6. Lawyer

The American Bar Association recently reported that more effort is needed to recruit and retain minorities. However, this is precisely why women should consider becoming a lawyer. Moreover, ABA President Laurel G. Bellows has your proverbial back: this PDF all about negotiating a pay raise is intended to help alleviate the situation for women a bit. Bellows points out research that demonstrates the importance of having women and minorities on the compensation committee, since they tend to counteract any implicit biases that might otherwise affect compensation decisions.

As of 2015, the percentage of women making partner hovers around 20%. That’s not a highly motivating number. However, the more women join the ranks of law firms across the country, the greater chance women have of making partner. The more women are in charge of making hiring decisions, the greater the chances that salaries will become more equal. The median pay as of 2012, moreover, is nothing to scoff at. That alone is enough impetus for many; however, there’s the whole “justice for all” factor that’s still quite a draw, as well. Incidentally, as long as we’re on the subject of law, more women should become judges, as well—read more about it here—since the number of federally appointed judges is currently around 30%.