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Top Careers in the UK and Europe, and How AI Affects Them
The short answer: across Europe the widest shortages are in health and care (doctors, nurses, physiotherapists and care workers), the building and metal trades (plumbers, carpenters, roofers, electricians and welders) and engineering and digital roles. Clerical jobs are more often in surplus. In the UK, almost 90% of projected net job growth to 2035 is in professional and associate professional work, and those are also the jobs most exposed to AI, especially in finance, law and business services.
For the worldwide picture, see Top Careers and the Impact of AI.
Europe: where the shortages are
The European Labour Authority’s 2025 EURES report, which collects shortage and surplus lists from national employment services across the EU and EEA, finds that shortages reach almost every occupation in at least one country. The most common shortages are:
- Health professionals: generalist and specialist doctors, nurses and physiotherapists. Health and care, which employs about 25 million people, has the most severe and persistent gaps, including care workers.
- Building trades: plumbers, carpenters and roofers, along with electricians and construction engineers.
- Metal trades: welders and sheet metal workers.
Surpluses, where there are more job seekers than jobs, cluster in clerical and elementary occupations, and earlier editions also found designer roles in surplus. Many occupations are short in one country and in surplus in another, so the same skills can be in demand a border away. Cedefop, the EU’s skills agency, projects total EU employment growth of just over 4% from 2023 to 2035, so most job openings will come from replacing people who retire.
The UK: growth in professional work, and the most exposure
- Where the growth is. Projections by the Warwick Institute for Employment Research for the UK government put almost 90% of net job growth to 2035 in professional and associate professional occupations, with health the fastest-growing sector. Administrative and secretarial jobs are projected to shrink.
- Priority careers. Skills England’s first annual skills report (June 2026) picks out construction and digital occupations as likely to see particularly strong growth over the next ten years, and digital roles as the ones most often named as crucial across its ten priority sectors.
- Who is most exposed to AI. The Department for Education found that professional occupations are more exposed than manual ones, especially in finance, law and business management. Management consultants and business analysts, financial managers and directors, and chartered and certified accountants topped its list; finance and insurance is the most exposed sector, and London and the South East the most exposed regions. Sports players, roofers and slaters were among the least exposed.
Top careers in the UK and Europe, and their AI exposure
The AI exposure column borrows the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ August 2026 categories for 831 U.S. occupations. BLS combines theoretical exposure with observed AI interactions mapped to tasks; those interactions do not directly establish on-the-job use by each occupation. The regional labels below are the author’s approximate mappings to U.S. jobs, sometimes grouping several occupations, not locally measured ratings. Tasks, licensing, language, technology and adoption differ across countries. Consult the linked BLS table for the exact U.S. occupation; a grouped regional label is not an official BLS category. Exposure does not predict replacement, productivity, wages or adoption.
| Career | Demand in the UK and Europe | AI exposure | What AI is likely to change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Doctors (GPs and specialists) | Among the most common shortages in Europe | High | Notes, letters and decision support; diagnosis and treatment stay with the doctor |
| Nurses | Widespread shortage; health is the UK’s fastest-growing sector | High | Records and handovers; the bedside care is human |
| Physiotherapists | Common shortage across Europe | High | Exercise plans and admin; the hands-on treatment is not |
| Care workers | Severe, persistent gaps | Moderate | Rotas and care records; the care itself is hard to automate |
| Plumbers | Common shortage | Moderate | Quotes, scheduling and fault diagnosis |
| Electricians | Severe shortage in many countries | Moderate | Design checks and certification paperwork |
| Carpenters and roofers | Common shortage | Low | Little: the work is physical and varied |
| Welders and sheet metal workers | Severe shortage | Low | Robots on factory lines, not on most sites |
| Civil and construction engineers | Shortage across Europe | High | Design options and calculations are faster to produce |
| Software developers and digital roles | A UK priority in every sector | Very high | Code is written faster; demand rises for people who build with AI |
| Management consultants and business analysts | Growing professional work | Very high | Research, slides and first drafts; the most exposed UK job in the DfE study |
| Accountants and financial managers | Growing professional work | Very high | Reconciliations and reporting; judgment and sign-off stay human |
| Clerical and administrative staff | In surplus; projected to shrink in the UK | Very high | Much routine admin can be done by AI tools |
| Graphic designers | Often in surplus | Very high | Drafts and variations are generated; creative direction is what lasts |
What to do with this
- Check your country’s shortage list. Each national employment service publishes one, and EURES gathers them in a single dashboard. A shortage occupation often brings better pay, easier visas and funded training.
- In an exposed professional job, consider appropriate AI skills and how your tasks may change. The exposure study does not measure the size of productivity gains or guarantee better career outcomes.
- Consider a trade or a care career. They are in shortage almost everywhere, are among the least exposed to AI, and in the UK can be entered through an apprenticeship rather than a degree.
- Compare pay across borders before you move. The Salary Comparison by Country tool adjusts pay for local prices, so a job offer in another country can be judged fairly.
Your earning power is the base of Financial wealth, one of the eight dimensions this site measures. The Financial assessment shows how your income, savings and safety net fit together.
Common questions
Which jobs are most in demand in Europe?
The European Labour Authority’s 2025 EURES report finds the most common shortages among doctors, nurses and physiotherapists, building trades such as plumbers, carpenters and roofers, metal trades such as welders and sheet metal workers, and engineering roles. Care workers are also in severe shortage.
Which UK jobs are most exposed to AI?
A Department for Education study found management consultants and business analysts, financial managers and directors, and chartered and certified accountants are the most exposed UK occupations. Finance and insurance is the most exposed sector, and London and the South East are the most exposed regions.
Which careers in the UK are growing fastest?
Projections for the UK government put almost 90% of net job growth to 2035 in professional and associate professional roles, with health the fastest-growing sector. Skills England expects construction and digital occupations to grow particularly strongly.
Are skilled trades safe from AI?
Some hands-on trades have lower relative exposure under the U.S. BLS model, while plumbers and electricians are rated Moderate. Low exposure does not mean safe from future technology or guarantee local demand. Review your country’s vacancies, licensing and training requirements.
Related guides
Use these dated projections and source tables as starting points, not promises about an individual job. A shortage, unmet care need or projected occupation-wide increase is not necessarily a funded local vacancy. Check current local requirements, vacancies and training costs before committing to a career move.
Sources
- Labour shortages and surpluses in Europe 2025, European Labour Authority (EURES)
- Skills forecast, Cedefop
- The impact of AI on UK jobs and training, Department for Education (GOV.UK)
- AI Skills for Life and Work: Labour market and skills projections, GOV.UK
- Skills England annual skills report 2026, Skills England (GOV.UK)
- Generative AI and Jobs: A Refined Global Index of Occupational Exposure (Working Paper 140), International Labour Organization
- Artificial Intelligence (AI) exposure categories, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
This guide is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not financial, career, legal, or tax advice. Projections and AI exposure ratings describe occupations, not individual jobs, and can change as new data is published.
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