Toa55 // Shutterstock
1 / 50#50. Landscape architects
- Median annual wage: $77,320
- Median hourly wage: $37.18
- Total employment: 50 people (0.15 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Highest-paying jobs in North Port 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 North Port, using annual compensation data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
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2 / 50#49. Entertainment and recreation managers, except gambling
- Median annual wage: $77,850
- Median hourly wage: $37.43
- Total employment: 60 people (0.17 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Dragon Images // Shutterstock
3 / 50#48. Insurance underwriters
- Median annual wage: $78,980
- Median hourly wage: $37.97
- Total employment: 170 people (0.5 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
GaudiLab // Shutterstock
4 / 50#47. Personal financial advisors
- Median annual wage: $80,080
- Median hourly wage: $38.50
- Total employment: 910 people (2.71 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
ImageFlow // Shutterstock
5 / 50#46. Accountants and auditors
- Median annual wage: $80,100
- Median hourly wage: $38.51
- Total employment: 2,740 people (8.18 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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6 / 50#45. Labor relations specialists
- Median annual wage: $81,760
- Median hourly wage: $39.31
- Total employment: 60 people (0.17 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Pakorn Khantiyaporn // Shutterstock
7 / 50#44. Logisticians
- Median annual wage: $82,020
- Median hourly wage: $39.44
- Total employment: 370 people (1.11 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
8 / 50#43. Registered nurses
- Median annual wage: $82,850
- Median hourly wage: $39.83
- Total employment: 7,760 people (23.2 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Krakenimages.com // Shutterstock
9 / 50#42. Education administrators, all other
- Median annual wage: $83,150
- Median hourly wage: $39.98
- Total employment: 60 people (0.19 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
SpeedKingz // Shutterstock
10 / 50#41. Managers, all other
- Median annual wage: $84,440
- Median hourly wage: $40.60
- Total employment: Not available
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11 / 50#40. Network and computer systems administrators
- Median annual wage: $84,780
- Median hourly wage: $40.76
- Total employment: 480 people (1.42 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
12 / 50#39. Architects, except landscape and naval
- Median annual wage: $84,990
- Median hourly wage: $40.86
- Total employment: 140 people (0.41 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
13 / 50#38. Project management specialists
- Median annual wage: $85,930
- Median hourly wage: $41.31
- Total employment: 1,930 people (5.78 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Flamingo Images // Shutterstock
14 / 50#37. Credit analysts
- Median annual wage: $86,970
- Median hourly wage: $41.81
- Total employment: 50 people (0.14 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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15 / 50#36. Financial and investment analysts
- Median annual wage: $87,000
- Median hourly wage: $41.83
- Total employment: 360 people (1.07 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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16 / 50#35. Mechanical engineers
- Median annual wage: $88,250
- Median hourly wage: $42.43
- Total employment: 250 people (0.76 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
GaudiLab // Shutterstock
17 / 50#34. Technical writers
- Median annual wage: $88,510
- Median hourly wage: $42.56
- Total employment: Not available
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
18 / 50#33. Database administrators
- Median annual wage: $89,830
- Median hourly wage: $43.19
- Total employment: 70 people (0.22 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Quality Stock Arts // Shutterstock
19 / 50#32. Facilities managers
- Median annual wage: $90,290
- Median hourly wage: $43.41
- Total employment: 200 people (0.6 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Roman Samborskyi // Shutterstock
20 / 50#31. Software quality assurance analysts and testers
- Median annual wage: $92,120
- Median hourly wage: $44.29
- Total employment: 300 people (0.89 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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21 / 50#30. Management analysts
- Median annual wage: $94,390
- Median hourly wage: $45.38
- Total employment: 1,400 people (4.17 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
wutzkohphoto // Shutterstock
22 / 50#29. Civil engineers
- Median annual wage: $95,100
- Median hourly wage: $45.72
- Total employment: 380 people (1.12 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
23 / 50#28. Engineers, all other
- Median annual wage: $95,170
- Median hourly wage: $45.76
- Total employment: 160 people (0.48 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
24 / 50#27. General and operations managers
- Median annual wage: $95,690
- Median hourly wage: $46.01
- Total employment: 8,100 people (24.2 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
25 / 50#26. Industrial engineers
- Median annual wage: $98,820
- Median hourly wage: $47.51
- Total employment: 350 people (1.06 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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26 / 50#25. Construction managers
- Median annual wage: $99,990
- Median hourly wage: $48.07
- Total employment: 1,220 people (3.63 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
kittirat roekburi // Shutterstock
27 / 50#24. Environmental engineers
- Median annual wage: $100,040
- Median hourly wage: $48.10
- Total employment: 60 people (0.17 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
28 / 50#23. Computer systems analysts
- Median annual wage: $100,510
- Median hourly wage: $48.32
- Total employment: 610 people (1.82 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
N.Z.Photography // Shutterstock
29 / 50#22. Computer occupations, all other
- Median annual wage: $100,960
- Median hourly wage: $48.54
- Total employment: 270 people (0.82 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
30 / 50#21. Electrical engineers
- Median annual wage: $101,040
- Median hourly wage: $48.58
- Total employment: 120 people (0.35 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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31 / 50#20. Industrial production managers
- Median annual wage: $102,530
- Median hourly wage: $49.29
- Total employment: 270 people (0.8 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BalanceFormCreative // Shutterstock
32 / 50#19. Information security analysts
- Median annual wage: $104,900
- Median hourly wage: $50.44
- Total employment: 190 people (0.56 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
33 / 50#18. Electronics engineers, except computer
- Median annual wage: $107,070
- Median hourly wage: $51.48
- Total employment: 50 people (0.16 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
34 / 50#17. Medical and health services managers
- Median annual wage: $107,340
- Median hourly wage: $51.61
- Total employment: 1,270 people (3.81 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Pressmaster // Shutterstock
35 / 50#16. Public relations managers
- Median annual wage: $113,880
- Median hourly wage: $54.75
- Total employment: 70 people (0.2 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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36 / 50#15. Sales managers
- Median annual wage: $114,400
- Median hourly wage: $55.00
- Total employment: 1,150 people (3.45 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
37 / 50#14. Training and development managers
- Median annual wage: $116,010
- Median hourly wage: $55.77
- Total employment: 60 people (0.19 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Chaay_Tee // Shutterstock
38 / 50#13. Data scientists
- Median annual wage: $119,760
- Median hourly wage: $57.58
- Total employment: Not available
rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
39 / 50#12. Purchasing managers
- Median annual wage: $121,100
- Median hourly wage: $58.22
- Total employment: 90 people (0.28 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
40 / 50#11. Human resources managers
- Median annual wage: $121,400
- Median hourly wage: $58.36
- Total employment: 280 people (0.83 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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THICHA SATAPITANON // Shutterstock
41 / 50#10. Financial risk specialists
- Median annual wage: $122,590
- Median hourly wage: $58.94
- Total employment: 50 people (0.15 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
VE.Studio // Shutterstock
42 / 50#9. Natural sciences managers
- Median annual wage: $127,480
- Median hourly wage: $61.29
- Total employment: 120 people (0.35 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
43 / 50#8. Computer network architects
- Median annual wage: $131,630
- Median hourly wage: $63.28
- Total employment: 120 people (0.35 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Roman Samborskyi // Shutterstock
44 / 50#7. Software developers
- Median annual wage: $131,700
- Median hourly wage: $63.32
- Total employment: 1,900 people (5.67 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Kanghophoto // Shutterstock
45 / 50#6. Financial managers
- Median annual wage: $137,320
- Median hourly wage: $66.02
- Total employment: 1,060 people (3.16 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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fizkes // Shutterstock
46 / 50#5. Marketing managers
- Median annual wage: $142,430
- Median hourly wage: $68.48
- Total employment: 560 people (1.67 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
dokurose // Shutterstock
47 / 50#4. Actuaries
- Median annual wage: $142,750
- Median hourly wage: $68.63
- Total employment: 40 people (0.11 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
48 / 50#3. Fundraising managers
- Median annual wage: $147,450
- Median hourly wage: $70.89
- Total employment: 30 people (0.1 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BOY ANTHONY // Shutterstock
49 / 50#2. Architectural and engineering managers
- Median annual wage: $147,900
- Median hourly wage: $71.11
- Total employment: 130 people (0.38 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Frame Stock Footage // Shutterstock
50 / 50#1. Computer and information systems managers
- Median annual wage: $160,560
- Median hourly wage: $77.19
- Total employment: 560 people (1.66 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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