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 Orlando, using annual compensation data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
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Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
1 / 50- Median annual wage: $87,120
- Median hourly wage: $41.89
- Total employment: 140 people (0.1 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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2 / 50- Median annual wage: $89,680
- Median hourly wage: $43.11
- Total employment: 60 people (0.04 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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3 / 50- Median annual wage: $89,960
- Median hourly wage: $43.25
- Total employment: 940 people (0.67 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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4 / 50- Median annual wage: $90,910
- Median hourly wage: $43.71
- Total employment: 100 people (0.07 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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5 / 50- Median annual wage: $95,560
- Median hourly wage: $45.94
- Total employment: 3,390 people (2.43 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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6 / 50- Median annual wage: $96,320
- Median hourly wage: $46.31
- Total employment: 31,720 people (22.7 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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7 / 50- Median annual wage: $97,090
- Median hourly wage: $46.68
- Total employment: 430 people (0.3 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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8 / 50- Median annual wage: $97,110
- Median hourly wage: $46.69
- Total employment: 390 people (0.28 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
9 / 50- Median annual wage: $97,750
- Median hourly wage: $46.99
- Total employment: 110 people (0.08 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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10 / 50- Median annual wage: $98,010
- Median hourly wage: $47.12
- Total employment: 4,270 people (3.06 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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11 / 50- Median annual wage: $98,730
- Median hourly wage: $47.47
- Total employment: 450 people (0.33 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
12 / 50- Median annual wage: $99,050
- Median hourly wage: $47.62
- Total employment: 10,320 people (7.38 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
13 / 50- Median annual wage: $99,690
- Median hourly wage: $47.93
- Total employment: 4,650 people (3.33 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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14 / 50- Median annual wage: $100,810
- Median hourly wage: $48.47
- Total employment: 1,820 people (1.3 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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15 / 50- Median annual wage: $101,680
- Median hourly wage: $48.89
- Total employment: 1,430 people (1.02 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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16 / 50- Median annual wage: $101,840
- Median hourly wage: $48.96
- Total employment: 2,410 people (1.72 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
17 / 50- Median annual wage: $102,690
- Median hourly wage: $49.37
- Total employment: 570 people (0.41 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
18 / 50- Median annual wage: $103,200
- Median hourly wage: $49.62
- Total employment: 610 people (0.43 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
19 / 50- Median annual wage: $104,250
- Median hourly wage: $50.12
- Total employment: 1,500 people (1.07 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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20 / 50- Median annual wage: $104,660
- Median hourly wage: $50.32
- Total employment: 1,760 people (1.26 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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21 / 50- Median annual wage: $105,260
- Median hourly wage: $50.60
- Total employment: 4,970 people (3.56 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
22 / 50- Median annual wage: $105,310
- Median hourly wage: $50.63
- Total employment: 2,170 people (1.55 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
N.Z.Photography // Shutterstock
23 / 50- Median annual wage: $105,800
- Median hourly wage: $50.86
- Total employment: 2,120 people (1.52 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Bannafarsai_Stock // Shutterstock
24 / 50- Median annual wage: $106,240
- Median hourly wage: $51.08
- Total employment: 4,050 people (2.9 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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25 / 50- Median annual wage: $107,460
- Median hourly wage: $51.66
- Total employment: 440 people (0.31 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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TaLaNoVa // Shutterstock
26 / 50- Median annual wage: $108,000
- Median hourly wage: $51.92
- Total employment: 350 people (0.25 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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27 / 50- Median annual wage: $108,390
- Median hourly wage: $52.11
- Total employment: 6,990 people (5.0 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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28 / 50- Median annual wage: $109,990
- Median hourly wage: $52.88
- Total employment: 120 people (0.08 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
29 / 50- Median annual wage: $110,140
- Median hourly wage: $52.95
- Total employment: 1,150 people (0.82 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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30 / 50- Median annual wage: $110,310
- Median hourly wage: $53.03
- Total employment: 940 people (0.68 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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31 / 50- Median annual wage: $111,210
- Median hourly wage: $53.47
- Total employment: 180 people (0.13 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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32 / 50- Median annual wage: $113,900
- Median hourly wage: $54.76
- Total employment: 330 people (0.24 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
33 / 50- Median annual wage: $119,220
- Median hourly wage: $57.32
- Total employment: 1,720 people (1.23 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
aappp // Shutterstock
34 / 50- Median annual wage: $120,640
- Median hourly wage: $58.00
- Total employment: 240 people (0.17 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Roman Samborskyi // Shutterstock
35 / 50- Median annual wage: $123,060
- Median hourly wage: $59.17
- Total employment: 13,640 people (9.76 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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fizkes // Shutterstock
36 / 50- Median annual wage: $123,310
- Median hourly wage: $59.29
- Total employment: 180 people (0.13 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
37 / 50- Median annual wage: $124,110
- Median hourly wage: $59.67
- Total employment: 1,510 people (1.08 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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38 / 50- Median annual wage: $124,860
- Median hourly wage: $60.03
- Total employment: 120 people (0.08 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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39 / 50- Median annual wage: $124,870
- Median hourly wage: $60.03
- Total employment: 2,070 people (1.48 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
dokurose // Shutterstock
40 / 50- Median annual wage: $125,330
- Median hourly wage: $60.25
- Total employment: 5,260 people (3.77 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
41 / 50- Median annual wage: $125,940
- Median hourly wage: $60.55
- Total employment: 540 people (0.39 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
SeventyFour // Shutterstock
42 / 50- Median annual wage: $128,110
- Median hourly wage: $61.59
- Total employment: 520 people (0.37 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
43 / 50- Median annual wage: $129,600
- Median hourly wage: $62.31
- Total employment: 1,390 people (0.99 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
44 / 50- Median annual wage: $133,930
- Median hourly wage: $64.39
- Total employment: 320 people (0.23 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
45 / 50- Median annual wage: $134,430
- Median hourly wage: $64.63
- Total employment: 980 people (0.7 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Kanghophoto // Shutterstock
46 / 50- Median annual wage: $134,990
- Median hourly wage: $64.90
- Total employment: 6,100 people (4.37 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
47 / 50- Median annual wage: $138,140
- Median hourly wage: $66.41
- Total employment: 2,880 people (2.06 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Frame Stock Footage // Shutterstock
48 / 50- Median annual wage: $165,560
- Median hourly wage: $79.60
- Total employment: 4,420 people (3.16 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BOY ANTHONY // Shutterstock
49 / 50- Median annual wage: $172,530
- Median hourly wage: $82.95
- Total employment: 1,540 people (1.1 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
YAKOBCHUK VIACHESLAV // Shutterstock
50 / 50- Median annual wage: $229,930
- Median hourly wage: Not available
- Total employment: 2,080 people (1.49 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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