luchschenF // Shutterstock
1 / 50#50. Chemists
- Median annual wage: $101,660
- Median hourly wage: $48.88
- Total employment: 620 people (0.22 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Highest-paying jobs in Atlanta that require a bachelor's degree
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 Atlanta, using annual compensation data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
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2 / 50#49. Architects, except landscape and naval
- Median annual wage: $102,070
- Median hourly wage: $49.07
- Total employment: 2,120 people (0.74 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
eldar nurkovic // Shutterstock
3 / 50#48. Chemical engineers
- Median annual wage: $102,360
- Median hourly wage: $49.21
- Total employment: 220 people (0.08 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
4 / 50#47. Agents and business managers of artists, performers, and athletes
- Median annual wage: $102,530
- Median hourly wage: $49.30
- Total employment: 220 people (0.08 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
5 / 50#46. Project management specialists
- Median annual wage: $102,760
- Median hourly wage: $49.40
- Total employment: 21,700 people (7.56 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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N.Z.Photography // Shutterstock
6 / 50#45. Computer occupations, all other
- Median annual wage: $102,770
- Median hourly wage: $49.41
- Total employment: 12,330 people (4.29 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
7 / 50#44. Health and safety engineers, except mining safety engineers and inspectors
- Median annual wage: $103,060
- Median hourly wage: $49.55
- Total employment: 240 people (0.08 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Stock Rocket // Shutterstock
8 / 50#43. Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing, technical and scientific products
- Median annual wage: $103,110
- Median hourly wage: $49.57
- Total employment: 6,440 people (2.24 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Bannafarsai_Stock // Shutterstock
9 / 50#42. Construction managers
- Median annual wage: $104,280
- Median hourly wage: $50.14
- Total employment: 5,360 people (1.87 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Chaay_Tee // Shutterstock
10 / 50#41. Data scientists
- Median annual wage: $104,480
- Median hourly wage: $50.23
- Total employment: 5,940 people (2.07 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
11 / 50#40. Database administrators
- Median annual wage: $104,790
- Median hourly wage: $50.38
- Total employment: 2,170 people (0.75 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
12 / 50#39. General and operations managers
- Median annual wage: $105,760
- Median hourly wage: $50.85
- Total employment: 68,560 people (23.87 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
13 / 50#38. Electrical engineers
- Median annual wage: $106,340
- Median hourly wage: $51.12
- Total employment: 2,450 people (0.85 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
THICHA SATAPITANON // Shutterstock
14 / 50#37. Financial risk specialists
- Median annual wage: $107,730
- Median hourly wage: $51.80
- Total employment: 1,240 people (0.43 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
15 / 50#36. Computer systems analysts
- Median annual wage: $108,570
- Median hourly wage: $52.20
- Total employment: 8,750 people (3.05 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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AlesiaKan // Shutterstock
16 / 50#35. Health education specialists
- Median annual wage: $109,260
- Median hourly wage: $52.53
- Total employment: 2,600 people (0.91 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
TaLaNoVa // Shutterstock
17 / 50#34. Sales engineers
- Median annual wage: $109,270
- Median hourly wage: $52.54
- Total employment: 1,000 people (0.35 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Rawpixel.com //Shutterstock
18 / 50#33. Web and digital interface designers
- Median annual wage: $109,560
- Median hourly wage: $52.67
- Total employment: 2,000 people (0.7 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
creativemarc // Shutterstock
19 / 50#32. Administrative services managers
- Median annual wage: $113,520
- Median hourly wage: $54.58
- Total employment: 5,890 people (2.05 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Quality Stock Arts // Shutterstock
20 / 50#31. Facilities managers
- Median annual wage: $118,100
- Median hourly wage: $56.78
- Total employment: 1,480 people (0.52 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
21 / 50#30. Fundraising managers
- Median annual wage: $122,280
- Median hourly wage: $58.79
- Total employment: 530 people (0.18 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
SeventyFour // Shutterstock
22 / 50#29. Computer hardware engineers
- Median annual wage: $122,870
- Median hourly wage: $59.07
- Total employment: 360 people (0.13 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Sunshine Seeds // Shutterstock
23 / 50#28. Industrial production managers
- Median annual wage: $123,130
- Median hourly wage: $59.20
- Total employment: 2,350 people (0.82 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Csomos Attila // Shutterstock
24 / 50#27. Hydrologists
- Median annual wage: $123,840
- Median hourly wage: $59.54
- Total employment: 40 people (0.01 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BalanceFormCreative // Shutterstock
25 / 50#26. Information security analysts
- Median annual wage: $126,880
- Median hourly wage: $61.00
- Total employment: 4,940 people (1.72 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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SpeedKingz // Shutterstock
26 / 50#25. Managers, all other
- Median annual wage: $127,570
- Median hourly wage: $61.33
- Total employment: 25,950 people (9.04 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
27 / 50#24. Training and development managers
- Median annual wage: $127,730
- Median hourly wage: $61.41
- Total employment: 970 people (0.34 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Dmitry Lobanov // Shutterstock
28 / 50#23. Nuclear engineers
- Median annual wage: $129,820
- Median hourly wage: $62.42
- Total employment: 60 people (0.02 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Roman Samborskyi // Shutterstock
29 / 50#22. Software developers
- Median annual wage: $130,830
- Median hourly wage: $62.90
- Total employment: 35,900 people (12.5 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
30 / 50#21. Engineers, all other
- Median annual wage: $131,120
- Median hourly wage: $63.04
- Total employment: 2,470 people (0.86 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
31 / 50#20. Physical scientists, all other
- Median annual wage: $131,770
- Median hourly wage: $63.35
- Total employment: 940 people (0.33 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
PanuShot // Shutterstock
32 / 50#19. Advertising and promotions managers
- Median annual wage: $134,090
- Median hourly wage: $64.46
- Total employment: 370 people (0.13 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
33 / 50#18. Art directors
- Median annual wage: $134,280
- Median hourly wage: $64.56
- Total employment: 880 people (0.31 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
34 / 50#17. Computer network architects
- Median annual wage: $134,880
- Median hourly wage: $64.84
- Total employment: 4,730 people (1.65 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
35 / 50#16. Database architects
- Median annual wage: $135,280
- Median hourly wage: $65.04
- Total employment: 2,390 people (0.83 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Pressmaster // Shutterstock
36 / 50#15. Public relations managers
- Median annual wage: $135,760
- Median hourly wage: $65.27
- Total employment: 1,080 people (0.38 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
aappp // Shutterstock
37 / 50#14. Aerospace engineers
- Median annual wage: $136,470
- Median hourly wage: $65.61
- Total employment: 690 people (0.24 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
38 / 50#13. Purchasing managers
- Median annual wage: $137,520
- Median hourly wage: $66.12
- Total employment: 1,870 people (0.65 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
39 / 50#12. Electronics engineers, except computer
- Median annual wage: $139,870
- Median hourly wage: $67.25
- Total employment: 1,380 people (0.48 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
40 / 50#11. Medical and health services managers
- Median annual wage: $143,850
- Median hourly wage: $69.16
- Total employment: 5,500 people (1.91 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
41 / 50#10. Human resources managers
- Median annual wage: $152,300
- Median hourly wage: $73.22
- Total employment: 5,140 people (1.79 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
42 / 50#9. Compensation and benefits managers
- Median annual wage: $152,790
- Median hourly wage: $73.46
- Total employment: 650 people (0.23 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
dokurose // Shutterstock
43 / 50#8. Sales managers
- Median annual wage: $156,950
- Median hourly wage: $75.46
- Total employment: 12,540 people (4.37 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Mark_Kostich // Shutterstock
44 / 50#7. Medical dosimetrists
- Median annual wage: $159,790
- Median hourly wage: $76.82
- Total employment: 80 people (0.03 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BOY ANTHONY // Shutterstock
45 / 50#6. Architectural and engineering managers
- Median annual wage: $164,010
- Median hourly wage: $78.85
- Total employment: 2,650 people (0.92 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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fizkes // Shutterstock
46 / 50#5. Marketing managers
- Median annual wage: $164,650
- Median hourly wage: $79.16
- Total employment: 7,080 people (2.46 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Kanghophoto // Shutterstock
47 / 50#4. Financial managers
- Median annual wage: $168,990
- Median hourly wage: $81.25
- Total employment: 16,620 people (5.79 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Frame Stock Footage // Shutterstock
48 / 50#3. Computer and information systems managers
- Median annual wage: $171,360
- Median hourly wage: $82.38
- Total employment: 13,500 people (4.7 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
49 / 50#1. Chief executives (tie)
- Median annual wage: At least $239,200
- Median hourly wage: At least $115.00
- Total employment: 3,310 people (1.15 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
YAKOBCHUK VIACHESLAV // Shutterstock
50 / 50#1. Airline pilots, copilots, and flight engineers (tie)
- Median annual wage: At least $239,200
- Median hourly wage: Not available
- Total employment: Not available
This story features data reporting by Wade Zhou, writing by Jill Jaracz, and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 364 metros.
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