These 10 jobs have the best growth potential in the next 7 years

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Data scientist is one of the hardest job vacancy categories to fill, as recruiters struggle in general to find talent in information technology and health care, according to a new report from job search site CareerCast.com.

Data scientists use statistics, database and machine learning software to interpret data for company strategies or actions. Since it’s a relatively new career with few universities offering degrees, workers in the field are hard to find, CareerCast says.

The shortage results in wage inflation, and data scientists’ median salary in 2015 totaled $128,240, the highest among the heavily-in-demand careers CareerCast listed in its report. Vacancies for data scientists are estimated to grow 16% by 2024, it says.

“Improvements in the job market have resulted in a different issue for some industries: Labor shortages,” says Kyle Kensing, online content editor at  CareerCast.

In compiling its report, CareerCast.com used federal government labor and salary data, hiring trends, university graduate employment data and its own job listings.

With the economy humming along and companies generally reporting rising earnings, the job market has remained robust. The unemployment rate inched up to 4.7% in December from 4.6% a month earlier, and wage growth hit a seven-year high as employers are paying more to recruit and retain workers.

With Baby Boomers expected to retire en masse in coming years, the CareerCast study reflects a shift in demand for professions that cater to the aging population. Job vacancies for home health aides and physical therapists are estimated to rise by 38% and 34% by 2024, respectively. Financial adviser vacancies are estimated to increase 30%.

Other professions in demand, based on their growth outlook, include information security analyst, software engineer, registered nurse, truck driver and medical services manager, the report says.

While truck drivers’ average median salary in 2015 was lower than other professions on the list, the number of driver job openings will total about 900,000 by 2025, the report said, citing data from the American Trucking Association.

Hospitals have bemoaned the difficulty of recruiting registered nurses. And it is the profession with the single-most openings currently in CareerCast.com's jobs database. The profession will have about 1.1 million vacancies by 2024, the report said. Their median salary was $67,490 in 2015.