Not all jobs are treated the same — and not all require a college degree to have a successful career.
Data journalism website Stacker sought to find the highest-paying jobs that don’t require a college degree in New York City. It consulted the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook to compile a list of all jobs that don’t require higher education.
All professions that listed a high school diploma, some college education (without a degree conferred), post-secondary non-degree award, or no formal education requirements for entry-level positions were considered in this list. Jobs were ranked by their annual mean wage in 2020.
Here are the top 50 highest-paying jobs that don’t require a college degree, in addition to their annual wage.
Note: The jobs include positions available in the New York City metro area, which includes New York City, Newark and Jersey City.
50. Costume attendants — $78,390
49. Rail car repairers — $78,660
48. Aircraft mechanics and service technicians — $78,740
47. Tapers — $79,550
46. Control and valve installers and repairers — $80,950
45. Food service managers — $81,330
44. Telecommunications line installers and repairers — $81,590
43. Signal and track switch repairs — $81,670
42. Millwrights — $81,770
41. Fabric and apparel patternmakers — $82,710
40. Petroleum pump system operators, refinery operators, and gaugers — $83,660
39. Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing — $83,980
38. Electricians — $84,190
37. Postmasters and mail superintendents — $84,280
36. Claims adjusters, examiners, and investigators — $84,380
35. Structural iron and steel workers — $84,880
34. Firefighters — $85,040
33. Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels — $85,940
32. First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers — $86,060
31. Elevator and escalator installers and repairers — $87,300
30. Sales representatives of services — $87,700
29. Electrical and electronics repairers, powerhouse, substation, and relay — $87,820
28. Terrazzo workers and finishers — $89,220
27. Stationary engineers and boiler operators — $90,880
26. Court reporters and simultaneous captioners — $91,560
25. Gas plant operators — $92,160
24. Advertising sales agents — $92,370
23. Insurance sales agents — $92,650
22. Electrical power-line installers and repairers — $94,950
21. Power plant operators — $94,960
20. Ship engineers — $95,380
19. Operating engineers and other construction equipment operators — $96,440
18. Lodging managers — $97,680
17. Real estate sales agents — $98,580
16. First-line supervisors of construction trades and extraction workers — $99,410
15. Boilermakers — $103,050
14. Detectives and criminal investigators — $104,230
13. Farmers, ranchers, and other agricultural managers — $105,370
12. Pile driver operations — $106,160
11. Insulation workers, mechanical — $106,690
10. Power distributors and dispatchers — $107,600
9. First-line supervisors of correctional officers — $113,070
8. Property, real estate, and community association managers — $113,800
7. First-line supervisors of non-retail sales workers— $115,000
6. Makeup artists, theatrical and performance— $121,600
5. First-line supervisor of firefighting and prevention workers — $128,210
4. Transportation, storage and distribution managers — $131,860
3. First-line supervisors of police and detectives — $133,880
2. Real estate brokers — $134,770
1. Athletes and sports competitors— $197,690