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1 / 50#50. Water and wastewater treatment plant and system operators
- Median annual wage: $74,680
- Median hourly wage: $35.90
- Total employment: 900 people (0.46 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Highest-paying jobs in Minneapolis for high school graduates
For decades, common wisdom held that earning a bachelor's degree would guarantee a high-paying career. Higher education does still seem to be an advantage: A college graduate's average annual salary of $60,000 in 2024 is roughly $20,000 more than that of a high school graduate, and those with bachelor's degrees can typically expect to earn between $630,000 and $900,000 more over the course of a lifetime. However, recent shifts in higher education and the job market have people wondering—with good reason—whether or not a bachelor's degree will really pay off.
According to a 2024 study from the Pew Research Center, 29% of Americans believe obtaining a college degree isn't worthwhile, a trend reflected in shrinking attendance at universities across the nation. Meanwhile, annual college costs have skyrocketed to an average of $38,270 per student in 2025, often necessitating student loans with steep interest rates.
With these factors in mind, it's natural for recent high school graduates to consider vocational opportunities outside of college. Those who do may be pleasantly surprised—many companies have stopped requiring bachelor's degrees for entry-, mid-, and even senior-level positions. And while college graduates' average earnings may be higher, a 2024 report from Launchpad Jobs found that around 1 in 5 nondegree holders out-earn the $70,000 median wages of someone with a bachelor's degree.
Of course, salaries for high school grads vary widely based on job, industry, and location. Stacker used Bureau of Labor Statistics data to find the highest-paying jobs in Minneapolis for high school graduates. The analysis included jobs that listed a high school diploma or had no formal education requirement. Jobs are ranked by their median annual pay as of May 2024, so any jobs without annual compensation figures available were excluded from this analysis.
Oil and Gas Photographer // Shutterstock
2 / 50#49. Control and valve installers and repairers, except mechanical door
- Median annual wage: $74,690
- Median hourly wage: $35.91
- Total employment: 870 people (0.45 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
3 / 50#48. Lodging managers
- Median annual wage: $75,350
- Median hourly wage: $36.22
- Total employment: 170 people (0.09 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Bigflick // Shutterstock
4 / 50#47. Correctional officers and jailers
- Median annual wage: $75,410
- Median hourly wage: $36.26
- Total employment: 1,490 people (0.77 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
FabrikaSimf // Shutterstock
5 / 50#46. Carpenters
- Median annual wage: $75,710
- Median hourly wage: $36.40
- Total employment: 10,040 people (5.2 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Andrey_Popov // Shutterstock
6 / 50#45. Private detectives and investigators
- Median annual wage: $76,730
- Median hourly wage: $36.89
- Total employment: 670 people (0.35 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Paolo Bona // Shutterstock
7 / 50#44. Food service managers
- Median annual wage: $76,740
- Median hourly wage: $36.89
- Total employment: 610 people (0.32 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
M2020 // Shutterstock
8 / 50#43. Paving, surfacing, and tamping equipment operators
- Median annual wage: $76,810
- Median hourly wage: $36.93
- Total employment: 590 people (0.31 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Joey Chung // Shutterstock
9 / 50#42. Sales representatives of services, except advertising, insurance, financial services, and travel
- Median annual wage: $76,870
- Median hourly wage: $36.96
- Total employment: 15,500 people (8.02 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
GaudiLab // Shutterstock
10 / 50#41. First-line supervisors of office and administrative support workers
- Median annual wage: $76,880
- Median hourly wage: $36.96
- Total employment: 15,700 people (8.13 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
branislavpudar // Shutterstock
11 / 50#40. Hazardous materials removal workers
- Median annual wage: $76,950
- Median hourly wage: $37.00
- Total employment: 330 people (0.17 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Peter Braakmann // Shutterstock
12 / 50#39. First-line supervisors of farming, fishing, and forestry workers
- Median annual wage: $77,010
- Median hourly wage: $37.02
- Total employment: 120 people (0.06 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
welcomia // Shutterstock
13 / 50#38. Mobile heavy equipment mechanics, except engines
- Median annual wage: $77,580
- Median hourly wage: $37.30
- Total employment: 1,660 people (0.86 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Stock Rocket // Shutterstock
14 / 50#37. Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing, except technical and scientific products
- Median annual wage: $77,700
- Median hourly wage: $37.36
- Total employment: 21,410 people (11.09 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
15 / 50#36. Claims adjusters, examiners, and investigators
- Median annual wage: $78,320
- Median hourly wage: $37.66
- Total employment: 3,930 people (2.03 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Syda Productions // Shutterstock
16 / 50#33. Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants (tie)
- Median annual wage: $78,960
- Median hourly wage: $37.96
- Total employment: 5,960 people (3.08 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BearFotos // Shutterstock
17 / 50#33. First-line supervisors of protective service workers, all other (tie)
- Median annual wage: $78,960
- Median hourly wage: $37.96
- Total employment: 150 people (0.08 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Akarawut // Shutterstock
18 / 50#33. Extruding and forming machine setters, operators, and tenders, synthetic and glass fibers (tie)
- Median annual wage: $78,960
- Median hourly wage: $37.96
- Total employment: 140 people (0.07 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
brizmaker // Shutterstock
19 / 50#32. Roofers
- Median annual wage: $79,040
- Median hourly wage: $38.00
- Total employment: 1,330 people (0.69 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Oleg Golovnev // Shutterstock
20 / 50#31. First-line supervisors of production and operating workers
- Median annual wage: $79,230
- Median hourly wage: $38.09
- Total employment: 8,680 people (4.49 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Kzenon // Shutterstock
21 / 50#30. Excavating and loading machine and dragline operators, surface mining
- Median annual wage: $79,830
- Median hourly wage: $38.38
- Total employment: 390 people (0.2 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
g-stockstudio // Shutterstock
22 / 50#29. First-line supervisors of non-retail sales workers
- Median annual wage: $80,110
- Median hourly wage: $38.52
- Total employment: 1,920 people (1.0 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
GolF2532 // Shutterstock
23 / 50#28. Security and fire alarm systems installers
- Median annual wage: $80,610
- Median hourly wage: $38.76
- Total employment: 510 people (0.27 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
rezoff // Shutterstock
24 / 50#27. Plant and system operators, all other
- Median annual wage: $81,140
- Median hourly wage: $39.01
- Total employment: 80 people (0.04 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Irene Miller // Shutterstock
25 / 50#26. Operating engineers and other construction equipment operators
- Median annual wage: $81,770
- Median hourly wage: $39.31
- Total employment: 4,060 people (2.1 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
26 / 50#25. Insurance sales agents
- Median annual wage: $81,890
- Median hourly wage: $39.37
- Total employment: 6,610 people (3.42 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorgev // Shutterstock
27 / 50#24. First-line supervisors of security workers
- Median annual wage: $83,150
- Median hourly wage: $39.98
- Total employment: 890 people (0.46 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Prath // Shutterstock
28 / 50#23. Detectives and criminal investigators
- Median annual wage: $84,340
- Median hourly wage: $40.55
- Total employment: 1,140 people (0.59 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
michaeljung // Shutterstock
29 / 50#22. Power plant operators
- Median annual wage: $84,520
- Median hourly wage: $40.64
- Total employment: 320 people (0.17 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Kirill Lasis // Shutterstock
30 / 50#21. Tapers
- Median annual wage: $86,990
- Median hourly wage: $41.82
- Total employment: 190 people (0.1 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Kmpzzz // Shutterstock
31 / 50#20. Construction and building inspectors
- Median annual wage: $88,100
- Median hourly wage: $42.36
- Total employment: 870 people (0.45 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
muratart // Shutterstock
32 / 50#19. Pipelayers
- Median annual wage: $88,910
- Median hourly wage: $42.75
- Total employment: Not available
John Leung // Shutterstock
33 / 50#18. Brickmasons and blockmasons
- Median annual wage: $89,590
- Median hourly wage: $43.07
- Total employment: 800 people (0.41 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
4 PM production // Shutterstock
34 / 50#17. First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers
- Median annual wage: $90,480
- Median hourly wage: $43.50
- Total employment: 5,480 people (2.84 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Ken Wolter // Shutterstock
35 / 50#16. Postmasters and mail superintendents
- Median annual wage: $91,310
- Median hourly wage: $43.90
- Total employment: 110 people (0.06 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
N_Sakarin // Shutterstock
36 / 50#15. Structural iron and steel workers
- Median annual wage: $94,200
- Median hourly wage: $45.29
- Total employment: 720 people (0.38 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Etaphop photo // Shutterstock
37 / 50#14. Electricians
- Median annual wage: $95,090
- Median hourly wage: $45.71
- Total employment: 8,110 people (4.2 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Rebekah Zemansky // Shutterstock
38 / 50#13. First-line supervisors of correctional officers
- Median annual wage: $95,350
- Median hourly wage: $45.84
- Total employment: 390 people (0.2 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Christian Lagerek // Shutterstock
39 / 50#12. Gas plant operators
- Median annual wage: $95,370
- Median hourly wage: $45.85
- Total employment: 40 people (0.02 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
pio3 // Shutterstock
40 / 50#11. Police and sheriff's patrol officers
- Median annual wage: $95,920
- Median hourly wage: $46.12
- Total employment: 5,300 people (2.74 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Nagy-Bagoly Arpad // Shutterstock
41 / 50#10. Insulation workers, mechanical
- Median annual wage: $96,650
- Median hourly wage: $46.46
- Total employment: 210 people (0.11 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Andrey_Popov // Shutterstock
42 / 50#9. Plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters
- Median annual wage: $97,020
- Median hourly wage: $46.65
- Total employment: 5,070 people (2.63 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Oil and Gas Photographer // Shutterstock
43 / 50#8. Petroleum pump system operators, refinery operators, and gaugers
- Median annual wage: $98,720
- Median hourly wage: $47.46
- Total employment: 510 people (0.27 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
sculpies // Shutterstock
44 / 50#7. First-line supervisors of construction trades and extraction workers
- Median annual wage: $101,290
- Median hourly wage: $48.70
- Total employment: 7,470 people (3.87 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
prochasson frederic // Shutterstock
45 / 50#6. Boilermakers
- Median annual wage: $102,740
- Median hourly wage: $49.39
- Total employment: Not available
goodluz // Shutterstock
46 / 50#5. Transportation, storage, and distribution managers
- Median annual wage: $106,500
- Median hourly wage: $51.20
- Total employment: 2,820 people (1.46 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Ground Picture // Shutterstock
47 / 50#4. First-line supervisors of police and detectives
- Median annual wage: $108,040
- Median hourly wage: $51.94
- Total employment: 2,580 people (1.33 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Luisa Leal Photography // Shutterstock
48 / 50#3. Electrical power-line installers and repairers
- Median annual wage: $109,590
- Median hourly wage: $52.69
- Total employment: 800 people (0.42 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Lovely Bird // Shutterstock
49 / 50#2. Power distributors and dispatchers
- Median annual wage: $123,890
- Median hourly wage: $59.56
- Total employment: 100 people (0.05 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Dmitry Kalinovsky // Shutterstock
50 / 50#1. Elevator and escalator installers and repairers
- Median annual wage: $124,740
- Median hourly wage: $59.97
- Total employment: 350 people (0.18 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
This story features data reporting by Wade Zhou, writing by Cu Fleshman, and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 364 metros.
