Fastest Growing Jobs in District of Columbia

National growth leaders filtered through District of Columbia's actual employment footprint – BLS 2024–2034

Where District of Columbia already employs the growth list

Ranked by published District of Columbia employment (not by national growth %). Sibling state pages diverge here because the occupation title set and order change with the OEWS footprint.

  1. 1. Home Health and Personal Care Aides · Healthcare Support Occupations 12,810 jobs · +17%
  2. 2. Financial Managers · Management Occupations 8,930 jobs · +14.8%
  3. 3. Cooks, Restaurant · Food Preparation and Serving Related Occupations 7,720 jobs · +14.9%
  4. 4. Software Developers · Computer and Mathematical Occupations 6,120 jobs · +15.8%
  5. 5. Computer and Information Systems Managers · Management Occupations 5,690 jobs · +15.2%
  6. 6. Data Scientists · Computer and Mathematical Occupations 2,680 jobs · +33.5%
  7. 7. Medical Assistants · Healthcare Support Occupations 2,260 jobs · +12.5%
  8. 8. Operations Research Analysts · Computer and Mathematical Occupations 2,250 jobs · +21.5%
  9. 9. Medical and Health Services Managers · Management Occupations 2,010 jobs · +23.2%
  10. 10. Information Security Analysts · Computer and Mathematical Occupations 1,510 jobs · +28.5%
  11. 11. Computer Network Architects · Computer and Mathematical Occupations 1,490 jobs · +11.9%
  12. 12. Exercise Trainers and Group Fitness Instructors · Personal Care and Service Occupations 1,480 jobs · +11.9%
  13. 13. Health Specialties Teachers, Postsecondary · Educational Instruction and Library Occupations 1,460 jobs · +17.3%
  14. 14. Logisticians · Business and Financial Operations Occupations 1,350 jobs · +16.7%
  15. 15. Substance Abuse, Behavioral Disorder, and Mental Health Counselors · Community and Social Service Occupations 1,260 jobs · +16.8%
  16. 16. Nurse Practitioners · Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations 680 jobs · +40.1%
  17. 17. Occupational Therapists · Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations 540 jobs · +13.8%
  18. 18. Physician Assistants · Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations 470 jobs · +20.4%
  19. 19. Financial Examiners · Business and Financial Operations Occupations 470 jobs · +18.5%
  20. 20. Animal Caretakers · Personal Care and Service Occupations 460 jobs · +12.1%

Largest District of Columbia footprint

Home Health and Personal Care Aides

12,810 jobs in-state

That role's growth

+17%

national projection 2024-2034

OEWS coverage

40/50

District of Columbia employment published

National #1 growth

Wind Turbine Service Technicians

+49.9% · different from state footprint lead

Growth % and openings are national BLS projections. The employment and wage columns are District of Columbia OEWS estimates where published.

In District of Columbia, the national percentage leader Wind Turbine Service Technicians (+49.9%) has no published OEWS employment row while the largest in-state footprint among this growth list is Home Health and Personal Care Aides (12,810 jobs , +17% projected). Next by in-state count: Financial Managers (8,930) and Cooks, Restaurant (7,720).

That mismatch is the useful District of Columbia read: percentage growth ranks a national change rate, not how many workers the state already employs in the role. Of the 50 national growth rows, 40 publish District of Columbia employment; 23 of those covered rows are projected at +15% or more (all-occupations baseline 3.1%). Among the ten largest OEWS rows on this list, 32% of summed employment sits in Management Occupations (3 occupations).

Annual openings (growth plus replacements) still live on each occupation profile. A high percentage on a tiny base can add fewer District of Columbia seats than a mid-single-digit gain on a large OEWS count. Education and credential columns on the profile set the entry clock; several fast-growth rows need multi-year training before the projection window helps a new entrant.

District of Columbia footprint order on the national growth list

Rows with published District of Columbia employment are sorted by in-state jobs. Occupations without a state OEWS row stay at the bottom in national growth order.

# Occupation Growth %
1 Home Health and Personal Care Aides +17%
2 Financial Managers +14.8%
3 Cooks, Restaurant +14.9%
4 Software Developers +15.8%
5 Computer and Information Systems Managers +15.2%
6 Data Scientists +33.5%
7 Medical Assistants +12.5%
8 Operations Research Analysts +21.5%
9 Medical and Health Services Managers +23.2%
10 Information Security Analysts +28.5%
11 Computer Network Architects +11.9%
12 Exercise Trainers and Group Fitness Instructors +11.9%
13 Health Specialties Teachers, Postsecondary +17.3%
14 Logisticians +16.7%
15 Substance Abuse, Behavioral Disorder, and Mental Health Counselors +16.8%
16 Nurse Practitioners +40.1%
17 Occupational Therapists +13.8%
18 Physician Assistants +20.4%
19 Financial Examiners +18.5%
20 Animal Caretakers +12.1%
21 Respiratory Therapists +12.1%
22 Speech-Language Pathologists +15%
23 Psychiatric Technicians +20%
24 Computer and Information Research Scientists +19.7%
25 Occupational Health and Safety Specialists +12.5%
26 Community Health Workers +11.3%
27 Clinical and Counseling Psychologists +11.2%
28 Industrial Machinery Mechanics +16.1%
29 Orthotists and Prosthetists +13.3%
30 Actuaries +21.8%
31 Diagnostic Medical Sonographers +13%
32 Medical Equipment Repairers +12.9%
33 Massage Therapists +15.4%
34 Nursing Instructors and Teachers, Postsecondary +16.8%
35 Epidemiologists +16.2%
36 Counselors, All Other +12.6%
37 Health Information Technologists and Medical Registrars +14.7%
38 Therapists, All Other +11.5%
39 Occupational Therapy Assistants +19.2%
40 Physical Therapist Assistants +22%
41 Wind Turbine Service Technicians +49.9%
42 Solar Photovoltaic Installers +42.1%
43 Ophthalmic Medical Technicians +19.8%
44 Hearing Aid Specialists +18.4%
45 Forest Fire Inspectors and Prevention Specialists +14.6%
46 Forensic Science Technicians +12.8%
47 Computer Numerically Controlled Tool Programmers +12.8%
48 Marriage and Family Therapists +12.6%
49 Recreational Vehicle Service Technicians +11.5%
50 Mechanical Door Repairers +11.4%

Nearby & Related Pages

Related growth and salary pages for District of Columbia and the broader U.S. labor market.

District of Columbia Overview

Full state salary data

Highest Paying in District of Columbia

Top 100 by median salary

National Rankings

Fastest growing jobs nationwide

Home Health and Personal Care Aides

Largest District of Columbia footprint on this list

Job Outlook Explorer

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About This Data

Employment projections come from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections program, covering 2024 to 2034. Growth rates represent the projected percentage change in national employment over the 10-year period.

State employment and salary data comes from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2025. Some occupations may not have state-level data for District of Columbia if employment is too small to report.

Last updated: May 2025. Source: BLS Employment Projections program, 2024–2034 and BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025.

State employment totals for District of Columbia from BLS OEWS State and Metropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates, May 2025.

Source data and WageDex calculations are identified in context on this page. State employment and wage rows use BLS OEWS May 2025; growth and openings use national BLS Employment Projections for 2024–2034. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.