While US companies modestly added jobs in August, it will still take a while before unemployment falls to pre-recession levels.

With the prospects still dim for some people who have been put out of work, employment companies have been informing their clients that the slow recovery time might give them some time to polish their skills and education.

Current statistics in the US show for those with less than a high school education, 14% are unemployed.

For a bachelor’s degree or higher, unemployment is at 4.6%.

According to some employment counselors, the post-recession job market will look more service-oriented and require a more professional services skill set than it did before.

Professional skills, which include jobs in finance, accounting, healthcare, information technology and engineering, will require more education.

Growth prospects have been determined as being in the professional skills category, with one of the main growth areas related to clean energy initiatives, especially in wind turbine and solar projects.