Dmytro Zinkevych // Shutterstock
1 / 50#50. Social and community service managers
- Median annual wage: $72,830
- Median hourly wage: $35.01
- Total employment: 320 people (1.95 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Highest-paying jobs in Montgomery 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 Montgomery, using annual compensation data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
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2 / 50#49. Compliance officers
- Median annual wage: $72,950
- Median hourly wage: $35.07
- Total employment: 280 people (1.73 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Arjuna Kodisinghe // Shutterstock
3 / 50#48. Network and computer systems administrators
- Median annual wage: $74,660
- Median hourly wage: $35.90
- Total employment: 320 people (1.98 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Ground Picture // Shutterstock
4 / 50#47. Dietitians and nutritionists
- Median annual wage: $74,960
- Median hourly wage: $36.04
- Total employment: 70 people (0.43 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Pakorn Khantiyaporn // Shutterstock
5 / 50#46. Logisticians
- Median annual wage: $75,360
- Median hourly wage: $36.23
- Total employment: 240 people (1.46 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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6 / 50#45. Chemists
- Median annual wage: $76,960
- Median hourly wage: $37.00
- Total employment: 50 people (0.31 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
7 / 50#44. Architects, except landscape and naval
- Median annual wage: $77,470
- Median hourly wage: $37.24
- Total employment: 180 people (1.12 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Aleksandar Karanov // Shutterstock
8 / 50#43. Occupational health and safety specialists
- Median annual wage: $78,390
- Median hourly wage: $37.69
- Total employment: 140 people (0.89 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Stock Rocket // Shutterstock
9 / 50#42. Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing, technical and scientific products
- Median annual wage: $79,320
- Median hourly wage: $38.13
- Total employment: 150 people (0.93 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
10 / 50#41. Registered nurses
- Median annual wage: $80,250
- Median hourly wage: $38.58
- Total employment: 3,720 people (22.79 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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11 / 50#40. Personal financial advisors
- Median annual wage: $82,410
- Median hourly wage: $39.62
- Total employment: 200 people (1.2 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
12 / 50#39. Mechanical engineers
- Median annual wage: $82,550
- Median hourly wage: $39.69
- Total employment: 240 people (1.46 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
GaudiLab // Shutterstock
13 / 50#38. Technical writers
- Median annual wage: $83,180
- Median hourly wage: $39.99
- Total employment: 80 people (0.5 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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14 / 50#37. Financial and investment analysts
- Median annual wage: $83,320
- Median hourly wage: $40.06
- Total employment: 130 people (0.81 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
15 / 50#36. Computer systems analysts
- Median annual wage: $86,590
- Median hourly wage: $41.63
- Total employment: 260 people (1.61 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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16 / 50#35. Industrial engineers
- Median annual wage: $86,740
- Median hourly wage: $41.70
- Total employment: 670 people (4.08 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
17 / 50#34. Management analysts
- Median annual wage: $86,940
- Median hourly wage: $41.80
- Total employment: 430 people (2.64 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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18 / 50#33. Business operations specialists, all other
- Median annual wage: $88,990
- Median hourly wage: $42.78
- Total employment: 750 people (4.62 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
19 / 50#32. Database administrators
- Median annual wage: $89,760
- Median hourly wage: $43.15
- Total employment: 490 people (3.0 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Bannafarsai_Stock // Shutterstock
20 / 50#31. Construction managers
- Median annual wage: $89,820
- Median hourly wage: $43.18
- Total employment: 540 people (3.31 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
21 / 50#30. Project management specialists
- Median annual wage: $90,230
- Median hourly wage: $43.38
- Total employment: 90 people (0.56 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
kittirat roekburi // Shutterstock
22 / 50#29. Environmental engineers
- Median annual wage: $90,670
- Median hourly wage: $43.59
- Total employment: 150 people (0.91 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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23 / 50#28. Public relations managers
- Median annual wage: $90,750
- Median hourly wage: $43.63
- Total employment: 80 people (0.49 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
24 / 50#27. Electronics engineers, except computer
- Median annual wage: $91,120
- Median hourly wage: $43.81
- Total employment: 100 people (0.63 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
PanuShot // Shutterstock
25 / 50#26. Financial specialists, all other
- Median annual wage: $91,260
- Median hourly wage: $43.87
- Total employment: 120 people (0.72 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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26 / 50#25. Information security analysts
- Median annual wage: $92,140
- Median hourly wage: $44.30
- Total employment: 190 people (1.16 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
PIYAWAT WONGOPASS // Shutterstock
27 / 50#24. Computer programmers
- Median annual wage: $93,930
- Median hourly wage: $45.16
- Total employment: 390 people (2.37 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Roman Samborskyi // Shutterstock
28 / 50#23. Software quality assurance analysts and testers
- Median annual wage: $94,120
- Median hourly wage: $45.25
- Total employment: 70 people (0.43 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Roman Samborskyi // Shutterstock
29 / 50#22. Software developers
- Median annual wage: $95,690
- Median hourly wage: $46.00
- Total employment: 730 people (4.45 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
30 / 50#21. Medical and health services managers
- Median annual wage: $98,490
- Median hourly wage: $47.35
- Total employment: 680 people (4.17 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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31 / 50#20. Civil engineers
- Median annual wage: $99,630
- Median hourly wage: $47.90
- Total employment: 500 people (3.08 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Natee K Jindakum // Shutterstock
32 / 50#19. Financial examiners
- Median annual wage: $99,820
- Median hourly wage: $47.99
- Total employment: 80 people (0.46 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
33 / 50#18. Electrical engineers
- Median annual wage: $100,360
- Median hourly wage: $48.25
- Total employment: 200 people (1.23 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
dokurose // Shutterstock
34 / 50#17. Sales managers
- Median annual wage: $100,620
- Median hourly wage: $48.37
- Total employment: 250 people (1.55 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
35 / 50#16. Marketing managers
- Median annual wage: $101,020
- Median hourly wage: $48.57
- Total employment: 110 people (0.65 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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36 / 50#15. Managers, all other
- Median annual wage: $102,330
- Median hourly wage: $49.20
- Total employment: 390 people (2.39 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
37 / 50#14. Human resources managers
- Median annual wage: $103,120
- Median hourly wage: $49.58
- Total employment: 200 people (1.25 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
38 / 50#13. General and operations managers
- Median annual wage: $103,200
- Median hourly wage: $49.61
- Total employment: 2,320 people (14.22 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Krakenimages.com // Shutterstock
39 / 50#12. Education administrators, all other
- Median annual wage: $103,400
- Median hourly wage: $49.71
- Total employment: Not available
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
40 / 50#11. Computer network architects
- Median annual wage: $103,970
- Median hourly wage: $49.99
- Total employment: 180 people (1.12 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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creativemarc // Shutterstock
41 / 50#10. Administrative services managers
- Median annual wage: $104,560
- Median hourly wage: $50.27
- Total employment: 60 people (0.34 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
aappp // Shutterstock
42 / 50#9. Aerospace engineers
- Median annual wage: $105,250
- Median hourly wage: $50.60
- Total employment: 80 people (0.46 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
N.Z.Photography // Shutterstock
43 / 50#8. Computer occupations, all other
- Median annual wage: $106,850
- Median hourly wage: $51.37
- Total employment: 750 people (4.58 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Quality Stock Arts // Shutterstock
44 / 50#7. Facilities managers
- Median annual wage: $110,740
- Median hourly wage: $53.24
- Total employment: 70 people (0.42 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Sunshine Seeds // Shutterstock
45 / 50#6. Industrial production managers
- Median annual wage: $123,180
- Median hourly wage: $59.22
- Total employment: 220 people (1.33 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
46 / 50#5. Purchasing managers
- Median annual wage: $123,590
- Median hourly wage: $59.42
- Total employment: 80 people (0.46 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Frame Stock Footage // Shutterstock
47 / 50#4. Computer and information systems managers
- Median annual wage: $125,890
- Median hourly wage: $60.53
- Total employment: 490 people (2.98 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Kanghophoto // Shutterstock
48 / 50#3. Financial managers
- Median annual wage: $133,100
- Median hourly wage: $63.99
- Total employment: 590 people (3.61 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BOY ANTHONY // Shutterstock
49 / 50#2. Architectural and engineering managers
- Median annual wage: $142,440
- Median hourly wage: $68.48
- Total employment: 190 people (1.18 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
50 / 50#1. Chief executives
- Median annual wage: $157,340
- Median hourly wage: $75.64
- Total employment: 70 people (0.41 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.
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