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MARQUETTE -- According to the latest job data, Michigan added 19,000 jobs in January, and the unemployment rate has continued to drop.

Our Facebook fans asked which college degrees are faring the best in today's job market?

One field dominated January's job growth. More than half, 16,000, of the new jobs are in the manufacturing sector. The numbers echo the opinions of local career services specialists.

Going back to school was a struggle for Richard Brownell. He lost his job in August 2010 after the Smurfit-Stone Paper Mill closed in Ontonagon. Now, he's set his sights on welding.

"I figure I will find a job, I don't know if it will be in the U.P., maybe it will be in central Wisconsin somewhere," said Brownell. "With Industrial Maintenance, I'll have an associate's degree, plus I've taken the welding courses."

Northern Michigan University career specialists and instructors agree: in the state Michigan, manufacturing is the current 'it' profession.

NMU's Industrial Maintenance Program says Cliffs, Boss Snowplow and Marinette Marine have been active employers for the program's graduates.

"A lot of people are talking about welding and industrial maintenance," said Industrial Maintenance Department Head Daryl Kobie. "Employers say they are not being able to find enough qualified people to fill positions."

Some of our Facebook fans say they aren't convinced.

Chad Robillard says he's had no luck applying for welding jobs across the country for a year. He writes:  "I disagree on the desperate need for welders; I have not had too many calls. I guess no one needs anything welded these days."

"When students and graduates tell me things like that, I first ask how are they marketing themselves, do they know how to locate for job, but many people are reluctant to move," said Stephen LaFond of NMU Career Services.

LaFond says the job market in Marquette County is especially competitive because students graduate from NMU and choose to stay in the area. That leads to an overabundance of skilled workers.

Other jobs in high demand in the U.P. require business, communication, engineering or health care degrees. If applicants are set on staying in the U.P., they may want to focus on those areas.

"If their priority is to stay in the area, then essentially they have to take what kinds of jobs are here," LaFond said.

NMU Career Services also says many employers don't care what applicants have a degree in, but simply that they have one. In those cases, the most sought after skills an applicant can possess are communication, leadership and the ability to be a team player.