Students considering whether to pursue a law degree might want to consider a career as a paralegal instead. Ranked seventh in a study commissioned by CareerCast.com that rates 200 jobs from best to worst, paralegal careers garnered a high ranking due to a strong hiring outlook and improving pay as courts permits paralegals to perform more legal work than ever before. Paralegals jumped up ten slots over last years' ranking of 17. Court reporters ranked a respectable 22nd on the list while judges ranked 63rd. Lawyers ranked 80th due to long hours and high stress levels.
The study analyzed 200 jobs according to five criteria: stress, work environment, physical demands, income and outlook. Actuary, software engineer and computer systems analyst topped the list while ironworker, lumberjack and roustabout ranked last.