“Mama’s don’t let your babies grow up to be cowboys…”

I actually typed in “top 10 careers for women” in Google the other day just to see what I’d get.  There really is a lot of crap out there, but I actually did find one page that had a compiled list.   It did not include CEO or Executive, nor did it list a doctor, lawyer, or scientist.  Kinda dumbfounded actually about the relevance of the list…as I scroll to the tiny print at the bottom I notice the source:

US Bureau of Labor Statistics; US Census Bureau; Dr. Warren Farrell, author of Why Men Earn More: The Startling Truth Behind the Pay Gap-and What Women Can Do About It

Hmm?  Ok, I figured you’d be curious by now, here’s the list as I found it:

1. Computer Software Engineers (Applications and Systems Software)
2. Physician Assistants
3. Computer Systems Analysts (<–I’ve been here, but ran away screaming!)
4. Financial Analysts
5. Speech-Language Pathologists
6. Network Systems and Data Communications Analysts
7. Post-Secondary Teachers
8. Radiation Therapists
9. Veterinary Technologists and Technicians
10. Customer Service Representatives

I get that the balance of gender may vary at different levels of job opportunities, but my astonishment stems from the pure existence of the list in the first place.   Are there really professions that are more suited for women than men…have we not already broken that glass ceiling?  The fact that number 10 appears on the list and not one authoritative position, not one Manager, CEO, even Principal, or Director, etc, etc, etc is just aggravating. 

I’m not so worried about this list for myself, I worry for my nieces, for the youth today that are thinking of a career they might be interested in and the tenth best career for a woman is a customer service representative.  C’mon!