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1 / 50#50. Compensation, benefits, and job analysis specialists
- Median annual wage: $66,550
- Median hourly wage: $32.00
- Total employment: 70 people (0.41 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Highest-paying jobs in Port St. Lucie 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 Port St. Lucie, using annual compensation data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
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2 / 50#49. Surveyors
- Median annual wage: $66,960
- Median hourly wage: $32.19
- Total employment: 100 people (0.61 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
PR Image Factory // Shutterstock
3 / 50#48. Operations research analysts
- Median annual wage: $69,060
- Median hourly wage: $33.20
- Total employment: 40 people (0.26 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
boonchoke // Shutterstock
4 / 50#47. Business operations specialists, all other
- Median annual wage: $69,070
- Median hourly wage: $33.21
- Total employment: 620 people (3.7 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
guruXOX // Shutterstock
5 / 50#46. Producers and directors
- Median annual wage: $70,210
- Median hourly wage: $33.76
- Total employment: 60 people (0.36 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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6 / 50#45. Financial specialists, all other
- Median annual wage: $70,240
- Median hourly wage: $33.77
- Total employment: 60 people (0.36 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
7 / 50#44. Fundraisers
- Median annual wage: $70,500
- Median hourly wage: $33.90
- Total employment: 50 people (0.28 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Mongta Studio // Shutterstock
8 / 50#43. Cost estimators
- Median annual wage: $72,060
- Median hourly wage: $34.64
- Total employment: 240 people (1.46 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Rawpixel.com //Shutterstock
9 / 50#42. Web developers
- Median annual wage: $76,050
- Median hourly wage: $36.56
- Total employment: 30 people (0.19 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Toa55 // Shutterstock
10 / 50#41. Landscape architects
- Median annual wage: $76,770
- Median hourly wage: $36.91
- Total employment: 40 people (0.24 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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11 / 50#40. Loan officers
- Median annual wage: $77,280
- Median hourly wage: $37.16
- Total employment: 240 people (1.45 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
ImageFlow // Shutterstock
12 / 50#39. Accountants and auditors
- Median annual wage: $77,420
- Median hourly wage: $37.22
- Total employment: 1,070 people (6.36 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
13 / 50#38. Management analysts
- Median annual wage: $77,720
- Median hourly wage: $37.37
- Total employment: 490 people (2.94 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
wutzkohphoto // Shutterstock
14 / 50#37. Civil engineers
- Median annual wage: $78,470
- Median hourly wage: $37.72
- Total employment: 220 people (1.32 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
15 / 50#36. Registered nurses
- Median annual wage: $80,160
- Median hourly wage: $38.54
- Total employment: 4,350 people (25.94 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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16 / 50#35. Managers, all other
- Median annual wage: $81,690
- Median hourly wage: $39.28
- Total employment: 570 people (3.4 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
17 / 50#34. General and operations managers
- Median annual wage: $81,820
- Median hourly wage: $39.34
- Total employment: 4,380 people (26.15 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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18 / 50#33. Personal financial advisors
- Median annual wage: $81,950
- Median hourly wage: $39.40
- Total employment: 320 people (1.93 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
19 / 50#32. Engineers, all other
- Median annual wage: $82,910
- Median hourly wage: $39.86
- Total employment: 90 people (0.56 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Arjuna Kodisinghe // Shutterstock
20 / 50#31. Network and computer systems administrators
- Median annual wage: $83,250
- Median hourly wage: $40.02
- Total employment: 180 people (1.06 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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21 / 50#30. Mechanical engineers
- Median annual wage: $83,970
- Median hourly wage: $40.37
- Total employment: 120 people (0.71 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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22 / 50#29. Financial and investment analysts
- Median annual wage: $84,550
- Median hourly wage: $40.65
- Total employment: 140 people (0.81 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
23 / 50#28. Electrical engineers
- Median annual wage: $84,730
- Median hourly wage: $40.74
- Total employment: 90 people (0.53 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Motortion Films // Shutterstock
24 / 50#27. Entertainment and recreation managers, except gambling
- Median annual wage: $85,260
- Median hourly wage: $40.99
- Total employment: 60 people (0.35 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
25 / 50#26. Computer systems analysts
- Median annual wage: $86,420
- Median hourly wage: $41.55
- Total employment: 220 people (1.31 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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26 / 50#25. Facilities managers
- Median annual wage: $87,050
- Median hourly wage: $41.85
- Total employment: 100 people (0.58 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
VE.Studio // Shutterstock
27 / 50#24. Natural sciences managers
- Median annual wage: $87,620
- Median hourly wage: $42.12
- Total employment: 40 people (0.22 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
28 / 50#23. Project management specialists
- Median annual wage: $89,570
- Median hourly wage: $43.06
- Total employment: 760 people (4.53 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
creativemarc // Shutterstock
29 / 50#22. Administrative services managers
- Median annual wage: $91,250
- Median hourly wage: $43.87
- Total employment: 240 people (1.4 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Chaay_Tee // Shutterstock
30 / 50#21. Data scientists
- Median annual wage: $93,200
- Median hourly wage: $44.81
- Total employment: 40 people (0.25 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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31 / 50#20. Computer programmers
- Median annual wage: $94,110
- Median hourly wage: $45.24
- Total employment: 40 people (0.23 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Sunshine Seeds // Shutterstock
32 / 50#19. Industrial production managers
- Median annual wage: $95,960
- Median hourly wage: $46.13
- Total employment: 170 people (1.01 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
THICHA SATAPITANON // Shutterstock
33 / 50#18. Financial risk specialists
- Median annual wage: $96,510
- Median hourly wage: $46.40
- Total employment: 40 people (0.21 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Bannafarsai_Stock // Shutterstock
34 / 50#17. Construction managers
- Median annual wage: $96,670
- Median hourly wage: $46.48
- Total employment: 620 people (3.7 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
N.Z.Photography // Shutterstock
35 / 50#16. Computer occupations, all other
- Median annual wage: $96,980
- Median hourly wage: $46.63
- Total employment: 190 people (1.12 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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36 / 50#15. Software quality assurance analysts and testers
- Median annual wage: $101,350
- Median hourly wage: $48.73
- Total employment: 60 people (0.35 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
37 / 50#14. Medical and health services managers
- Median annual wage: $102,890
- Median hourly wage: $49.47
- Total employment: 650 people (3.86 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
38 / 50#13. Purchasing managers
- Median annual wage: $104,980
- Median hourly wage: $50.47
- Total employment: 40 people (0.21 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Stock Rocket // Shutterstock
39 / 50#12. Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing, technical and scientific products
- Median annual wage: $106,890
- Median hourly wage: $51.39
- Total employment: 170 people (1.04 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BalanceFormCreative // Shutterstock
40 / 50#11. Information security analysts
- Median annual wage: $107,000
- Median hourly wage: $51.44
- Total employment: 70 people (0.41 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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fizkes // Shutterstock
41 / 50#10. Marketing managers
- Median annual wage: $107,710
- Median hourly wage: $51.78
- Total employment: 160 people (0.95 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
dokurose // Shutterstock
42 / 50#9. Sales managers
- Median annual wage: $109,740
- Median hourly wage: $52.76
- Total employment: 430 people (2.59 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
43 / 50#8. Electronics engineers, except computer
- Median annual wage: $111,600
- Median hourly wage: $53.65
- Total employment: 50 people (0.31 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
44 / 50#7. Computer network architects
- Median annual wage: $112,500
- Median hourly wage: $54.09
- Total employment: 40 people (0.26 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
45 / 50#6. Human resources managers
- Median annual wage: $116,880
- Median hourly wage: $56.19
- Total employment: 120 people (0.74 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Roman Samborskyi // Shutterstock
46 / 50#5. Software developers
- Median annual wage: $126,670
- Median hourly wage: $60.90
- Total employment: 410 people (2.46 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
47 / 50#4. Chief executives
- Median annual wage: $133,680
- Median hourly wage: $64.27
- Total employment: 360 people (2.16 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Frame Stock Footage // Shutterstock
48 / 50#3. Computer and information systems managers
- Median annual wage: $135,960
- Median hourly wage: $65.37
- Total employment: 240 people (1.42 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Kanghophoto // Shutterstock
49 / 50#2. Financial managers
- Median annual wage: $138,280
- Median hourly wage: $66.48
- Total employment: 480 people (2.86 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BOY ANTHONY // Shutterstock
50 / 50#1. Architectural and engineering managers
- Median annual wage: $154,760
- Median hourly wage: $74.40
- Total employment: 60 people (0.35 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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