and worst careers. Stress and lack of job security were big factors.

Ragan Insider Premium Content
Ragan Insider Content

Doe-eyed journalism students, proceed with caution: You’d fare better as lumber jacks, meter readers or soldiers than you would as a newspaper reporter, according to a ranking released Monday from CareerCast.com.

Those jobs fell far down the list but still outshone newspaper reporting, which landed dead last—the number 200 spot—on CareerCast.com’s ranking of 200 jobs from best to worst.

For reporters looking to reroute their career paths toward a more lucrative and fulfilling field, better options include actuary, biomedical engineer or software engineer, which landed the top three spots on CareerCast.com’s list. Good news for actuarial science and journalism double-majors, but little comfort for reporters without math and science expertise.

What exactly makes newspaper reporting such a dismal gig? Other than low pay and high stress, it’s a job with so little security that some say it may not exist in the next decade.

To read the full story, log in.
Become a Ragan Insider member to read this article and all other archived content.
Sign up today

Already a member? Log in here.
Learn more about Ragan Insider.