There may be such a thing as having the absolute best job.
The research team at CareerCast thinks a particular role's attractiveness comes down to a variety of measurable factors.
Using data from Bureau of Labor Statistics and other resources, CareerCast ranked the 200 most common jobs in the U.S. according to several key factors, including median salary, expected job growth over the coming years, level of competition, amount of physical work required, safety hazards and amount of stress.
The team used these factors to determine an overall score for each job and come up with the top 10 professions.
"The best jobs do underscore that while college may not be the golden ticket in the labor force that it once was," CareerCast online editor Kyle Kensing tells CNBC, "it's still incredibly valuable for getting into high-growth, high-paid careers."
Here are the 10 best jobs in 2017, according to the report:
10. Speech pathologist
Salary: $73,410
Expected job growth: 21 percent
9. Occupational therapist
Salary: $80,150
Expected job growth: 27 percent
8. Software engineer
Salary: $100,690
Expected job growth: 17 percent
7. Mathematician
Salary: $111,100
Expected job growth: 21 percent
6. University professor
Salary: $72,470
Expected job growth: 13 percent
5. Data scientist
Salary: $111,267
Expected job growth: 16 percent
4. Information security analyst
Salary: $90,120
Expected job growth: 18 percent
3. Operations research analyst
Salary: $78,630
Expected job growth: 30 percent
2. Medical services manager
Salary: $94,500
Expected job growth: 17 percent
1. Statistician
Salary: $80,110
Expected job growth: 34 percent
