Interest in environmentally sensitive, or "green," industries is growing. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) has launched a new initiative—and a new Web page—to provide information about employment in these industries.

The goal of the BLS green jobs initiative is to develop information about the employment and wages of workers in green jobs. To meet this goal, workers in several BLS programs have developed a green jobs definition and are researching and developing statistical methods for measuring employment in these industries.

Humanitarian aid for flood victims needs to be coordinated. Details of a satellite launch must be planned. The protocol for a complex medical procedure has to be organized. The masterminds behind these activities? Logisticians.

Logisticians are responsible for managing the minutiae of complicated events. They analyze each detail of a procedure and piece together a plan for smooth implementation. Some logisticians work as generalists, doing tasks in more than one area of expertise. Others focus on a specific activity, including disaster relief, space launches, or public events planning. Still others concentrate on an industry, such as defense, manufacturing, healthcare—or, as described in an article elsewhere in this issue of the Quarterly, wind energy.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), there were about 100,400 logisticians employed nationwide in May 2009, with a median annual wage of about $68,000. Employment of logisticians is projected to grow much faster than average over the 2008–18 decade.

Most career guidance resources focus on helping young people decide what they want to be when they grow up. But what about adults interested in exploring what they want to be when they grow older? AARP has resources for them.

The organization, formerly known as the American Association of Retired Persons, has a "Work" section on its Web site that provides information on job searching, worker rights and benefits, and several other topics. Much of the information is geared toward people over age 50. Examples include lists of job fairs specifically for older workers and articles about entering second careers later in life.

Of special interest is the AARP Best Employers for Workers Over 50 program, a list of 50 employers whose policies AARP has determined to be particularly friendly to a multigenerational workforce. The list is available online with a detailed explanation of how each employer’s policies earned its place there.

Money is an important ingredient in the recipe for higher education. For students interested in a culinary career, the James Beard Foundation can help supply that ingredient.

The foundation, named for the late food writer and chef, offers an extensive menu of awards in culinary arts and wine studies. Available scholarships and the criteria for awarding them vary from one year to another, depending on the foundation’s donors. Students receive scholarships either as cash awards or as tuition waivers. In 2009, the foundation awarded 34 cash scholarships worth a total of more than $112,000 and 24 tuition waivers valued at more than $96,000 total.

Applicants must be high school seniors or graduates who are planning to pursue an associate or bachelor’s degree at a licensed or accredited culinary school. In some cases, relevant work experience may substitute for a high school diploma or equivalency. Among the criteria used to evaluate applicants are academic achievement, community activities, and financial need. Application for some awards requires an essay.

There is no fee to apply, and a single application puts candidates in the running for all Beard scholarships for which they qualify. Previous scholarship recipients are eligible to reapply each year.

The transition from college to work can be stressful for students. That’s especially true when soon-to-be grads hear a steady drumbeat of bad economic news. But data from the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) should cheer the Class of 2011 somewhat.

Employers responding to a recent NACE survey indicated that they expect to hire 14 percent more graduating college students in 2011 than they did in 2010. The best prospects are in the West and Midwest, but employers in all regions anticipate increased hiring.

Survey respondents also indicated that most of their hiring—two-thirds—will come in the fall, as they attempt to recruit top candidates early. The data are from NACE’s Job Outlook 2011 Fall Preview, which will be updated throughout the year.

Another NACE survey, the 2010 Salary Survey, provides rankings of recent job offers by employer type and by pay for college major. The highest number of job offers to 2010 bachelor’s degree graduates came from employers in accounting services. Among top employers, those in healthcare services offered the highest average starting salary: about $74,000.

As for which majors were offered the highest salaries, the clear answer is engineers. Nine of the top 10 spots on the list of rankings of highest paid majors were in engineering disciplines.