What is meaning of word a profession

A profession is a field of work that has been successfully professionalized.^[1] It can be defined as a disciplined group of individuals, professionals, who adhere to ethical standards and who hold themselves out as, and are accepted by the public as possessing special knowledge and skills in a widely recognised body of learning derived from research, education and training at a high level, and who are prepared to apply this knowledge and exercise these skills in the interest of others.^[2][3]

Professional occupations are founded upon specialized educational training, the purpose of which is to supply disinterested objective counsel and service to others, for a direct and definite compensation, wholly apart from expectation of other business gain.^[4] Medieval and early modern tradition recognized only three professions: divinity, medicine, and law,^[5][6] which were called the learned professions.^[7] A profession is not a trade^[8] and not an industry.^[9]

Some professions change slightly in status and power, but their prestige generally remains stable over time, even if the profession begins to have more required study and formal education.^[10] Disciplines formalized more recently, such as architecture, now have equally long periods of study associated with them.^[11]

Although professions may enjoy relatively high status and public prestige, not all professionals earn high salaries, and even within specific professions there exist significant differences in salary. In law, for example, a corporate defense lawyer working on an hourly basis may earn several times what a prosecutor or public defender earns.

Etymology[edit]

The term «profession» is a truncation of the term «liberal profession», which is, in turn, an Anglicization of the French term profession libérale. Originally borrowed by English users in the 19th century, it has been re-borrowed by international users from the late 20th, though the (upper-middle) class overtones of the term do not seem to survive re-translation: «liberal professions» are, according to the European Union’s Directive on Recognition of Professional Qualifications (2005/36/EC), «those practised on the basis of relevant professional qualifications in a personal, responsible and professionally independent capacity by those providing intellectual and conceptual services in the interest of the client and the public».
Under the European Commission, liberal professions are professions that require specialized training and that are regulated by «national governments or professional bodies».^[12]

Formation[edit]

A profession arises through the process of professionalization when any trade or occupation transforms itself:

«… [through] the development of formal qualifications based upon education, apprenticeship, and examinations, the emergence of regulatory bodies with powers to admit and discipline members, and some degree of monopoly rights.^[13]

Major milestones which may mark an occupation being identified as a profession include:^[6]

1. an occupation becomes a full-time occupation
2. the establishment of a training school
3. the establishment of a university school
4. the establishment of a local association
5. the establishment of a national association of professional ethics
6. the establishment of state licensing laws

Applying these milestones to the historical sequence of development in the United States shows surveying achieving professional status first (George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Abraham Lincoln all worked as land surveyors before entering politics^[14][15][16]), followed by medicine, actuarial science, law, dentistry, civil engineering, logistics, architecture and accounting.^[17]

With the rise of technology and occupational specialization in the 19th century, other bodies began to claim professional status: mechanical engineering, pharmacy, veterinary medicine, psychology, nursing, teaching, librarianship, optometry and social work, each of which could claim, using these milestones, to have become professions by 1900.^[18]

Regulation[edit]

Originally, any regulation of the professions was self-regulation through bodies such as the College of Physicians or the Inns of Court. With the growing role of government, statutory bodies have increasingly taken on this role, their members being appointed either by the profession or (increasingly) by the government. Proposals for the introduction or enhancement of statutory regulation may be welcomed by a profession as protecting clients and enhancing its quality and reputation, or as restricting access to the profession and hence enabling higher fees to be charged. It may be resisted as limiting the members’ freedom to innovate or to practice as in their professional judgement they consider best.

An example was in 2008, when the British government proposed wide statutory regulation of psychologists. The inspiration for the change was a number of problems in the psychotherapy field, but there are various kinds of psychologists including many who have no clinical role, and where the case for regulation was not so clear. Work psychology brought especial disagreement, with the British Psychological Society favoring statutory regulation of «occupational psychologists» and the Association of Business Psychologists resisting the statutory regulation of «business psychologists» – descriptions of professional activity which it may not be easy to distinguish.

Besides regulating access to a profession, professional bodies may set examinations of competence and enforce adherence to an ethical code. There may be several such bodies for one profession in a single country, an example being the accountancy bodies of the United Kingdom (ACCA, CAI, CIMA, CIPFA, ICAEW and ICAS), all of which have been given a Royal Charter, although their members are not necessarily considered to hold equivalent qualifications, and which operate alongside further bodies (AAPA, IFA, CPAA). Another example of a regulatory body that governs a profession is the Hong Kong Professional Teachers Union, which governs the conduct, rights, obligations, and duties of salaried teachers working in educational institutions in Hong Kong.

The engineering profession is highly regulated in some countries (Canada and the United States) with a strict licensing system for Professional Engineer that controls the practice but not in others (UK) where titles and qualifications are regulated Chartered Engineer but the practice is not regulated.

Typically, individuals are required by law to be qualified by a local professional body before they are permitted to practice in that profession. However, in some countries, individuals may not be required by law to be qualified by such a professional body in order to practice, as is the case for accountancy in the United Kingdom (except for auditing and insolvency work which legally require qualification by a professional body). In such cases, qualification by the professional bodies is effectively still considered a prerequisite to practice as most employers and clients stipulate that the individual hold such qualifications before hiring their services. For example, in order to become a fully qualified teaching professional in Hong Kong working in a state or government-funded school, one needs to have successfully completed a Postgraduate Diploma in Education («PGDE») or a bachelor’s degree in Education («BEd») at an approved tertiary educational institution or university. This requirement is set out by the Educational Department Bureau of Hong Kong, which is the governmental department that governs the Hong Kong education sector.

Autonomy[edit]

Professions tend to be autonomous, which means they have a high degree of control of their own affairs: «professionals are autonomous insofar as they can make independent judgments about their work».^[19] This usually means «the freedom to exercise their professional judgement.»^[20]

However, it also has other meanings. «Professional autonomy is often described as a claim of professionals that has to serve primarily their own interests…this professional autonomy can only be maintained if members of the profession subject their activities and decisions to a critical evaluation by other members of the profession.»^[21] The concept of autonomy can therefore be seen to embrace not only judgement, but also self-interest and a continuous process of critical evaluation of ethics and procedures from within the profession itself.

One major implication of professional autonomy is the traditional ban on corporate practice of the professions, especially accounting, architecture, medicine, and law. This means that in many jurisdictions, these professionals cannot do business through regular for-profit corporations and raise capital rapidly through initial public offerings or flotations. Instead, if they wish to practice collectively they must form special business entities such as partnerships or professional corporations, which feature (1) reduced protection against liability for professional negligence and (2) severe limitations or outright prohibitions on ownership by non-professionals. The obvious implication of this is that all equity owners of the professional business entity must be professionals themselves. This avoids the possibility of a non-professional owner of the firm telling a professional how to do his or her job and thereby protects professional autonomy. The idea is that the only non-professional person who should be telling the professional what to do is the client; in other words, professional autonomy preserves the integrity of the two-party professional-client relationship. Above this client-professional relationship the profession requires the professional to use their autonomy to follow the rules of ethics that the profession requires. But because professional business entities are effectively locked out of the stock market, they tend to grow relatively slowly compared to public corporations.

Status, prestige, and power[edit]

Professions tend to have a high social status, regarded by society as highly important.^[22] This high esteem arises primarily from the higher social function of their work. The typical profession involves technical, specialized, and highly skilled work. This skill and experience is often referred to as «professional expertise.» In the modern era, training for a profession involves obtaining degrees and certifications. Often, entry to the profession is barred without licensure. Learning new skills that are required as a profession evolves is called continuing education. Standards are set by states and associations. Leading professionals tend to police and protect their area of expertise and monitor the conduct of their fellow professionals through associations, national or otherwise. Professionals often exercise a dominating influence over related trades, setting guidelines and standards.^[23] Socially powerful professionals consolidate their power in organizations for specific goals. Working together, they can reduce bureaucratic entanglements and increase a profession’s adaptability to the changing conditions of the world.^[24]

Sociology[edit]

Émile Durkheim argued that professions created a stable society by providing structure separate from the state and the military that was less inclined to create authoritarianism or anomie and could create altruism and encourage social responsibility and altruism. This functionalist perspective was extended by Parsons who considered how the function of a profession could change in responses to changes in society.^[25]: 17

Esther Lucile Brown, an anthropologist, studied various professions starting the 1930s while working with Ralph Hurlin at the Russell Sage Foundation. She published Social Work as a Profession in 1935, and following this publications studying the work of engineers, nurses, medical physicians and lawyers. In 1944, the Department of Studies in the Professions was created at the Russell Sage Foundation with Brown as its head.^[26]: 183

Theories based on conflict theories following Marx and Weber consider how professions can act in the interest of their own group to secure social and financial benefits were espoused by Johnson (Professions and Powers, 1972) and Larson (The Rise of Professionalism, 1977). One way that a profession can derive financial benefits is limiting the supply of services.^[25]: 18

Theories based on discourse, following Mead and applying ideas of Sartre and Heidegger look at how the individual’s understanding of reality influence the role of professions. These viewpoints were espoused by Berger and Luckmann (The Social Construction of Reality, 1966).^[25]: 19

System of professions[edit]

Andrew Abbott constructed a sociological model of professions in his book The System of Professions. Abbott views professions as having jurisdiction over the right to carry out tasks with different possession vying for control of jurisdiction over tasks.^[27]

A profession often possesses an expert knowledge system which is distinct from the profession itself. This abstract system is often not of direct practical use but is rather optimized for logical consistency and rationality, and to some degree acts to increase the status of the entire profession. One profession may seek control of another profession’s jurisdiction by challenging it at this academic level. Abbott argues that in the 1920s the psychiatric profession tried to challenge the legal profession for control over society’s response to criminal behavior. Abbott argues the formalization of a profession often serves to make a jurisdiction easier or harder to protect from other jurisdictions: general principles making it harder for other professions to gain jurisdiction over one area, clear boundaries preventing encroachment, fuzzy boundaries making it easier for one profession to take jurisdiction over other tasks.

Professions may expand their jurisdiction by other means. Lay education on the part of professions as in part an attempt to expand jurisdiction by imposing a particular understanding on the world (one in which the profession has expertise). He terms this sort of jurisdiction public jurisdiction. Legal jurisdiction is a monopoly created by the state legislation, as applies to law in many nations.

Characteristics[edit]

There is considerable agreement about defining the characteristic features of a profession. They have a «professional association, cognitive base, institutionalized training, licensing, work autonomy, colleague control… (and) code of ethics»,^[28] to which Larson then also adds, «high standards of professional and intellectual excellence,» (Larson, p. 221) that «professions are occupations with special power and prestige», (Larson, p.x) and that they comprise «an exclusive elite group,» (Larson, p. 20) in all societies. Members of a profession have also been defined as «workers whose qualities of detachment, autonomy, and group allegiance are more extensive than those found among other groups…their attributes include a high degree of systematic knowledge; strong community orientation and loyalty; self-regulation; and a system of rewards defined and administered by the community of workers.»^[29]

A profession has been further defined as: «a special type of occupation…(possessing) corporate solidarity…prolonged specialized training in a body of abstract knowledge, and a collectivity or service orientation…a vocational sub-culture which comprises implicit codes of behavior, generates an esprit de corps among members of the same profession, and ensures them certain occupational advantages…(also) bureaucratic structures and monopolistic privileges to perform certain types of work…professional literature, legislation, etc.»^[30]

A critical characteristic of a profession is the need to cultivate and exercise professional discretion — that is, the ability to make case by case judgements that cannot be determined by an absolute rule or instruction.^[31]

See also[edit]

• Anticipatory socialization
• Professional
• First professional degree
• Professional association (or body)
• Professional boundaries
• Professional class
• Professional degree
• Professional development
• Professional responsibility
• Professional ethics
• Professionalization
• Semiprofession
• Norwegian Centre for the Study of Professions
• List of occupations

References[edit]

Cruess, S. R., Johnston, S. & Cruess R. L. (2004). «Profession»: a working definition for medical educators. Teaching and learning in Medicine,16(1): 74–76.

Freidson, E. (1994). Professionalism reborn: Theory, prophecyand policy. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.

Gailmard, S. & Patty, J. W. (2007). Slackers and zealots: Civil service, policy discretion, and bureaucratic expertise. American Journal of Political Science, 51(4), 873–889. doi: 10.1111/j.1540-5907.2007.00286.x

Gulick, L. (1937). Notes on the theory of organization. In J. Shafritz & A. Hyde (Eds.), Classics of public administration, eighth edition (pp. 105–114). Boston, Massachusetts: Cengage Learning.

Howlett, M., McConnell, A., and Pearl, A. (2014). Streams and stages: Reconciling Kingdon and policy process theory. European Journal of Political Research, 54(3) 419–434. doi: 10.1111/1475-6765.12064

Lindblom, C. E. (1959). The science of «muddling through». In J. Shafritz and A. Hyde (Eds.), Classics of public administration, eighth edition, (pp. 172–182). Boston, Massachusetts: Cengage Learning.

Niskanen, Jr. (1971). Bureaucracy and Representative Government. New York: Imprint Routledge. doi: 10.4324/9781315081878

Sinek, S. (2019). The Infinite Game. New York: Random House

Surowiecki, J. (2005). The wisdom of crowds. New York: Random House.

Taylor, F. W. (1912). The principles of scientific management. New York: Harper and Brothers.

Taylor, E. B. (1878). Researches into the early history of mankind and the development of civilization. Boston: Estes and Lauriat.

Further reading[edit]

• Abbott, A. (1998). The theory of professions. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.
• Brint, Steven. 1994. In an Age of Experts: The Changing Roles of Professionals in Politics and Public Life. Princeton University Press.
• Penelope J. Corfield, Power and the Professions in Britain, 1700–1850, Routledge, London, 1995.
• Yves Dezalay and David Sugarman, Professional Competition and Professional Power, Routledge, 1995, ISBN 0-203-97721-1.
• Eliot Freidson, Professional Powers: A Study of the Institutionalization of Formal Knowledge, Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1986, ISBN 0-226-26225-1.
• Joseph M. Jacob, Doctors and Rules: A Sociology of Professional Values, Transaction Publishers, New Brunswick and London, 1999.
• Montgomery, Jonathan (1989). «Medicine, Accountability, and Professionalism». Journal of Law and Society. 16 (3): 319–39. doi:10.2307/1409987. hdl:10822/833082. JSTOR 1409987.

According to the Oxford Dictionary, the term ‘profession’ refers to an occupation that entails the application of ‘professed’ knowledge of some field, subject or science.

Thus, two points are critical when it comes to defining ‘profession.’

1. It comprises of skill or expertise in a particular field, subject or science.
2. It entails the application of those skills. 

Accordingly, a profession requires an individual to undergo rigorous training and acquire formal education to become a part of it.

Besides, skill and application, the term ‘profession’ have an element of declaration or vow inherent in it as ‘profession’ also means an announcement of one’s belief in a religious order.

Consequently, an individual as a part of a profession is expected to follow some ethical standards concerning that field. 

Key Takeaways

1. A profession is a type of occupation that requires specialized education, training, and skills to perform a specific job.
2. A profession typically has a governing body that regulates standards and practices within the field.
3. Examples of professions include doctors, lawyers, engineers, and accountants.

Origin and Evolution of the term ‘Profession.’

The term ‘Profession’ traces its origin in the Latin word ‘Profiteri‘ (old) and ‘Professio’ (new) meaning ‘declaring publicly’, primarily, something that is of great importance.

Interestingly, in those days, nothing was more important than religion as reflected from the fact that Webster’s Third New International Dictionary first described the term ‘profess’ as the act of taking religious oath publicly.

Eventually, as time passed, this narrow, specific and restricted meaning of the word ‘Profession’ expanded to incorporate a public declaration of non-religious ideas as well.

Accordingly, with the advent of modern times, as liberal-capitalist ideas started gaining more importance and eventually became the order of the day, the term ‘Profession’ acquired a more secular connotation.

Besides that, as specialisation became one of the main components of the liberal-capitalist system, the word ‘Profession’ began to be associated with expertise and skill.

This argument is further confirmed by the fact that during the 16th century-a peak time of the Renaissance period, the word ‘Profession’ was used for the first time to refer to occupations like medicine, law, theology and often military. These were considered as the field of the learned and elites.

Besides that, the term ‘Profession’ is a truncated version of the word ‘liberal profession’ which in turn has been Anglicised from the French word “profession libérale” in the 19th century.

‘Profession’ with its current classless (upper-middle) and predominantly economic connotation was adopted in the 20th century.

As of today, the term ‘Profession’ refers to any occupation practised by individuals with the relevant qualifications and skills to serve the interest of a client or the general public.

However, it is neither a trade nor an industry. It differs from both of these terms insofar as a code of ethics governs the individuals who are a part of it.

Milestones that transform an Occupation into a Profession

While all professions may involve an ‘occupation’, not all occupations are professions. Instead, a ‘profession’ is just one of the types of ‘occupation’. An ‘occupation’ to be called a ‘profession’ has to achieve the following significant breakthroughs:

1.  Becoming a full-time vocation.
2.  The founding of a training school.
3. The origination of a university school.
4. The setting up of a local association.
5. The founding of a national association of professional ethics.
6. The institution of state licensing laws.

Examples

The following are some significant examples of a profession:

1. Scientist
2. Architecture
3. Information Technology
4. Distributor
5. Medicine, and many more.

Advantages of Profession

Some significant advantages of a profession include:

1. It focuses on enhancing efficiency.
2. It is based on specialisation and enhancement of skills.
3. It is governed by a code of conduct and therefore, makes individuals responsible.

Disadvantages of Profession

The following are some principal disadvantages of a profession:

1. With a strict code of conduct, a ‘profession’ sometimes encroaches upon an individual’s personal space.
2. Too much adherence to professional conduct often increases the stress levels of individual members of a profession.

References

1. https://www.jstor.org/stable/23707630
2. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ286271

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Chara Yadav holds MBA in Finance. Her goal is to simplify finance-related topics. She has worked in finance for about 25 years. She has held multiple finance and banking classes for business schools and communities. Read more at her bio page.

The word profession is a term that comes from the Latin language «professio» and «onis» which means action and effect of professing. The definition of this concept is the constant activity that determines the entrance to a work group. The term also refers to what a profession is, a career that requires specific university studies, where it is possible to obtain the necessary knowledge for a certain job performance. On the other hand, People who study and obtain a degree or certificate are known as professionals.

Table of Contents

The meaning of profession can be defined as the constant activity that acts as a way of life and that establishes the entrance to a certain work group.

This term has had an evolution over time and has been due to a historical development, which has renewed and created systems of different types, up to the modern methods of today.

The antecedents on where the definition of profession comes from are located in ancient Hebrew books where it was indicated that this term was used and associated with priestly works, businesses at the disposal of the king or a Royal official, since the word means to send or command, which was to do a mission.

The concept of profession in the current interpretation could not be traced beyond the pre-industrial era, because it is the result of industrialization and the division of labor.

In another definition, the term refers to what is a specialized task of work within society, and which is carried out by an individual trained for said work.

In a more restrictive aspect, it is said that it refers specifically to certain areas of work that need university studies, where the necessary knowledge is acquired to learn how to be a professional, an example of professions are law, psychology, medicine, architecture, nursing, among many others.

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This is distinguished from a trade or occupation, since the second usually refers to the characteristics of a person’s work. And the profession is about performance, discipline and practice. It deals with the development of knowledge, enriching it from its nature and in turn investigates the theoretical support of practice.

The researcher Wilensky in 1964 defines that the profession is a special way of occupational distribution based on a body of systematic knowledge obtained through school training, and determines that an activity becomes considered profession, when it achieves the five phases of the professionalization system, where:

• Employment is transformed into a full-time job as a result of the social need for the birth and enlargement of the labor market.
• Institutions are created for the formation and training of new professionals.
• Associations are formed where the profiles of the expert in a profession are determined.
• The profession is legalized, thus ensuring the monopoly of knowledge competition and the practice of it.
• A code of ethics is obtained with the purpose of protecting in this way the “genuine in the profession”.

All those who obtain it have a source of motivation and carry it out constantly, in addition to having a particular set of knowledge and skills obtained during an extensive stage of training and education.

What is a professional

Someone qualified or so called is an individual who has been academically prepared to perform a particular trade. According to the RAE (Royal Spanish Academy) defines it as a person who usually exercises an activity, whether it is the same good or not, legally and morally.

On the other hand, the RAE states that anything carried out by specialists (some activity, such as medicine) excludes students, for example.

This expression could also be applied as an adjective that refers to the performance of people, for example it can be ensured that someone with this qualifier is the one who fulfills their tasks as such, knows how to treat the other people who work with them appropriately. him and that he also complies with his work schedule fully, etc.

The qualification of professional is not only applied to those who obtain a degree that confirms the studies carried out, in the same way, those individuals who meet high levels of morale and duty with their work are called professional, as well as present a performance or development impeccable work.

Normally, professionals without an acquired degree have the ability to perform a job without the slightest precision in the applied methodology. These people who manage to break these rules established by society are called empirical or self-taught.

However, for the practice of some careers it is not enough to learn by yourself, but rather that an exhaustive preparation is strictly required, as is the case for example of bioanalysts, doctors, educators, engineers, architects, among other faculties.

In these cases, despite advances in technology such as video tutorials, virtual encyclopedias, and various investigative materials available on the virtual network, they are not enough for those who have access to them and seek to be classified as professionals in jobs such as those mentioned above.

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Characteristics of a professional

There are many features in these, but the main and most prominent are the following:

You have specialized knowledge in your area.

They have adequate academic training.

Master all the topics related to your work area.

They are regulated through organizations such as unions, unions or professional associations.

It is necessary to have a spirit of service to the population (for this reason some are volunteers, or certain organizations carry out small tasks ad honorem).

Ethical rules when carrying out their activities.

Another of the characteristics of an individual who works in his area, with a labor dependency relationship, is the fact that when he receives a bonus or remuneration, it will usually be greater than that of the rest of the workers who are in the same area, but they do not have a degree to check their knowledge and skills in this field.

Every professional, like just another citizen, has a certain role within society, collaborating with it and contributing good to it. All careers, no matter how different, make their contribution to society, providing social, technological, biological knowledge, collaborating in the health or cultural area, carrying out scientific studies and development, among others.

At the beginning, all graduates will be inexperienced but with the passing of the years and taking new knowledge and experiences necessary on the tasks they require to continue progressing.

Examples of professions

Here are some examples of professions:

• Lawyer.
• Medicine.
• Architecture.
• Social comunication.
• Bachelor of Education.
• Psychology.
• Administrator.
• Bioanalysis.
• Engineer.
• Astronomy.

The definition of a profession is a job, or what you do for a living. A lawyer is an example of a profession. When you work as a teacher, this is an example of a situation where education is your profession. Profession means a declaration. Tellling someone you did something wrong is an example of a profession of guilt.

What is a sentence for profession?

(1) Politics is perhaps the only profession for which no preparation is thought necessary. (2) Drastic measures are needed to clean up the profession. (3) His son is intended for the medical profession. (4) He is a lawyer by profession.

What is meant by the word profession ‘?

A profession is an occupation founded upon specialized educational training, the purpose of which is to supply disinterested objective counsel and service to others, for a direct and definite compensation, wholly apart from expectation of other business gain.

What are some examples of professions?

The term professional refers to anyone who earns their living from performing an activity that requires a certain level of education, skill, or training….Types of professionals include:

• Accountant.
• Teacher.
• Technician.
• Laborer.
• Physical.
• Commercial Banker.
• Engineer.
• Lawyer.

What are the 5 qualities of a professional?

Listed below are my picks for the top five qualities that lead to high job performance and success throughout a career:

• 1) Ability to Learn.
• 2) Conscientiousness.
• 3) Interpersonal Skills.
• 4) Adaptability.
• 5) Integrity.

What are the five professions?

Salaries Of The Five Most Traditional Professions

• Doctor. The profession of doctor has always been one that carries a certain level of respect.
• Lawyer. The lawyer profession is one built heavily around prestige.
• Teachers.
• Soldier.
• Fireman.

What are the 7 professions?

Keep reading to learn more about this personality type and the best Type 7 careers….The best careers for Type 7 personalities.

1. Fitness instructor.
2. Event planner.
3. Flight Attendant.
4. Entrepreneur.
5. Blogger.
6. Life coach.
7. Publicist.

What are the 3 oldest professions?

8 Oldest Professions in the World

• Builder. Originated: between 10,000 – 15,000 years ago.
• Farmer. Originated: about 12,000 – 13,000 years ago.
• Musician. Originated: about 50,000 years ago.
• Artist. Originated: over 67,000 years ago.
• Storyteller.
• Clothier/Tailor.
• Hunter/Butcher.
• Toolmaker.

What are the most common professions?

Most common jobs in America

• Electrician.
• Registered nurse.
• Marketing specialist.
• Police officer.
• Truck Driver.
• Operations manager.
• Lawyer.
• Software developer.

What is the #1 job in America?

A separate 2020 ranking by Glassdoor of “50 Best Jobs in America” listed front-end engineers (computer programmers who make a median base salary of $105,240 a year) at No. 1 — knocking data scientists from the No. 3 spot to the No. 4 spot after four years, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

What is the most rare job?

There are only 370 private household chefs (associated with an establishment) in the U.S., making this the rarest job of all. According to the BLS, they make $31,080 a year, on average. The mean annual pay across all professions in the U.S. is $45,230.

What is the biggest job?

50 Careers With Largest Employment

#	Occupations	Worker in ’10
1	Retail salespersons	4,489,200
2	Cashiers, except gaming	3,550,000
3	Office clerks, general	3,024,400
4	Combined food preparation and serving workers, including fast food	2,701,700

Which job has highest salary?

• 1) Medical Professionals (Doctors & Surgeons)
• 2) Data Scientist.
• 3) Machine Learning Experts.
• 4) Blockchain Developer.
• 5) Full Stack Software Developer.
• 6) Product Management.
• 7) Management Consultant.
• Investment Banker.

Which govt job has highest salary?

Top 10 Highest Paying Government Jobs in India

• Indian Foreign Services. Indian foreign Services officers are selected through Civil Services exams conducted by the UPSC.
• IAS and IPS.
• Defense Services.
• Scientists/Engineers in ISRO, DRDO.
• RBI Grade B.
• PSU.
• Indian Forest Services.
• State Service Commissions.

What is the most wanted job?

Here are the top 15 in-demand jobs in 2021 along with the education levels and skills needed to land them.

1. Frontline Ecommerce Worker.
2. Loan and Mortgage Experts.
3. Health Care Supporting Staff.
4. Business Development and Sales Professionals.
5. Experts in Workplace Diversity.
6. Digital Marketing Professionals.
7. Nurses.

What are the happiest jobs?

The 10 Happiest and Most Satisfying Jobs

• Dental Hygienist.
• Physical Therapist.
• Radiation Therapist.
• Optometrist.
• Human Resources Manager.

What are the most fun jobs?

12 of the most fun jobs in every field

1. Video game designer. National average salary: $10.80 per hour.
2. Fashion consultant. National average salary: $10.87 per hour.
3. Radio announcer. National average salary: $13.61 per hour.
4. Event planner.
5. Race car driving instructor.
6. Pet groomer.
7. Race car mechanic.
8. Sommelier.

What job makes a lot of money?

Get Matched!

• Anesthesiologist. #1 in Best Paying Jobs.
• Surgeon. #2 in Best Paying Jobs.
• Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon. #3 in Best Paying Jobs.
• Obstetrician and Gynecologist. #4 in Best Paying Jobs.
• Orthodontist. #5 in Best Paying Jobs.
• Prosthodontist. #6 in Best Paying Jobs.
• Psychiatrist. #7 in Best Paying Jobs.
• Physician.

What’s a fun job that makes a lot of money?

Jobs that pay between $60,000 and $90,000 and evoke minimal stress include dietician, audiologist, technical writer, hydrologist and geographer. With competitive salaries above $100,000, enjoyable careers include mathematician, astronomer, orthodontist, physicist and political scientist.

What are easy jobs?

25 Easy Part-Time Jobs

1. Appointment Setter. If you have good communication skills, appointment setting could be the job for you.
2. Brand Ambassador.
3. Classroom or Library Monitor.
4. Customer Service.
5. Data Entry.
6. Delivery Driver.
7. Fitness Instructor.
8. Food/Product Demonstrations.

What is the best job in the world?

Here are the top 13 best jobs in 2019, according to U.S. New & World Report:

• Nurse Anesthetist (tie)
• Nurse practitioner.
• Pediatrician.
• Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon (tie)
• Obstetrician and Gynecologist (tie)
• Physician (tie)
• Prosthodontist (tie) Median salary: $185,150.
• Occupational Therapist. Median salary: $83,200.

Definition

The Australian Council of Professions defines a ‘Profession‘ as:

A Profession is a disciplined group of individuals who adhere to ethical standards and who hold themselves out as, and are accepted by the public as possessing special knowledge and skills in a widely recognised body of learning derived from research, education and training at a high level, and who are prepared to apply this knowledge and exercise these skills in the interest of others. 

It is inherent in the definition of a Profession that a code of ethics governs the activities of each Profession.  Such codes require behaviour and practice beyond the personal moral obligations of an individual.  They define and demand high standards of behaviour in respect to the services provided to the public and in dealing with professional colleagues.  Often these codes are enforced by the Profession and are acknowledged and accepted by the community.

Australian Council of Professions, 2003

Being a member of a Profession, e.g. a ‘Professional‘, is generally seen as an indicator of integrity, ethics, trust and expertise.

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Download the new Why Professionalism Matters More than Ever! White Paper below

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Includes more definitions, citation approval and instructions!

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What is a Professional?

Traditionally, a ‘Professional‘ is someone who derives their income from their specific knowledge or experience – as opposed to a worker, hobbyist or amateur without formal education.  This meaning still carries through today to areas such as sport.  However, in the Professions, a “Professional” has a broader meaning, typically around some moral or ethical foundation within the practice of a specific and usually established expertise.

A Professional is a member of a Profession.  Professionals are governed by codes of ethics and profess commitment to competence, integrity and morality, altruism and the promotion of the public good within their expert domain. Professionals are accountable to those they serve and to society.^{1 2}

Evetts, J., ‘Sociological Analysis of Professionalism: Past, Present and Future’, Comparative Sociology 10, 2011
— Freidson, E., ‘Professionalism: The Third Logic’, Polity Press, London, 2001

What is Professionalism?

‘Professionalism’ is defined as the personally held beliefs of a Professional about their own conduct as a member of a Profession. It is often linked to the upholding of the principles, laws, ethics and conventions of a Profession in the form of a code of practice.

Why is Professionalism still relevant?

The relevance and value of professional conduct are regularly questioned. In 2010 our then President Don Larkin invited Dr George Beaton, Associate Professor at the University of Melbourne and Chairman of beaton, to write a seminal essay on Why Professionalism is Still Relevant.

The essay maintains that ‘ethical considerations and obligations lead to and maintain trust in the parts of those served and are the essence of professionalism.  There is no definition of professionalism – even a rough outline of professionalism’s characteristics – that does not include a central component of ethics and altruism.’

Dr Beaton also contends that ‘as long as professionals and professions hold on to this essence of professionalism – even, and especially, in an age of globalisation – they will survive and flourish, and professionalism will fulfil its role in serving humanity.’

Why professionalism matters more than ever?

We are delighted to publish George Beaton’s second white paper which follows his seminal essay exploring how professional associations and professional service contribute to professionalism, and its impact of culture, economics, technology and government.

“When you allow an anaesthetist to put you under for an operation, you place great faith in their competence. When you consult a lawyer to defend you against a baseless accusation, you hope they understand both the legal system and your situation. When you engage an architect, you expect them to design a building that will not only be a pleasure to occupy, but also fire-proof, structurally sound and stable over the long-term. In each case you’re relying on another person’s qualifications, expertise and experience. More than that, you’re relying on something that’s more important and also harder to pin down: their professionalism” (George Beaton, 2022)

But what is professionalism, how is it faring today and what are the implications for professionals, professional services firms and related organisations and institutions?

These are just some of the important issues that George Beaton addresses in his second white paper aptly titled, ‘Why professionalism matters more than ever’ focusing on the key attributes that have always defined and distinguished them: altruism, ethics and trustworthiness.

Read the new White Paper here!

If you would like more information or wish to cite the above definitions, please download our information sheet. If you have other questions, please contact us on 1300 664 587 or WIP@Professions.org.au.