The New York Daily News did a review of the list:
1. Social work. The median starting pay is $31,800 per year and the median mid-career pay is $44,900. The job, which involves dealing with homelessness, drug abuse, and poverty, can be draining -- both emotionally and financially.
"Anybody who does this isn't in it for the money," Katie Stine-Hodges, a Portland State University graduate who majored in child and family studies, told CNN. Stine-Hudges, now a case manager for a foster program in Portland, added: "I feel lucky to be able to help people and go home at night and feel like I accomplished something."
2. Athletic Training. The median starting pay is $32,800 and the median mid-career pay is $45,700. Athletic trainers put in long hours for not that much money, but their job can be rewarding. A 60-hour-plus work week is typical for Chris Shenberger, who got his degree in athletic training from Capital University and now treats injuries, teaches and handles insurance claims atCase Western Reserve University, where he's head athletic trainer.
"In terms of the amount of time I put in, it's definitely low-paying, and I make significantly less money than a good portion of head coaches," he told CNN. "But I'd rather get paid less money and be here until 10 p.m. because I like being around athletics a lot more than I would like sitting at a desk somewhere, even if it would bring me more money."
3. Recreation and leisure. Median starting pay is $33,300 and the median mid-career pay is $53,200. In this field, camp directors, community planners and park managers do everything from organizing events to planning activities for kids. The paycheck's relatively small, but the job may make up for it in terms of fun quotient.
Art. The median starting pay is $33,500 and the median mid-career pay is $54,800. Many recent fine arts majors are still looking for work or trying to make ends meet from freelance gigs. Alison Tremblay majored in art with a concentration in photography at Alfred University, and took a job in data entry when she couldn't find a fulltime job in her field. But she's glad she studied art. "I guess I wish I had taken more practical courses like business, but I couldn't imagine not majoring in art and not having a camera in my hand," she told CNN. "I'm just trying to take my skills and turn them into something where I can actually make money -- that's the real struggle." [See the full list]
