
Highest paying jobs in Visalia for high school graduates
Highest paying jobs in Visalia for high school graduates
The average college graduate in 2020 earned $1,305 a week, while the average high school graduate takes home just $781, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Of course, college isn’t for everyone. There are many reasons high-school graduates may choose to not continue on to college, not the least of which being cost. Average tuition costs continue to rise each year, the exception being the 2020-2021 school year, due to the coronavirus pandemic. Average tuition at a public, in-state university coming in at $9,687; tuition for out-of-state students at public schools, and for everyone at private universities, is significantly higher at $21,874 and $35,087, respectively.
Stacker compiled a list of the highest paying jobs for high school graduates in Visalia-Porterville, CA using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Jobs are ranked by 2021 annual mean wage.
Keep reading to see which jobs in your city pay the most for high school graduates.
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#50. Payroll and timekeeping clerks
- Annual mean salary: $48,060
- #150 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 200
National
- Annual mean salary: $48,290
- Employment: 133,870
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($66,600)
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($66,240)
--- Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV ($60,930)
#49. Loan interviewers and clerks
- Annual mean salary: $48,580
- #38 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 80
National
- Annual mean salary: $42,780
- Employment: 204,100
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Salinas, CA ($59,060)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($58,140)
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($56,710)
#48. Excavating and loading machine and dragline operators, surface mining
- Annual mean salary: $48,660
- #85 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 30
National
- Annual mean salary: $48,500
- Employment: 40,240
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT ($87,740)
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($86,630)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($83,090)

#47. Highway maintenance workers
- Annual mean salary: $49,280
- #102 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 50
National
- Annual mean salary: $43,200
- Employment: 149,890
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($70,690)
--- Alaska nonmetropolitan area ($67,370)
--- Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA ($67,340)
#46. First-line supervisors of housekeeping and janitorial workers
- Annual mean salary: $49,360
- #54 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 100
National
- Annual mean salary: $45,500
- Employment: 141,260
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($60,770)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($60,250)
--- Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH ($59,160)
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#45. Security and fire alarm systems installers
- Annual mean salary: $49,420
- #89 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 50
National
- Annual mean salary: $52,150
- Employment: 68,920
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Eugene, OR ($70,940)
--- Salem, OR ($68,640)
--- Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI ($68,520)
#44. Court, municipal, and license clerks
- Annual mean salary: $49,760
- #62 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 170
National
- Annual mean salary: $43,490
- Employment: 156,100
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($66,520)
--- Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA ($62,040)
--- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA ($60,730)

#43. Production, planning, and expediting clerks
- Annual mean salary: $50,350
- #217 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 360
National
- Annual mean salary: $52,000
- Employment: 362,090
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Idaho Falls, ID ($74,970)
--- Norwich-New London-Westerly, CT-RI ($71,160)
--- West North Dakota nonmetropolitan area ($67,770)
#42. Eligibility interviewers, government programs
- Annual mean salary: $50,360
- #100 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 60
National
- Annual mean salary: $47,990
- Employment: 138,820
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($75,570)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($67,900)
--- New Haven, CT ($63,790)

#41. Postal service mail carriers
- Annual mean salary: $51,520
- #482 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 320
National
- Annual mean salary: $53,180
- Employment: 333,570
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Modesto, CA ($57,160)
--- Bismarck, ND ($57,090)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($56,820)
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#40. Separating, filtering, clarifying, precipitating, and still machine setters, operators, and tenders
- Annual mean salary: $51,760
- #31 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 270
National
- Annual mean salary: $46,850
- Employment: 47,930
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Anchorage, AK ($92,800)
--- Western Wyoming nonmetropolitan area ($83,130)
--- Napa, CA ($68,470)

#39. Bus and truck mechanics and diesel engine specialists
- Annual mean salary: $51,830
- #165 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 250
National
- Annual mean salary: $52,090
- Employment: 253,010
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($75,900)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($73,400)
--- Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT ($70,480)
#38. Glaziers
- Annual mean salary: $52,280
- #64 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 40
National
- Annual mean salary: $50,970
- Employment: 52,190
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Olympia-Tumwater, WA ($78,840)
--- Salem, OR ($78,000)
--- Hawaii / Kauai nonmetropolitan area ($76,680)

#37. Self-enrichment teachers
- Annual mean salary: $53,120
- #38 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 200
National
- Annual mean salary: $47,930
- Employment: 222,700
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA ($70,350)
--- Kahului-Wailuku-Lahaina, HI ($66,650)
--- Utica-Rome, NY ($63,470)
#36. Cooling and freezing equipment operators and tenders
- Annual mean salary: $53,660
- #4 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 80
National
- Annual mean salary: $39,610
- Employment: 8,020
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD ($61,370)
--- Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX ($58,810)
--- Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX ($56,960)
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#35. Public safety telecommunicators
- Annual mean salary: $54,320
- #50 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 90
National
- Annual mean salary: $45,800
- Employment: 93,290
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($97,380)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($92,790)
--- Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA ($76,950)
#34. Automotive body and related repairers
- Annual mean salary: $55,070
- #50 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 100
National
- Annual mean salary: $49,430
- Employment: 137,120
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Ann Arbor, MI ($71,350)
--- Ames, IA ($68,340)
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($68,060)

#33. Carpenters
- Annual mean salary: $55,530
- #100 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 580
National
- Annual mean salary: $54,200
- Employment: 699,300
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Urban Honolulu, HI ($81,730)
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($78,680)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($78,280)

#32. Mobile heavy equipment mechanics, except engines
- Annual mean salary: $55,580
- #176 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 100
National
- Annual mean salary: $57,000
- Employment: 147,680
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Fairbanks, AK ($86,740)
--- Urban Honolulu, HI ($82,520)
--- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA ($79,470)

#31. Postal service clerks
- Annual mean salary: $55,690
- #48 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 80
National
- Annual mean salary: $51,200
- Employment: 86,950
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Houma-Thibodaux, LA ($59,410)
--- Florence, SC ($59,360)
--- Monroe, MI ($59,320)
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#30. Food service managers
- Annual mean salary: $55,830
- #343 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 250
National
- Annual mean salary: $61,000
- Employment: 197,010
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Trenton, NJ ($91,320)
--- Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA ($89,860)
--- Kahului-Wailuku-Lahaina, HI ($87,750)

#29. Water and wastewater treatment plant and system operators
- Annual mean salary: $57,570
- #94 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 190
National
- Annual mean salary: $51,890
- Employment: 119,380
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($93,980)
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($92,370)
--- Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV ($87,990)

#28. First-line supervisors of landscaping, lawn service, and groundskeeping workers
- Annual mean salary: $57,690
- #57 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 90
National
- Annual mean salary: $54,040
- Employment: 103,730
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Madera, CA ($76,040)
--- Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT ($74,800)
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($73,360)

#27. Lodging managers
- Annual mean salary: $57,820
- #149 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 40
National
- Annual mean salary: $65,270
- Employment: 31,790
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Hawaii / Kauai nonmetropolitan area ($122,290)
--- Kahului-Wailuku-Lahaina, HI ($121,090)
--- Urban Honolulu, HI ($111,410)

#26. Property, real estate, and community association managers
- Annual mean salary: $58,120
- #249 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 230
National
- Annual mean salary: $73,210
- Employment: 219,800
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA ($109,540)
--- Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO ($106,420)
--- Piedmont North Carolina nonmetropolitan area ($105,220)
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#25. Industrial machinery mechanics
- Annual mean salary: $58,350
- #196 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 420
National
- Annual mean salary: $57,350
- Employment: 385,980
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Fairbanks, AK ($85,900)
--- Lake Charles, LA ($85,360)
--- Anchorage, AK ($82,890)

#24. Insurance sales agents
- Annual mean salary: $58,760
- #281 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 260
National
- Annual mean salary: $69,100
- Employment: 409,950
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($104,230)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($103,470)
--- Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA ($95,620)
#23. First-line supervisors of office and administrative support workers
- Annual mean salary: $60,150
- #170 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 1,150
National
- Annual mean salary: $62,010
- Employment: 1,427,260
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($82,050)
--- Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA ($79,520)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($78,430)

#22. Sales representatives of services, except advertising, insurance, financial services, and travel
- Annual mean salary: $60,650
- #285 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 560
National
- Annual mean salary: $70,490
- Employment: 977,070
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($103,810)
--- Boulder, CO ($101,630)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($97,360)

#21. Operating engineers and other construction equipment operators
- Annual mean salary: $63,020
- #110 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 210
National
- Annual mean salary: $55,280
- Employment: 402,870
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($92,910)
--- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA ($91,860)
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($91,120)
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#20. Correctional officers and jailers
- Annual mean salary: $63,360
- #36 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 330
National
- Annual mean salary: $52,340
- Employment: 405,870
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($96,580)
--- Salinas, CA ($89,100)
--- Vallejo-Fairfield, CA ($86,260)

#19. First-line supervisors of production and operating workers
- Annual mean salary: $63,910
- #295 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 610
National
- Annual mean salary: $66,800
- Employment: 599,900
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Baton Rouge, LA ($98,170)
--- Lake Charles, LA ($97,910)
--- West North Dakota nonmetropolitan area ($96,900)

#18. Sheet metal workers
- Annual mean salary: $64,930
- #54 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 150
National
- Annual mean salary: $55,320
- Employment: 128,220
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Fairbanks, AK ($101,150)
--- Kennewick-Richland, WA ($94,930)
--- Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA ($93,840)

#17. Electricians
- Annual mean salary: $66,270
- #113 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 460
National
- Annual mean salary: $61,550
- Employment: 656,510
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($93,900)
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($91,090)
--- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI ($86,600)

#16. Crane and tower operators
- Annual mean salary: $66,610
- #47 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 30
National
- Annual mean salary: $64,010
- Employment: 44,060
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA ($131,160)
--- Syracuse, NY ($103,350)
--- Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV ($99,990)
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#15. Detectives and criminal investigators
- Annual mean salary: $69,890
- #240 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 60
National
- Annual mean salary: $89,300
- Employment: 105,980
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($132,210)
--- Anchorage, AK ($127,070)
--- Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV ($123,460)

#14. First-line supervisors of non-retail sales workers
- Annual mean salary: $70,620
- #388 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 100
National
- Annual mean salary: $90,120
- Employment: 240,290
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Portland-South Portland, ME ($129,860)
--- Durham-Chapel Hill, NC ($121,360)
--- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA ($121,250)

#13. Plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters
- Annual mean salary: $70,930
- #55 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 440
National
- Annual mean salary: $61,100
- Employment: 417,440
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($94,580)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($89,500)
--- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI ($89,190)

#12. Real estate sales agents
- Annual mean salary: $71,100
- #49 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 120
National
- Annual mean salary: $62,990
- Employment: 168,740
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Midland, TX ($100,060)
--- Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT ($99,880)
--- Worcester, MA-CT ($93,400)

#11. Construction and building inspectors
- Annual mean salary: $72,450
- #65 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 130
National
- Annual mean salary: $66,470
- Employment: 113,770
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- New Haven, CT ($121,510)
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($107,330)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($106,190)
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#10. Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants
- Annual mean salary: $72,820
- #13 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 230
National
- Annual mean salary: $65,230
- Employment: 503,390
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($94,590)
--- Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT ($87,760)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($87,420)

#9. Telecommunications line installers and repairers
- Annual mean salary: $73,060
- #36 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 80
National
- Annual mean salary: $61,860
- Employment: 122,480
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($90,680)
--- Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH ($90,370)
--- Salinas, CA ($88,050)

#8. Control and valve installers and repairers, except mechanical door
- Annual mean salary: $73,490
- #71 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 80
National
- Annual mean salary: $62,400
- Employment: 50,660
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA ($98,380)
--- Salt Lake City, UT ($94,070)
--- Santa Rosa, CA ($92,800)

#7. First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers
- Annual mean salary: $74,070
- #136 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 480
National
- Annual mean salary: $73,100
- Employment: 475,000
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Bremerton-Silverdale, WA ($93,830)
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($93,030)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($92,870)

#6. Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing, except technical and scientific products
- Annual mean salary: $77,160
- #43 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 960
National
- Annual mean salary: $73,500
- Employment: 1,278,670
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($102,280)
--- Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT ($92,660)
--- Napa, CA ($92,620)
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#5. First-line supervisors of construction trades and extraction workers
- Annual mean salary: $80,250
- #68 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 440
National
- Annual mean salary: $72,990
- Employment: 614,080
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($112,020)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($103,820)
--- Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA ($101,210)
#4. Transportation, storage, and distribution managers
- Annual mean salary: $98,580
- #170 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 160
National
- Annual mean salary: $105,100
- Employment: 132,210
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($159,890)
--- Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT ($154,170)
--- Trenton, NJ ($144,620)

#3. Farmers, ranchers, and other agricultural managers
- Annual mean salary: $101,650
- #2 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 80
National
- Annual mean salary: $76,810
- Employment: 5,670
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Salinas, CA ($104,810)
--- Visalia-Porterville, CA ($101,650)
--- Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL ($101,610)

#2. Electrical power-line installers and repairers
- Annual mean salary: $104,620
- #12 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 180
National
- Annual mean salary: $74,410
- Employment: 114,930
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA ($117,700)
--- Salinas, CA ($110,180)
--- North Valley-Northern Mountains Region of California nonmetropolitan area ($109,740)
#1. First-line supervisors of police and detectives
- Annual mean salary: $132,500
- #21 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 50
National
- Annual mean salary: $97,180
- Employment: 122,310
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($182,700)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($170,740)
--- Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA ($164,600)
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