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Most Overrated and Underrated Jobs

Check out CareerCast.com's most underrated jobs.
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September 17, 2013, 12:27 PM

Sept. 17, 2013  -- intro:

CareerCast.com has released a list of its 12 most overrated and underrated jobs in the country, showing that money isn't everything when it comes to the best careers.

Overrated jobs are defined as those that seem attractive from the outside but that sound better than they really are. The may have a poor outlook for jobs, too many candidates entering the field, poor working conditions or high barriers to entry. Underrated jobs have a positive hiring outlook, with rising salary, high autonomy and lower stress levels.

The careers website used data from its annual overall jobs report, last released in April, with updated data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics among other sources. CareerCast regularly scans surveys that measure job satisfaction and the economic outlook of careers.

Tony Lee, publisher of CareerCast, noted that this year, the job of "computer programmer" appeared on the overrated list for the first time.

"People think, 'If I can program, I'm golden'," Lee said. But the hiring outlook and salary growth for that job has slowed. "It's not quite as exciting and glamorous as people think. You're not inventing Google. You're writing code to help make something run better."

Here are CareerCast.com's most overrated jobs and their median salaries:

quicklist:category: $79,680title: 1text: Advertising Account Exec

quicklist:category: >$166,400title: 2text: Surgeon

quicklist:category: $71,720title:3text: Stockbroker

quicklist:category: $95,450title:4text: Public Relations Manager

quicklist:category: $168,140title:5text: Senior Corporate Executive

quicklist:category: $45,810title:6text: Event Coordinator

quicklist:category: $73,090title:7text: Architect

quicklist:category: $114,200title:8text: Commercial Airline Pilot

quicklist:category: $113,530title:9text: Attorney

quicklist:category: $74,280title:10text: Computer Programmer

quicklist:category: $91,860title:11text: Economist