Industries where entry-level jobs want AI skills
Key facts
- #1 Technology & Software, Industry: 20%
- #2 Media & Entertainment, Industry: 10%
- #3 Construction & Real Estate, Industry: 8%
- 17 industries ranked across all industries
- Data as of November 2026
For comparison: 7% across all industries.
- 1Technology & Software Industry20%
- 2Media & Entertainment Industry10%
- 3Construction & Real Estate Industry8%
- 4Agriculture & Food Production Industry7%
- 5Financial Services & Banking Industry7%
- 6Aerospace & Defense Industry6%
- 7Healthcare & Hospital Systems Industry5%
- 8Pharmaceuticals & Biotech Industry4%
- 9Professional Services & Consulting Industry4%
- 10Energy & Utilities Industry4%
What stands out
- The lead is wide: Technology & Software (20%) is well clear of Energy & Utilities at #10 (4%).
- Agriculture & Food Production reaches #4 on a sample of 668 entry-level openings, a smaller market than most of the top ten, so its rank can move more from month to month.
- Technology & Software is the largest market in the top ten, with 16,644 entry-level openings behind its figure.
- Industries with fewer than 200 entry-level openings are not ranked, and small differences between neighbouring ranks are not meaningful.
Why this ranking matters
What it shows
Entry-level roles used to ask for little technical background. When they ask for AI skills, the starting line has moved. This list shows where that has happened most.
How to use it
If you are applying for first roles, learn the tools named in the postings you want and show a small project that uses them.
The top 25
- 1
Technology & Software Industry
20%
- Entry-level AI openings
- 3,311
- Entry-level openings
- 16,644
- Median posted pay
- $185k
Based on 16,644 openings.
- 2
Media & Entertainment Industry
10%
- Entry-level AI openings
- 180
- Entry-level openings
- 1,864
- Median posted pay
- $138k
Based on 1,864 openings.
- 3
Construction & Real Estate Industry
8%
- Entry-level AI openings
- 121
- Entry-level openings
- 1,444
- Median posted pay
- $115k
Based on 1,444 openings.
- 4
Agriculture & Food Production Industry
7%
- Entry-level AI openings
- 49
- Entry-level openings
- 668
- Median posted pay
- $119k
Based on 668 openings.
- 5
Financial Services & Banking Industry
7%
- Entry-level AI openings
- 651
- Entry-level openings
- 9,089
- Median posted pay
- $157k
Based on 9,089 openings.
- 6
Aerospace & Defense Industry
6%
- Entry-level AI openings
- 280
- Entry-level openings
- 4,990
- Median posted pay
- $148k
Based on 4,990 openings.
- 7
Healthcare & Hospital Systems Industry
5%
- Entry-level AI openings
- 345
- Entry-level openings
- 7,417
- Median posted pay
- $140k
Based on 7,417 openings.
- 8
Pharmaceuticals & Biotech Industry
4%
- Entry-level AI openings
- 115
- Entry-level openings
- 2,604
- Median posted pay
- $183k
Based on 2,604 openings.
- 9
Professional Services & Consulting Industry
4%
- Entry-level AI openings
- 224
- Entry-level openings
- 5,470
- Median posted pay
- $135k
Based on 5,470 openings.
Professional Services & Consulting jobs, employers and outlook
- 10
Energy & Utilities Industry
4%
- Entry-level AI openings
- 100
- Entry-level openings
- 2,798
- Median posted pay
- $140k
Based on 2,798 openings.
- 11
Telecommunications Industry
3%
- Entry-level AI openings
- 8
- Entry-level openings
- 272
- Median posted pay
- $101k
Based on 272 openings.
- 12
Retail & E-commerce Industry
3%
- Entry-level AI openings
- 177
- Entry-level openings
- 6,149
- Median posted pay
- $128k
Based on 6,149 openings.
- 13
Manufacturing & Industrial Industry
3%
- Entry-level AI openings
- 388
- Entry-level openings
- 13,949
- Median posted pay
- $130k
Based on 13,949 openings.
- 14
Transportation & Logistics Industry
3%
- Entry-level AI openings
- 62
- Entry-level openings
- 2,279
- Median posted pay
- $118k
Based on 2,279 openings.
- 15
Nonprofit & Social Impact Industry
3%
- Entry-level AI openings
- 50
- Entry-level openings
- 1,915
- Median posted pay
- $113k
Based on 1,915 openings.
- 16
Education & EdTech Industry
3%
- Entry-level AI openings
- 114
- Entry-level openings
- 4,378
- Median posted pay
- $98k
Based on 4,378 openings.
- 17
Government & Public Sector Industry
2%
- Entry-level AI openings
- 66
- Entry-level openings
- 3,257
- Median posted pay
- $113k
Based on 3,257 openings.
Full ranking
All 17 industries that qualified, with the figure each is ranked on.
| Rank | Industry | Score | Sample |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Technology & Software Industry | 20% | 16,644 |
| 2 | Media & Entertainment Industry | 10% | 1,864 |
| 3 | Construction & Real Estate Industry | 8% | 1,444 |
| 4 | Agriculture & Food Production Industry | 7% | 668 |
| 5 | Financial Services & Banking Industry | 7% | 9,089 |
| 6 | Aerospace & Defense Industry | 6% | 4,990 |
| 7 | Healthcare & Hospital Systems Industry | 5% | 7,417 |
| 8 | Pharmaceuticals & Biotech Industry | 4% | 2,604 |
| 9 | Professional Services & Consulting Industry | 4% | 5,470 |
| 10 | Energy & Utilities Industry | 4% | 2,798 |
| 11 | Telecommunications Industry | 3% | 272 |
| 12 | Retail & E-commerce Industry | 3% | 6,149 |
| 13 | Manufacturing & Industrial Industry | 3% | 13,949 |
| 14 | Transportation & Logistics Industry | 3% | 2,279 |
| 15 | Nonprofit & Social Impact Industry | 3% | 1,915 |
| 16 | Education & EdTech Industry | 3% | 4,378 |
| 17 | Government & Public Sector Industry | 2% | 3,257 |
How this ranking works
A industry's score is the share of its entry-level and early-career roles whose posting names at least one AI skill or tool.
The industry is the one our crawler assigns to the employer. Only industries with at least 200 entry-level openings are ranked, and only roles verified on the employer's own career site in the last week are counted.
Sample bar: industries with fewer than 200 openings are not ranked.
Sources: NextChapter job data: open professional roles on employer career sites, verified in the last week. Data as of November 2026.
Our job data covers professional roles on the career sites of employers we track, so figures describe that market, not every job. Spot an error? Tell us.
Questions
- Which industry ranks first: industries where entry-level jobs want ai skills?
- Technology & Software leads: 20% of its entry-level openings ask for AI skills, against 7% across all industries.
- How many industries are ranked?
- 17 industries have at least 200 entry-level openings, so the list has 17 entries.
- How is the ranking calculated?
- A industry's score is the share of its entry-level and early-career roles whose posting names at least one AI skill or tool. The industry is the one our crawler assigns to the employer. Only industries with at least 200 entry-level openings are ranked, and only roles verified on the employer's own career site in the last week are counted.
- How often is it updated?
- Every month. This is the November 2026 edition. Older editions stay on this site at their own dated addresses.
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- Best cities for entry-level jobs that want AI skills in the Northeast
- Best cities for entry-level jobs that want AI skills in New England
- Best cities for entry-level jobs that want AI skills in the Mid-Atlantic
- Best cities for entry-level jobs that want AI skills in the Southeast
- Best cities for entry-level jobs that want AI skills in the Southwest
- Best cities for entry-level jobs that want AI skills in the Midwest
- All rankings
Cite this ranking
NextChapter, “Industries where entry-level jobs want AI skills,” November 2026 edition. https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/industries-where-entry-level-jobs-want-ai
Link to it: <a href="https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/industries-where-entry-level-jobs-want-ai">Industries where entry-level jobs want AI skills (NextChapter, November 2026)</a>
Download the data: CSV · JSON. Free to use with a link back.
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