Fancy life as a human body designer or rewilding strategist? These 10 creepy-sounding job titles will exist by 2025
Technology may have an ever-increasing effect on jobs, with everyone from accountants to, er, world record holders worrying about where their jobs are going.
But it also means new job titles are springing up every day. New research conducted by Microsoft Surface and The Future Laboratory has predicted 10 new job titles expected to emerge in the next decade.
This research was conducted among students, 61 per cent of whom said they worry about finding a job after university and 33 per cent of whom were concerned about the ways in which technology is changing jobs currently.
Only 37 per cent were positive the job they are aiming to attain will still exist in 10 years' time. Still – here's what they should be aiming for:
1. Virtual habitat designer
It might sound oxymoronic, but this study has predicted that under ten years from now, "tens of millions" of people will spend hours each day working in virtual reality environments.
2. Ethical technology advocate
That morbid driverless car ethics quiz provides a hint of what's to come: Microsoft reckons the increase in robots will need someone to "negotiate our delicate relationship with the robots by setting the moral and ethical rules under which the machines operate and exist". Let's face it: someone needs to prevent The Matrix from happening…
3. Digital cultural commentator
"Workers who can master [the] shared language of imagery will be much sought after as communicators to mass audiences by businesses and art institutions," says Microsoft. It sounds quite similar to many journalistic jobs today – essentially, commentating on culture. Digitally.
4. Freelance biohacker
With the number of self-employed workers rising, the word "freelance" will be in many more job titles by 2025 – but being employed to "biohack" is something new. Microsoft reckons that although there are teams of scientists working on biohacking in university labs now, it's likely the trend for open source, such as gene-editing tool CRISPR, means the sector will increasingly be open to freelancers.
5. Internet of Things data creative
Not sure quite what separates this from a data creative of 2016 – but presumably as the sheer amount of data generated by the Internet of Things increases, so too will the number of people employed in the sector.
6. Space tourguide
You'd need a guide if you're going a tour of space, to be fair. Navigating your way round a different planet without one would be pretty dangerous. With Virgin Galactic going through new tests, maybe it's worth getting ahead of the game…
7. Rewilding strategist
This job will come about as a consequence of climate change – with more than 9bn people on the planet, we'll need someone in charge of creating and restoring natural habitats (as opposed to the virtual ones…).
8. Personal content curator
It's the logical conclusion of social media: Microsoft reckons that by the late 2020s, we'll all be able to read and capture thoughts, memories and dreams – and the necessity for all that content to be curated for us will grow.
9. Sustainable power innovator
Perhaps the least surprising of the lot (especially when the sun isn't shining…), the need for sustainable power will become increasingly important.
10. Human body designer
We've had hand transplants and face transplants – as we age, we'll need to grow replacement tissues and organs, which is where human body designers will come in.