Healthcare is rare bright spot in employment picture

Minneapolis — Emily Zabor graduated with a master's degree in biostatistics from the University of Minnesota this year, right in the middle of the worst job markets in decades.

No problem. "I expected to have good prospects," Zabor said. "I knew it was a field that was growing."

Even before graduating, Zabor accepted a $75,000-a-year job at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, helping to design and analyze clinical studies. In fact, all 21 students in Zabor's program have found work, with drug companies, medical device firms and public health agencies.