# Industries on the rise

### The changing job market and degrees to meet the need

By Lisa Robbins, ASU News
May 20, 2026

Editor's note: This story was featured in the summer 2026 issue of ASU Thrive.

A transforming economy is creating opportunities for graduates prepared to lead. In supply chain alone, employment of operations research analysts is projected to grow 21% by 2034 as companies develop smarter, more resilient systems.

Investment is also accelerating in semiconductor development and virtual reality technologies with $2 trillion and $1.5 trillion projected, respectively, to boost the global economy within the next decade.

Specialized business disciplines such as financial management and information security are growing about five to 10 times faster, respectively, than average.

Meanwhile, U.S. life sciences research is expanding, with record numbers of professionals and strong growth in roles like medical scientists, biochemists and biophysicists.

At the same time, critical gaps in mental health services are driving demand for qualified psychologists across the country.

ASU is responding with degree programs that ensure graduates are not just prepared to enter the workforce, but advance it.

Learn more at degrees.asu.edu.

#### Some of the programs that will get you there:

- Master of Electrical Engineering
- MS in materials science and engineering
- MS in psychology
- MS in media arts and sciences (extended reality technologies)
- MS in immersive experience design
- MS in supply chain management
- MS in finance
- MS in program and data analytics
- MS in biomedical informatics and data science

#### Jobs forecast

$2 trillion
total global semiconductor industry revenue by 2036

See other jobs forecasts at news.asu.edu/jobs-forecast.

146,000
engineers and technicians needed in the semiconductor field by 2029

136,000+
psychologists required to meet unmet need in the U.S. by 2038

$80.7 million
value of AI in global health care market by 2036

29%
projected employment growth for information security analysts from 2024 to 2034

$1.5 trillion
potential boost to the global economy from virtual and augmented reality by 2030

90%
of companies worldwide report insufficient talent to support supply chain digitization

3X
the national average job growth rate projected for medical scientists by 2034

#### Testimonials

> There have been times when I’ve reached out to many of my professors to seek advice on my career — regarding jobs, a job switch or even ideating on new ideas given the AI boom and applications within supply chain. If I had an innovative thought, I would run it by them, and they would still always answer my call.

> Varun Veda’24 MS in business analytics and supply chain management, senior supply chain analyst at Microsoft

> The combination of mentorship is really unique. [In addition to my advisors,] I feel very comfortable asking professors that I have taken classes with or just run into in the faculty building.

> Emilia Berkes’23 BS in psychology, current graduate psychology student

Sources: Deloitte, McKinsey & Company, Bureau of Health Workforce, Future Market Insights Inc., U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, PWC Switzerland

This story originally appeared on ASU News.