I have a cockapoo which is a medium sized dog and he is wonderful!!! Very content no matter what. I say don't listin to the people that say you have to be home. Hogwash!
The fact is that MOST people work all day and have dogs. It is quality vs quantity. Not how much time you spend, but what kind of time you spend when you are together.
Crimeny I have 3 dogs and both my husband and I work. The dogs are fine all day. Bigger one goes in a kennel the rest wait until we get home to go to the bathroom.
Cockers are alright they can be really big babies and have bad seperation anxiety, and urinate accidently when excited or scared. Research them.
A small/med breed is best if going to be in the house most of the day. You can even train small dogs to use a litter box. My friend has pugs and they just lay around all day, but can get up and keep up with her riding horses. Very laid back and mellow.
I am an advocate of your local shelter, and the mixed breed. For some reason these tend to be the best dogs in the world. Breeders will not like that comment, but I don't care. Too many dogs die each year because of breeding and selling. A good share end up in a shelter anyhow. We have 2 purebreds from a shelter.
Have fun, do your research and get what feels right.