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1 / 50#50. Loan officers
- Median annual wage: $83,030
- Median hourly wage: $39.92
- Total employment: 150 people (0.76 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Highest-paying jobs in Springfield, Massachusetts 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 Springfield, using annual compensation data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
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2 / 50#49. Special education teachers, middle school
- Median annual wage: $83,070
- Median hourly wage: Not available
- Total employment: 210 people (1.05 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Pakorn Khantiyaporn // Shutterstock
3 / 50#48. Logisticians
- Median annual wage: $84,390
- Median hourly wage: $40.57
- Total employment: 150 people (0.76 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Arjuna Kodisinghe // Shutterstock
4 / 50#47. Network and computer systems administrators
- Median annual wage: $90,580
- Median hourly wage: $43.55
- Total employment: 310 people (1.54 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
5 / 50#46. Registered nurses
- Median annual wage: $90,970
- Median hourly wage: $43.74
- Total employment: 5,730 people (28.82 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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6 / 50#45. Insurance underwriters
- Median annual wage: $92,180
- Median hourly wage: $44.32
- Total employment: 200 people (0.98 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
dokurose // Shutterstock
7 / 50#44. Actuaries
- Median annual wage: $92,730
- Median hourly wage: $44.58
- Total employment: 230 people (1.17 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Mongta Studio // Shutterstock
8 / 50#43. Cost estimators
- Median annual wage: $93,790
- Median hourly wage: $45.09
- Total employment: 290 people (1.48 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
creativemarc // Shutterstock
9 / 50#42. Administrative services managers
- Median annual wage: $93,820
- Median hourly wage: $45.11
- Total employment: 300 people (1.49 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
10 / 50#41. Mechanical engineers
- Median annual wage: $96,230
- Median hourly wage: $46.27
- Total employment: 350 people (1.74 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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TaLaNoVa // Shutterstock
11 / 50#40. Sales engineers
- Median annual wage: $96,670
- Median hourly wage: $46.48
- Total employment: 110 people (0.53 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Undrey // Shutterstock
12 / 50#39. Financial and investment analysts
- Median annual wage: $97,570
- Median hourly wage: $46.91
- Total employment: 350 people (1.78 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
13 / 50#38. Project management specialists
- Median annual wage: $97,620
- Median hourly wage: $46.93
- Total employment: 580 people (2.93 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
wutzkohphoto // Shutterstock
14 / 50#37. Civil engineers
- Median annual wage: $98,190
- Median hourly wage: $47.21
- Total employment: 320 people (1.6 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
15 / 50#36. Industrial engineers
- Median annual wage: $98,350
- Median hourly wage: $47.28
- Total employment: 400 people (2.02 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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PIYAWAT WONGOPASS // Shutterstock
16 / 50#35. Computer programmers
- Median annual wage: $99,310
- Median hourly wage: $47.75
- Total employment: 60 people (0.3 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
17 / 50#34. Architects, except landscape and naval
- Median annual wage: $99,630
- Median hourly wage: $47.90
- Total employment: 90 people (0.43 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Rawpixel.com //Shutterstock
18 / 50#33. Web and digital interface designers
- Median annual wage: $100,720
- Median hourly wage: $48.42
- Total employment: 40 people (0.21 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Quality Stock Arts // Shutterstock
19 / 50#32. Facilities managers
- Median annual wage: $101,710
- Median hourly wage: $48.90
- Total employment: 220 people (1.12 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
20 / 50#31. Computer systems analysts
- Median annual wage: $102,080
- Median hourly wage: $49.08
- Total employment: 400 people (2.0 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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21 / 50#30. Personal financial advisors
- Median annual wage: $102,210
- Median hourly wage: $49.14
- Total employment: 170 people (0.85 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
22 / 50#29. General and operations managers
- Median annual wage: $102,450
- Median hourly wage: $49.26
- Total employment: 4,770 people (24.0 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
23 / 50#28. Engineers, all other
- Median annual wage: $103,660
- Median hourly wage: $49.84
- Total employment: 40 people (0.21 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
luchschenF // Shutterstock
24 / 50#27. Chemists
- Median annual wage: $104,000
- Median hourly wage: $50.00
- Total employment: 50 people (0.24 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
25 / 50#26. Database administrators
- Median annual wage: $104,380
- Median hourly wage: $50.18
- Total employment: 70 people (0.34 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
26 / 50#25. Medical and health services managers
- Median annual wage: $107,740
- Median hourly wage: $51.80
- Total employment: 1,000 people (5.05 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BalanceFormCreative // Shutterstock
27 / 50#24. Information security analysts
- Median annual wage: $111,740
- Median hourly wage: $53.72
- Total employment: 110 people (0.58 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
28 / 50#23. Management analysts
- Median annual wage: $112,570
- Median hourly wage: $54.12
- Total employment: 490 people (2.46 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
29 / 50#22. Electronics engineers, except computer
- Median annual wage: $114,710
- Median hourly wage: $55.15
- Total employment: 50 people (0.26 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
kittirat roekburi // Shutterstock
30 / 50#21. Environmental engineers
- Median annual wage: $116,570
- Median hourly wage: $56.05
- Total employment: 50 people (0.23 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
31 / 50#20. Training and development managers
- Median annual wage: $119,220
- Median hourly wage: $57.32
- Total employment: 50 people (0.23 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
32 / 50#19. Electrical engineers
- Median annual wage: $123,690
- Median hourly wage: $59.46
- Total employment: 240 people (1.21 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Chaay_Tee // Shutterstock
33 / 50#18. Data scientists
- Median annual wage: $123,810
- Median hourly wage: $59.52
- Total employment: 260 people (1.33 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
34 / 50#17. Computer network architects
- Median annual wage: $124,620
- Median hourly wage: $59.91
- Total employment: 100 people (0.52 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
eldar nurkovic // Shutterstock
35 / 50#16. Chemical engineers
- Median annual wage: $125,340
- Median hourly wage: $60.26
- Total employment: 40 people (0.18 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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36 / 50#15. Fundraising managers
- Median annual wage: $126,140
- Median hourly wage: $60.64
- Total employment: 50 people (0.26 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Roman Samborskyi // Shutterstock
37 / 50#14. Software developers
- Median annual wage: $127,260
- Median hourly wage: $61.18
- Total employment: 800 people (4.03 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Bannafarsai_Stock // Shutterstock
38 / 50#13. Construction managers
- Median annual wage: $127,680
- Median hourly wage: $61.39
- Total employment: 330 people (1.66 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
dokurose // Shutterstock
39 / 50#12. Sales managers
- Median annual wage: $130,720
- Median hourly wage: $62.85
- Total employment: 460 people (2.33 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
40 / 50#11. Human resources managers
- Median annual wage: $134,800
- Median hourly wage: $64.81
- Total employment: 180 people (0.92 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
41 / 50#10. Purchasing managers
- Median annual wage: $136,420
- Median hourly wage: $65.59
- Total employment: 60 people (0.31 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Pressmaster // Shutterstock
42 / 50#9. Public relations managers
- Median annual wage: $142,560
- Median hourly wage: $68.54
- Total employment: 60 people (0.3 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
43 / 50#8. Database architects
- Median annual wage: $151,790
- Median hourly wage: $72.97
- Total employment: 50 people (0.26 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
SpeedKingz // Shutterstock
44 / 50#7. Managers, all other
- Median annual wage: $159,500
- Median hourly wage: $76.68
- Total employment: 300 people (1.5 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Frame Stock Footage // Shutterstock
45 / 50#6. Computer and information systems managers
- Median annual wage: $162,900
- Median hourly wage: $78.32
- Total employment: 480 people (2.43 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Kanghophoto // Shutterstock
46 / 50#5. Financial managers
- Median annual wage: $164,790
- Median hourly wage: $79.23
- Total employment: 950 people (4.76 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BOY ANTHONY // Shutterstock
47 / 50#4. Architectural and engineering managers
- Median annual wage: $165,630
- Median hourly wage: $79.63
- Total employment: 200 people (1.01 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
48 / 50#3. Marketing managers
- Median annual wage: $166,690
- Median hourly wage: $80.14
- Total employment: 310 people (1.54 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
VE.Studio // Shutterstock
49 / 50#2. Natural sciences managers
- Median annual wage: $168,300
- Median hourly wage: $80.91
- Total employment: 40 people (0.18 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
50 / 50#1. Chief executives
- Median annual wage: $212,290
- Median hourly wage: $102.06
- 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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