Best and Worst Jobs of 2013: Annual Report by CareerCast

By Erik Derr (staff@latinospost.com) | First Posted: Apr 25, 2013 07:28 AM EDT

Internet career finder and resource site CareerCast.com has released its annual report of the best and worst careers in today's market.

The 2013 Jobs Rated report considered four core job categories that publisher Tony Lee told ABCNews.com are basic every job: environment, income, outlook, and stress.

But the study also evaluated the emotional factors, income potential and unemployment rates within specific job areas

"We have a wide range of criteria we look at when we do the rankings," Lee said.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates the average employee spends more than two-thirds of his or her day at work or on work-related activities. That's more time many spend sleeping or raising their children.

"Most Americans spend more time on the job than they do on anything else, and knowing how their job ranks against other jobs is compelling information," said a posting explaining the annual report on the CareerCast site.

But, far from being just an entertaining source of factual curiosities, the Jobs Rated report provides insights into one of the most important decisions a person will make in their lives.

"Unlike many other facets of life, the jobs we work at are choices we make; ones we can stick with or change. Therefore the "measure" of a job can tell us a lot about the quality of our lives," the posting read.

So, what did Lee's outfit find was the best job for the year? An actuary is that business professional who deals with the financial impact of risk and uncertainty, providing expert assessments of financial security systems, with a focus on their complexity, their mathematics, and their mechanisms.

According to data compliled by CareerCast, actuaries are currently in high demand, with a generally positive work environment and high salary. A few of the other best jobs for 2013 included biomedical engineer, software engineer, and audiologist.

Listed as the worst job of the year was --- newspaper reporter

"It's been towards the bottom of the list over the course of 25 years," Lee said "It's been increasingly worse over time."

With low salary prospects, tight deadlines, an intense 24/7 news environment, and newspapers, potential employeers, closing by the dozens, newspaper writing is a demanding job, with a negative employment growth, according to CareerCast.

Even lumberjacks and soldiers, whose jobs were ranked as worse in past years, have improved in CareerCast's criteria, compared to newspaper writers.

For lumberjacks, the higher demand for lumber has given them a positive employment growth, Lee said.

"Same for military soldiers, there's been a draw down," he said, which leaves some entry-level room in the ranks.

Here are the 10 best jobs of 2013, according CaeerCast.com:

1. Actuary - Median Annual Earnings: $87,650

2. Biomedical Engineer - Median Annual Earnings: $81,540

3. Software Engineer - Median Annual Earnings: $90,530

4. Audiologist - Median Annual Earnings: $66,660

5. Financial Planner - Median Annual Earnings: $64,750

6. Dental Hygienist - Median Annual Earnings: $68,250

7. Occupational Therapist - Median Annual Earnings: $72,320

8. Optometrist - Median Annual Earnings: $94,990