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1 / 50#50. Commercial and industrial designers
- Median annual wage: $101,090
- Median hourly wage: $48.60
- Total employment: 1,600 people (0.84 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Highest-paying jobs in Detroit 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 Detroit, using annual compensation data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
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2 / 50#49. Advertising and promotions managers
- Median annual wage: $101,240
- Median hourly wage: $48.68
- Total employment: 100 people (0.05 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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3 / 50#48. Materials scientists
- Median annual wage: $101,480
- Median hourly wage: $48.79
- Total employment: 90 people (0.05 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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4 / 50#47. Software quality assurance analysts and testers
- Median annual wage: $102,080
- Median hourly wage: $49.08
- Total employment: 2,220 people (1.16 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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5 / 50#46. Environmental engineers
- Median annual wage: $102,590
- Median hourly wage: $49.32
- Total employment: 430 people (0.22 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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6 / 50#45. Facilities managers
- Median annual wage: $102,940
- Median hourly wage: $49.49
- Total employment: 1,850 people (0.97 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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7 / 50#44. Administrative services managers
- Median annual wage: $103,460
- Median hourly wage: $49.74
- Total employment: 2,890 people (1.51 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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8 / 50#43. Data scientists
- Median annual wage: $103,710
- Median hourly wage: $49.86
- Total employment: 2,810 people (1.47 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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9 / 50#42. Financial specialists, all other
- Median annual wage: $103,740
- Median hourly wage: $49.88
- Total employment: 1,020 people (0.53 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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10 / 50#41. Web developers
- Median annual wage: $104,000
- Median hourly wage: $50.00
- Total employment: 1,080 people (0.57 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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11 / 50#40. Medical and health services managers
- Median annual wage: $104,320
- Median hourly wage: $50.15
- Total employment: 6,660 people (3.49 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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12 / 50#39. Computer systems analysts
- Median annual wage: $104,360
- Median hourly wage: $50.18
- Total employment: 8,630 people (4.52 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
13 / 50#38. Mechanical engineers
- Median annual wage: $104,420
- Median hourly wage: $50.20
- Total employment: 19,740 people (10.34 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
N.Z.Photography // Shutterstock
14 / 50#37. Computer occupations, all other
- Median annual wage: $104,450
- Median hourly wage: $50.22
- Total employment: 3,780 people (1.98 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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15 / 50#36. Project management specialists
- Median annual wage: $104,960
- Median hourly wage: $50.46
- Total employment: 12,710 people (6.66 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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16 / 50#35. General and operations managers
- Median annual wage: $105,030
- Median hourly wage: $50.49
- Total employment: 37,250 people (19.51 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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17 / 50#34. Engineers, all other
- Median annual wage: $105,170
- Median hourly wage: $50.56
- Total employment: 5,210 people (2.73 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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18 / 50#33. Information security analysts
- Median annual wage: $105,260
- Median hourly wage: $50.60
- Total employment: 1,640 people (0.86 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
19 / 50#32. Atmospheric and space scientists
- Median annual wage: $105,480
- Median hourly wage: $50.71
- Total employment: 50 people (0.02 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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20 / 50#31. Electrical engineers
- Median annual wage: $105,500
- Median hourly wage: $50.72
- Total employment: 6,300 people (3.3 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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21 / 50#30. Database administrators
- Median annual wage: $107,370
- Median hourly wage: $51.62
- Total employment: 530 people (0.28 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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22 / 50#29. Sales engineers
- Median annual wage: $108,170
- Median hourly wage: $52.00
- Total employment: 1,380 people (0.72 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Bannafarsai_Stock // Shutterstock
23 / 50#28. Construction managers
- Median annual wage: $108,560
- Median hourly wage: $52.19
- Total employment: 3,050 people (1.6 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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24 / 50#27. Chemical engineers
- Median annual wage: $108,760
- Median hourly wage: $52.29
- Total employment: 220 people (0.12 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
25 / 50#26. Electronics engineers, except computer
- Median annual wage: $109,020
- Median hourly wage: $52.42
- Total employment: 2,520 people (1.32 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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26 / 50#25. Fundraising managers
- Median annual wage: $109,090
- Median hourly wage: $52.45
- Total employment: 250 people (0.13 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
27 / 50#24. Training and development managers
- Median annual wage: $111,920
- Median hourly wage: $53.81
- Total employment: 330 people (0.17 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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28 / 50#23. Public relations managers
- Median annual wage: $114,390
- Median hourly wage: $55.00
- Total employment: Not available
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29 / 50#22. Industrial production managers
- Median annual wage: $120,640
- Median hourly wage: $58.00
- Total employment: 6,170 people (3.23 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
30 / 50#21. Physical scientists, all other
- Median annual wage: $121,010
- Median hourly wage: $58.18
- Total employment: 30 people (0.02 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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31 / 50#20. Computer hardware engineers
- Median annual wage: $122,060
- Median hourly wage: $58.69
- Total employment: 1,030 people (0.54 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Roman Samborskyi // Shutterstock
32 / 50#19. Software developers
- Median annual wage: $124,780
- Median hourly wage: $59.99
- Total employment: 21,670 people (11.35 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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33 / 50#18. Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing, technical and scientific products
- Median annual wage: $128,150
- Median hourly wage: $61.61
- Total employment: 3,330 people (1.74 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
34 / 50#17. Computer network architects
- Median annual wage: $128,450
- Median hourly wage: $61.76
- Total employment: 1,510 people (0.79 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
35 / 50#16. Database architects
- Median annual wage: $129,940
- Median hourly wage: $62.47
- Total employment: 620 people (0.33 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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36 / 50#15. Medical dosimetrists
- Median annual wage: $133,260
- Median hourly wage: $64.07
- Total employment: 90 people (0.04 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
37 / 50#14. Human resources managers
- Median annual wage: $133,760
- Median hourly wage: $64.31
- Total employment: 2,790 people (1.46 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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38 / 50#13. Aerospace engineers
- Median annual wage: $134,490
- Median hourly wage: $64.66
- Total employment: 90 people (0.05 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
SpeedKingz // Shutterstock
39 / 50#12. Managers, all other
- Median annual wage: $135,910
- Median hourly wage: $65.34
- Total employment: 4,520 people (2.37 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
40 / 50#11. Marketing managers
- Median annual wage: $139,430
- Median hourly wage: $67.04
- Total employment: 2,950 people (1.54 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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41 / 50#10. Actuaries
- Median annual wage: $139,950
- Median hourly wage: $67.29
- Total employment: 100 people (0.05 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Kanghophoto // Shutterstock
42 / 50#9. Financial managers
- Median annual wage: $141,770
- Median hourly wage: $68.16
- Total employment: 10,050 people (5.26 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
43 / 50#8. Compensation and benefits managers
- Median annual wage: $143,990
- Median hourly wage: $69.22
- Total employment: 270 people (0.14 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
44 / 50#7. Purchasing managers
- Median annual wage: $149,650
- Median hourly wage: $71.95
- Total employment: 1,560 people (0.82 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
VE.Studio // Shutterstock
45 / 50#6. Natural sciences managers
- Median annual wage: $151,390
- Median hourly wage: $72.78
- Total employment: 470 people (0.25 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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46 / 50#5. Sales managers
- Median annual wage: $157,900
- Median hourly wage: $75.91
- Total employment: 8,260 people (4.33 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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47 / 50#4. Computer and information systems managers
- Median annual wage: $166,010
- Median hourly wage: $79.81
- Total employment: 7,990 people (4.19 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BOY ANTHONY // Shutterstock
48 / 50#3. Architectural and engineering managers
- Median annual wage: $167,890
- Median hourly wage: $80.72
- Total employment: 8,720 people (4.57 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: 1,630 people (0.85 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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