Top Paying Jobs Overall
Great Jobs for Tax Season and Beyond
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Physicians and surgeons — $147,000
Aircraft pilots — $133,500
Chief executives — $116,000
Electrical and electronic engineers — $112,000
Lawyers and judges — $99,800
Dentists — $90,000
Pharmacists — $85,500
Management analysts — $84,700
Computer and information system managers — $83,000
Financial analysts, managers and advisors — $84,000
Marketing and sales managers — $80,000
Education administrators — $80,000

Though many of these occupations require an advanced degree, there are jobs at every education level that pay more than other jobs for workers with similar levels of schooling. Here, courtesy of the Employment Policy Foundation, is a look at the best-paying occupations at varying education levels:

Top Paying Jobs That Do Not Require a High School Degree
These jobs tend to require substantial on-the-job training and work experience rather than formal education and schooling:

Industrial production managers — $36,000
Bailiffs, correctional officers and jailers — $36,400
Drafters — $36,000
Construction manager — $33,600
Electricians — $31,900

Top Paying Jobs for High School Graduates
These occupations emphasize work experience and on-the-job training rather than formal education:

Computer software engineers — $58,900
Computer/information systems managers — $56,400
Computer programmers — $55,000
Network systems and data communications analysts — $49,000
General and operations managers — $48,000
Database, network and computer systems administrators — $48,000

Top Paying Jobs for a Two-Year College Degree
The following jobs tend to be technical in nature, emphasizing skills developed on the job as well as job-specific training and certifications:

Healthcare practitioners — $66,000
Business analysts — $58,000
Electrical and electronic engineers — $57,000
Mechanical engineers — $56,800
General and operations managers — $54,000
Computer and information systems managers — $50,400