Posted on 02/10/2008 6:12:14 PM PST by 2ndDivisionVet
As we each search for our personal pot of gold, many of us wonder whether the rainbow leading us to a six-figure paycheck has to be so long. We want financially rewarding jobs, but not everyone is eager to commit the time and money necessary to complete a medical or law degree.
The good news is that, even though statistics have shown that more education translates to higher earnings, there are still plenty of six-figure salary jobs for those of us who have decided not to take the seven-years-and-a-stethoscope route. The following is a list of seven lucrative fields in which the top-earning 25 percent of workers take home more than $100,000 annually, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). That percentage proves there is real potential for sizeable salaries within these fields, even if your résumé doesn't boast a lengthy list of alma maters.
Though some of these positions are filled by people with graduate degrees, a bachelor's degree and a little initiative could get you well on your way to a six-figure salary.
Sales Managers
Salary of top 25 percent: $127,820*
Median salary: $87,580 What they do: Sales managers establish company or team sales goals and coordinate training programs for sales representatives. They monitor sales statistics and customer satisfaction, and make adjustments to sales strategies as needed.
How to get the job: The educational background of sales managers varies. Managers frequently work their way up the ranks of a company -- often starting as sales representatives -- and many companies have established management training programs.
Securities, Commodities, and Financial Services Sales Agents
Salary of top 25 percent: $123,910
Median salary: $67,130 What they do: Securities, commodities and financial services sales agents buy and sell stocks, bonds and other financial products. They may also inform clients about financial markets and counsel them regarding their financial portfolios.
How to get the job: The majority of financial sales agents have college educations, and have taken courses in business, economics and finance. Securities and commodities agents must pass state licensing examinations, and many firms require agents to complete in-house training programs.
Financial Managers
Salary of top 25 percent: $118,150
Median salary: $86,280
What they do: Financial managers' responsibilities vary, but they generally oversee the preparation of financial reports involved with accounting, investing, banking, insurance and securities. They can also develop financial strategies for their organizations.
How to get the job: Employers expect financial managers to have a bachelor's degree in finance, accounting, economics or business administration, and increasingly expect a master's degree in one of these fields as well. Depending on the company and the specific position, professional certifications such as the Chartered Financial Analyst designation may also be required.
Computer and Information Scientists, Research
Salary of top 25 percent: $113,830
Median salary: $91,230
What they do: Computer and information scientists act as theorists, designers or inventors while developing solutions to computer hardware and software problems and researching computer technology.
How to get the job: A bachelor's degree is usually a prerequisite for filling these positions, with most of the more technically complex jobs reserved for workers with graduate degrees.
Actuaries
Salary of top 25 percent: $112,360
Median salary: $81,640
What they do: Actuaries are often employed in the insurance industry. They assess the potential for various types of risks and design insurance policies and other financial strategies in order to reduce the potential cost of those risks.
How to get the job: In addition to a bachelor's degree, there are a series of examinations that actuaries must complete to gain full professional status.
Personal Financial Advisers
Salary of top 25 percent: $107,470
Median salary: $63,500
What they do: Personal financial advisers provide guidance to clients regarding financial decisions. Many financial advisers specialize in a particular field, such as retirement planning or risk management.
How to get the job: Most financial advisers hold a bachelor's degree in finance, economics or accounting. Certifications such as the Chartered Financial Analyst designation can strengthen an adviser's professional standing.
Public Relations Managers
Salary of top 25 percent: $106,440
Median salary: $76,450
What they do: Public relations managers supervise public relations specialists and act as a liaison between their clients -- usually individuals or companies -- and the public. How to get the job: In addition to experience as a public relations specialist, most employers expect a public relations manager to have a bachelor's degree in public relations or journalism.
* All salaries reported by the BLS.
Six-figure jobs: No brain? No problem! Run for Congress!
Tried the securities/financial industry, didn’t like it at all. Didn’t even bother going for a license.
Don’t believe everything you read in the funny papers: There are still many people making six and seven figure money with a high school diploma in mortgages, financial, sales, etc..
Good, ‘cuz that’s all I have.
Not saying I’m proud of it, but I don’t want to go to a left-leaning establishment. If my high school had a technical program, I’d be doing that right now, whether it be auto, aviation or whatever.
Tech programs work
Or then there's our paramedics...
from KDKA "When it comes to the payroll for the City of Pittsburgh, paramedics were the top-earners last year - all because of overtime."
"A Post-Gazette survey of EMS overtime found three paramedics making more than $130,000 a year and most of that was in OT. Some worked 80-hour work weeks."
Note the paramedics DID put in around 80 hours a week.
Basically ...I'm jus sayin'
prisoner6
Six figures doesn’t go very far these days.
Depends on where you live.
They left out plumbers — they should have been at the top, with making 3000/DAY!!!! — doing a couple of emergency sewer clean up jobs per day — close to $1,000,000 per year.
The US median wage for all workers is about $35,000 a year.
Wow. We hire 5 paramedics down here in north Texas for what Philly pays.
Don’t believe everything you read in the funny papers: There are still many people making six and seven figure money with a high school diploma in mortgages, financial, sales, etc..
That’s quickly coming to an end, particularly in urban job markets.
If you have the talent or aptitude for sales, you only need a Tom Hopkins or Dale Carnegie course and whatever training your company provides to make good money.
I don’t know what those are.
Good article, I sent it to my kid. Thanks for posting it.
Why is the journey so long? Unlike other professions, my computer degree is undercut by poorly paid foreign labor who write “million dollar” code for less and import it into the US without any import duty because it is transmitted THROUGH the internet instead of a shipping port.
trouble is computer programmers are still earning that.
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