The Top Benefits of an Audiology Career
Audiology is a highly specialized field that works with hearing and balance disorders. It is recommended that aspiring audiologists get a doctorate degree (AuD), so it takes a lot of time and education to become eligible for a career in this field. However, despite its long trajectory, audiology is a great field.
Here are just a few of the reasons we recommend a career in audiology.
Audiology is a high-paying field
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the 2018 median pay for audiologists was $75,920, or $36.50 per hour. The website Salary.com claims it’s a bit higher than that, with the average salary ranging between $76,293 and $90,498 as of December of 2019.
We know money isn’t everything, but it’s certainly nice to have when you’ve got student loans to pay and you want to plan for a family. A high-paying job can get you out of debt faster and allow you to live a higher-quality lifestyle.
Audiology is projected to keep growing
With the Baby Boomer generation getting older, the demand for quality hearing care is rapidly growing. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that audiology will see a 16% increase in demand between 2018 and 2028, which averages out to about 220 new audiology positions per year.
Audiology isn’t an enormous field, but it’s a fast-growing one, and rapid growth is a strong indicator of job security. And with job security comes a better, more stable lifestyle.
Audiology is a satisfying career
According to a 1997 study by Frederick N. Martin, Craig A. Champlin, and Penny S. Streetman at the University of Texas at Austin, audiologists report high levels of job satisfaction. The factors that surveyed professionals found to be most important were challenge, interesting tasks, and adequate resources for performing their tasks.
The researchers concluded:
From the results presented here, it would seem that audiologists are generally quite satisfied with their jobs and the tasks they perform. Having said that, audiologists in private practice were significantly more satisfied with their jobs than audiologists overall, and audiologists employed by state agencies were significantly less satisfied with their jobs than audiologists overall. Men and women appear to be equally satisfied with their positions.
Additionally, a 2018 survey of 200 careers listed audiology as the third least stressful job, behind only hair stylists and diagnostic medical sonographers.
Clearly, audiology is a field with high levels of job satisfaction and low levels of stress. If you want to work a job where you feel happy – and really, who doesn’t? – then audiology might be a good fit for you.
Audiology helps people
It feels good to make a difference in the quality of other people’s lives. As an audiologist, you’ll be helping people overcome hearing problems that have been hindering certain aspects of their lives. You might even be offering them a chance to enjoy some of the things they’ve been missing out on.
Hearing is important to people, and helping people to hear better can be especially rewarding. If you’re looking for a career that makes a tangible, meaningful difference, then audiology is a good choice for you.
