Between rising tuition and a tight job market, getting a bachelor's degree is an increasingly daunting prospect these days. Per a May 2024 Pew Research Center survey, just 1 in 4 adults believe a college degree is necessary to secure a high-paying job.
Many second-guess the value of college because of the cost. For the 2024-2025 school year, annual tuition and fees averaged more than $11,600 at in-state public universities, a nearly 3% increase from the previous year. Tuition at private schools increased by roughly 4% in the same time period.
Besides financial concerns, there are career opportunities to consider. Though the job market in the United States shifts from month to month, the unemployment rate for recent college graduates aged 22 to 27 reached 5.8% in March 2025, according to data from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. For context, that's more than double the unemployment rate of all college graduates.
These factors all contribute to the belief that college may not be the answer for everyone. However, research shows that a bachelor's degree still pays off in the long run. As of 2024, the most recent year with available data, the $60,000 median salary for a recent college graduate is $20,000 more than the median earnings for someone with only a high school diploma.
Although high school grads can make a decent salary without taking on student loan debt, lifetime earnings range between $630,000 and $900,000 more for those with a bachelor's degree. Graduate degree holders, meanwhile, may earn $1.1 million to $1.5 million more than high school graduates.
With this in mind, many different jobs make a degree worth the cost of tuition. Stacker ranked the highest-paying jobs that require a bachelor's degree in Tampa, using annual compensation data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
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#50. Materials engineers
- Median annual wage: $89,990
- Median hourly wage: $43.26
- Total employment: 110 people (0.08 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#49. Bioengineers and biomedical engineers
- Median annual wage: $90,390
- Median hourly wage: $43.46
- Total employment: 110 people (0.07 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#48. Social scientists and related workers, all other
- Median annual wage: $91,890
- Median hourly wage: $44.18
- Total employment: 240 people (0.17 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#47. Management analysts
- Median annual wage: $92,250
- Median hourly wage: $44.35
- Total employment: 10,520 people (7.29 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#46. Special effects artists and animators
- Median annual wage: $92,720
- Median hourly wage: $44.58
- Total employment: Not available
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#45. Geoscientists, except hydrologists and geographers
- Median annual wage: $92,750
- Median hourly wage: $44.59
- Total employment: 150 people (0.1 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#44. Mechanical engineers
- Median annual wage: $93,610
- Median hourly wage: $45.01
- Total employment: 1,260 people (0.87 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#43. Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing, technical and scientific products
- Median annual wage: $94,700
- Median hourly wage: $45.53
- Total employment: 2,230 people (1.54 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#42. Computer programmers
- Median annual wage: $97,140
- Median hourly wage: $46.70
- Total employment: 680 people (0.47 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#41. Network and computer systems administrators
- Median annual wage: $97,220
- Median hourly wage: $46.74
- Total employment: 3,540 people (2.45 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#40. Advertising and promotions managers
- Median annual wage: $97,280
- Median hourly wage: $46.77
- Total employment: 160 people (0.11 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#39. Administrative services managers
- Median annual wage: $97,290
- Median hourly wage: $46.78
- Total employment: 2,040 people (1.41 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#38. Project management specialists
- Median annual wage: $97,340
- Median hourly wage: $46.80
- Total employment: 9,980 people (6.92 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#37. Marine engineers and naval architects
- Median annual wage: $99,050
- Median hourly wage: $47.62
- Total employment: Not available
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#36. Financial risk specialists
- Median annual wage: $99,380
- Median hourly wage: $47.78
- Total employment: 890 people (0.62 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#35. Industrial engineers
- Median annual wage: $100,090
- Median hourly wage: $48.12
- Total employment: 2,200 people (1.52 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#34. Actuaries
- Median annual wage: $100,630
- Median hourly wage: $48.38
- Total employment: 390 people (0.27 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#33. Computer hardware engineers
- Median annual wage: $100,720
- Median hourly wage: $48.42
- Total employment: 470 people (0.33 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#32. Database administrators
- Median annual wage: $100,770
- Median hourly wage: $48.45
- Total employment: 600 people (0.41 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#31. Construction managers
- Median annual wage: $100,810
- Median hourly wage: $48.47
- Total employment: 4,920 people (3.41 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#30. Civil engineers
- Median annual wage: $102,010
- Median hourly wage: $49.04
- Total employment: 3,190 people (2.21 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#29. Computer systems analysts
- Median annual wage: $102,120
- Median hourly wage: $49.10
- Total employment: 7,350 people (5.1 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#28. Engineers, all other
- Median annual wage: $102,310
- Median hourly wage: $49.19
- Total employment: 950 people (0.66 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#27. Medical and health services managers
- Median annual wage: $103,320
- Median hourly wage: $49.67
- Total employment: Not available
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#26. Managers, all other
- Median annual wage: $104,060
- Median hourly wage: $50.03
- Total employment: 7,220 people (5.0 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#25. Information security analysts
- Median annual wage: $104,260
- Median hourly wage: $50.12
- Total employment: 2,770 people (1.92 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#24. Electrical engineers
- Median annual wage: $104,440
- Median hourly wage: $50.21
- Total employment: 1,100 people (0.77 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#23. Health and safety engineers, except mining safety engineers and inspectors
- Median annual wage: $104,560
- Median hourly wage: $50.27
- Total employment: 270 people (0.19 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#22. Natural sciences managers
- Median annual wage: $105,860
- Median hourly wage: $50.90
- Total employment: 640 people (0.44 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#21. Electronics engineers, except computer
- Median annual wage: $107,710
- Median hourly wage: $51.78
- Total employment: 510 people (0.35 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#20. General and operations managers
- Median annual wage: $107,960
- Median hourly wage: $51.90
- Total employment: 36,850 people (25.55 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#19. Industrial production managers
- Median annual wage: $109,640
- Median hourly wage: $52.71
- Total employment: 1,360 people (0.94 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#18. Training and development managers
- Median annual wage: $111,290
- Median hourly wage: $53.50
- Total employment: 460 people (0.32 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#17. Data scientists
- Median annual wage: $112,310
- Median hourly wage: $53.99
- Total employment: 1,640 people (1.14 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#16. Fundraising managers
- Median annual wage: $118,060
- Median hourly wage: $56.76
- Total employment: 110 people (0.08 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#15. Purchasing managers
- Median annual wage: $122,680
- Median hourly wage: $58.98
- Total employment: 600 people (0.41 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#14. Public relations managers
- Median annual wage: $124,370
- Median hourly wage: $59.80
- Total employment: 380 people (0.26 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#13. Software developers
- Median annual wage: $126,380
- Median hourly wage: $60.76
- Total employment: 14,520 people (10.07 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#12. Aerospace engineers
- Median annual wage: $126,410
- Median hourly wage: $60.77
- Total employment: 150 people (0.11 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#11. Compensation and benefits managers
- Median annual wage: $126,780
- Median hourly wage: $60.95
- Total employment: 250 people (0.17 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#10. Sales managers
- Median annual wage: $127,610
- Median hourly wage: $61.35
- Total employment: 5,530 people (3.84 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#9. Computer network architects
- Median annual wage: $129,740
- Median hourly wage: $62.37
- Total employment: 1,360 people (0.94 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#8. Human resources managers
- Median annual wage: $130,340
- Median hourly wage: $62.66
- Total employment: 1,780 people (1.23 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#7. Database architects
- Median annual wage: $130,630
- Median hourly wage: $62.80
- Total employment: 370 people (0.26 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#6. Sales engineers
- Median annual wage: $135,690
- Median hourly wage: $65.23
- Total employment: 390 people (0.27 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#5. Marketing managers
- Median annual wage: $139,230
- Median hourly wage: $66.94
- Total employment: 3,090 people (2.14 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#4. Financial managers
- Median annual wage: $147,920
- Median hourly wage: $71.12
- Total employment: 7,980 people (5.53 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#3. Computer and information systems managers
- Median annual wage: $166,470
- Median hourly wage: $80.04
- Total employment: 5,860 people (4.06 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#2. Architectural and engineering managers
- Median annual wage: $166,630
- Median hourly wage: $80.11
- Total employment: 1,320 people (0.92 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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#1. Airline pilots, copilots, and flight engineers
- Median annual wage: $226,130
- Median hourly wage: Not available
- Total employment: 200 people (0.14 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
This story features data reporting by Wade Zhou, writing by Jill Jaracz, and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 364 metros.
