By  Nan Mooney, Encarta workplace columnist

Not so long ago, if a woman wanted a career, the socially acceptable choices were limited to a teacher or a nurse. How things change. In recent decades, women have infiltrated nearly every profession on every level.

They are airline pilots , astronauts , construction managers and mechanics . According to the Women's Bureau of the Department of Labor, nontraditional jobs -- those in which women still make up less than 25 percent of total employment -- offer higher entry-level wages and a more promising career ladder. It's not always easy, but if a woman today wants to pursue a nontraditional career all she really needs are the proper training and a willingness to persevere.

When Sadie Gurley graduated from college with a degree in economics , she had no idea that her interest in business would propel her to a position as a portfolio manager at a hedge fund. She fell into her first job as a mortgage broker and eventually moved to New York for business school.

"I thought an MBA would be a good idea because everyone seemed to have one," she explains. "Looking back, I don't think it was really necessary. Most people in my position get where they are by working really hard and making a lot of money."

Shortly after moving, she accepted a job at the investment bank Goldman Sachs. Her timing was ideal. They were expanding their mortgage business and, by working 12-hour days and seven-day weeks, Gurley moved up quickly.

"Goldman didn't have much confidence in me," she recalls. "I know because they told me so. So I worked really, really hard to prove them wrong."

Her efforts paid off.  She was promoted to vice president, entering a rarefied, mostly male realm, and shortly afterwards accepted a job on the trading desk, also quite heavily male.

"As I moved up, being a woman became more of a challenge," she recalls.  "At some point it made sense to move to someplace with less institutional culture."

Today Gurley inhabits a more intimate but equally intense environment, as a portfolio manager for a hedge fund. Though she still works long hours, she chose a company where kids and family are highly valued. She's the only woman at her level in the New York office, but as long as she performs well, she doesn't see that as a hindrance.

"I don't think of my success in terms of gender," she offers. "I've succeeded because I've worked hard and I truly enjoy what I do."

In the still-small world of female electricians -- only 1.9 percent in the U.S. are women -- Trish Coley is a true pioneer. When she signed on to work at Boeing in 1975, she was the first female journeyman electrician since World War II.

As a single mother, Coley knew she needed a career that would earn her enough to support a family. She'd been involved in the civil rights movement, including a push to desegregate the mostly white male trade unions, and realized the perfect job was right under her nose.

"It was a natural fit," says Coley. "I grew up on a farm and I've always been comfortable with tools. Plus I love working outdoors."

Most electricians train by completing apprenticeship programs with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers that combine paid, on-the-job training with classroom instruction. Alternatively, training programs are offered through vocational schools and community colleges . Coley opted for the latter.

"It was hard being one of the first women," she admits, describing how her male co-workers would intentionally put her in dangerous situations. "The initial reaction for a lot of people was that I was taking a man's job."

Coley persevered, drawn by the good money and sense of accomplishment the job provided. Today she's risen to electrical foreman for the King County detention centers, in charge of all three detention facilities in the Seattle area. She oversees everything from light-bulb changes to cutting-edge electronic security systems.

"I'd encourage young women today to go into the trade," she says. "But I'd also be honest about what that entails. You have to be extremely ethical in your approach. Electrical work depends on a team that works together well. You have to command respect from your co-workers, or the team doesn't function. And that respect is still harder for women to achieve."

For Dr. Elizabeth Joneschild, the decision to go down a traditionally male career path started as early as grade school.

"My dad was a doctor ," she explains. "And I've always known that was what I wanted to do."

As a teenager she met a family friend who was the pit doctor for the local hydroplane races. The same afternoon she decided she wanted to become an orthopedic surgeon.

Joneschild had finished four years of medical school and the first of her five years of her surgical residency before she further refined her specialty. As a college soccer player and longtime athlete, she had always assumed she would go into sports medicine.

But her mentors -- all of them men -- were primarily hand surgeons. She was drawn to the precision, the variety in patients, and the fact that she could work with a full range of tendons, bones and nerves. Though only 3 percent of orthopedic surgeons are women, Joneschild doesn't see her gender as a roadblock.

"Sure you have to prove yourself to the guys early on," she admits. "But the way you prove yourself is by doing the best possible job. And I planned on doing that anyway. Once you've cleared that hurdle, I think it can help to be a woman. At the end of the day, most men enjoy being around women."

Today, Joneschild's days are split between seeing patients in the clinic and the operating room. She spends one day a week just observing the senior surgeons in her practice. One of her favorite aspects of the job is that there continues to be a tremendous amount to learn.

"There's a lot of training involved. I didn't start working until I was 34 years old and that was frustrating at times,"she admits. "But the payoff is that I love my job. I can't imagine doing anything else."

Nan Mooney is author of "Keeping Up With Our Parents: The Decline of the Professional Middle Class,"  "I Can't Believe She Did That: Why Women Betray Other Women at Work," and "My Racing Heart: The Passionate World of Thoroughbreds and the Track. "