There are so many businesses out there that have hiring at a standstill with hiring and pay raise freezes. However, some industries are coming out as the places to work, where you can find a job and actually do alright.

The industries where jobs can be found include: Accounting, Information Technology, and even food service. This is all according to government data.

There are several surveys out now that are indicating that many companies won’t be hiring anytime soon, but a lot of the companies in the industries listed above will be looking for new recruits and are already out there actively seeking employees.

After shrinking for an entire year, four quarters in a row, the economy is expected to pick up a bit for the July through September quarter; this could lead employers to take away hiring freezes and start hiring people again. However, even with the new unemployment numbers out and showing a decrease in the total number of those who are unemployed, unemployment is expected to increase to 10% by the end of the year. Total job openings stayed steady through June according to the Labor Department.

Of course there are plenty of accounting jobs out there. The college I graduated from often boasts their 100% placement rate for accounting graduates. That number just seems crazy to me. After all, they just took a lot of the same classes I took to get through business school, yet most of them end up working in their field within weeks of getting their diplomas.

It seems as though, without a lot of jobs being available, many people are opting to go back to college. Even recent graduates are getting everything together and taking their GMATs and GREs. So, have you come to the decision to go back to school? How about get your MBA?

I have been thinking about it, if nothing else I would like to have the advanced degree to up my chances of getting a higher paying job. I even posted in another post a week or so ago about how getting your MBA really does improve your chances of getting a higher paying job and it’s one of the degrees that pays for itself in a matter of a couple of years.

How do you know if you’re ready for business school? You really have to look at your work experience, success throughout your undergraduate program and your GMAT score. There are plenty of places where you can find test prep for the GMAT, but many colleges are really looking at how much time you spent working and how much experience you have in the “real world” before letting someone into its graduate program.

I’ve found the Princeton Review website to be pretty helpful in finding business schools I would not have otherwise found. It also has a lot of test prep programs and classes. Plus, I really like being able to compare different colleges all at one site. If you’re thinking about getting your MBA, it even has a small, short quiz that relates to some of the information you would have learned in undergraduate school called the 5-Minute MBA Quiz. (It told me I should brush up a bit)

Really, you’re the only person who can decide if you’re ready to take the plunge into graduate school. I have been back and forth with the idea since last January. I suppose after a couple of years “in the real world” I’ll have a better idea of what I want to do.