Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
1 / 50#50. Industrial engineers
- Median annual wage: $102,440
- Median hourly wage: $49.25
- Total employment: 14,250 people (7.38 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Highest-paying jobs in Minneapolis 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 Minneapolis, using annual compensation data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
2 / 50#49. Art directors
- Median annual wage: $103,090
- Median hourly wage: $49.56
- Total employment: 930 people (0.48 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Undrey // Shutterstock
3 / 50#48. Financial and investment analysts
- Median annual wage: $103,200
- Median hourly wage: $49.62
- Total employment: 5,520 people (2.86 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Rawpixel.com //Shutterstock
4 / 50#47. Web developers
- Median annual wage: $103,910
- Median hourly wage: $49.96
- Total employment: 1,090 people (0.56 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Roman Samborskyi // Shutterstock
5 / 50#46. Software quality assurance analysts and testers
- Median annual wage: $105,930
- Median hourly wage: $50.93
- Total employment: 2,430 people (1.26 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
6 / 50#45. Electrical engineers
- Median annual wage: $106,960
- Median hourly wage: $51.42
- Total employment: 2,630 people (1.36 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
THICHA SATAPITANON // Shutterstock
7 / 50#44. Financial risk specialists
- Median annual wage: $107,770
- Median hourly wage: $51.81
- Total employment: 760 people (0.4 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
kittirat roekburi // Shutterstock
8 / 50#43. Environmental engineers
- Median annual wage: $108,380
- Median hourly wage: $52.11
- Total employment: 660 people (0.34 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
9 / 50#42. Computer systems analysts
- Median annual wage: $108,680
- Median hourly wage: $52.25
- Total employment: 8,360 people (4.33 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
dokurose // Shutterstock
10 / 50#41. Actuaries
- Median annual wage: $109,190
- Median hourly wage: $52.49
- Total employment: 750 people (0.39 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Motortion Films // Shutterstock
11 / 50#40. Entertainment and recreation managers, except gambling
- Median annual wage: $111,130
- Median hourly wage: $53.43
- Total employment: 270 people (0.14 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Quality Stock Arts // Shutterstock
12 / 50#39. Facilities managers
- Median annual wage: $113,790
- Median hourly wage: $54.71
- Total employment: 1,670 people (0.86 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
PIYAWAT WONGOPASS // Shutterstock
13 / 50#38. Computer programmers
- Median annual wage: $115,770
- Median hourly wage: $55.66
- Total employment: 1,620 people (0.84 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Halfpoint // Shutterstock
14 / 50#37. Materials engineers
- Median annual wage: $116,000
- Median hourly wage: $55.77
- Total employment: 150 people (0.08 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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15 / 50#36. Emergency management directors
- Median annual wage: $117,160
- Median hourly wage: $56.33
- Total employment: 120 people (0.06 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
16 / 50#35. Health and safety engineers, except mining safety engineers and inspectors
- Median annual wage: $117,820
- Median hourly wage: $56.65
- Total employment: 210 people (0.11 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
PanuShot // Shutterstock
17 / 50#34. Advertising and promotions managers
- Median annual wage: $119,480
- Median hourly wage: $57.44
- Total employment: 80 people (0.04 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
H_Ko // Shutterstock
18 / 50#33. Materials scientists
- Median annual wage: $119,600
- Median hourly wage: $57.50
- Total employment: 330 people (0.17 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Chaay_Tee // Shutterstock
19 / 50#32. Data scientists
- Median annual wage: $119,860
- Median hourly wage: $57.63
- Total employment: 2,870 people (1.49 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Bannafarsai_Stock // Shutterstock
20 / 50#31. Construction managers
- Median annual wage: $120,250
- Median hourly wage: $57.81
- Total employment: 3,760 people (1.95 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
eldar nurkovic // Shutterstock
21 / 50#30. Chemical engineers
- Median annual wage: $122,110
- Median hourly wage: $58.71
- Total employment: 150 people (0.07 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
22 / 50#29. Medical and health services managers
- Median annual wage: $123,800
- Median hourly wage: $59.52
- Total employment: 6,280 people (3.25 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Sunshine Seeds // Shutterstock
23 / 50#28. Industrial production managers
- Median annual wage: $125,140
- Median hourly wage: $60.16
- Total employment: 3,440 people (1.78 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
24 / 50#27. Fundraising managers
- Median annual wage: $125,580
- Median hourly wage: $60.37
- Total employment: 500 people (0.26 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
25 / 50#26. Engineers, all other
- Median annual wage: $125,670
- Median hourly wage: $60.42
- Total employment: 1,110 people (0.58 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Tonhom1009 // Shutterstock
26 / 50#25. Bioengineers and biomedical engineers
- Median annual wage: $126,780
- Median hourly wage: $60.95
- Total employment: 630 people (0.33 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
27 / 50#24. Computer network architects
- Median annual wage: $126,900
- Median hourly wage: $61.01
- Total employment: 1,590 people (0.82 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Another77 // Shutterstock
28 / 50#23. Petroleum engineers
- Median annual wage: $128,580
- Median hourly wage: $61.82
- Total employment: 50 people (0.03 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
29 / 50#22. Training and development managers
- Median annual wage: $129,160
- Median hourly wage: $62.10
- Total employment: 500 people (0.26 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BalanceFormCreative // Shutterstock
30 / 50#21. Information security analysts
- Median annual wage: $129,380
- Median hourly wage: $62.20
- Total employment: 2,090 people (1.08 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Roman Samborskyi // Shutterstock
31 / 50#20. Software developers
- Median annual wage: $129,430
- Median hourly wage: $62.22
- Total employment: 29,550 people (15.3 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
SeventyFour // Shutterstock
32 / 50#19. Computer hardware engineers
- Median annual wage: $130,530
- Median hourly wage: $62.76
- Total employment: 420 people (0.22 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
33 / 50#18. Database architects
- Median annual wage: $132,880
- Median hourly wage: $63.88
- Total employment: 790 people (0.41 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
VE.Studio // Shutterstock
34 / 50#17. Natural sciences managers
- Median annual wage: $134,900
- Median hourly wage: $64.86
- Total employment: 1,160 people (0.6 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Pressmaster // Shutterstock
35 / 50#16. Public relations managers
- Median annual wage: $137,800
- Median hourly wage: $66.25
- Total employment: 890 people (0.46 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
36 / 50#15. Compensation and benefits managers
- Median annual wage: $144,890
- Median hourly wage: $69.66
- Total employment: 290 people (0.15 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
aappp // Shutterstock
37 / 50#14. Aerospace engineers
- Median annual wage: $147,940
- Median hourly wage: $71.13
- Total employment: 110 people (0.06 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
creativemarc // Shutterstock
38 / 50#13. Administrative services managers
- Median annual wage: $148,670
- Median hourly wage: $71.48
- Total employment: 4,650 people (2.41 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Dmitry Lobanov // Shutterstock
39 / 50#12. Nuclear engineers
- Median annual wage: $150,260
- Median hourly wage: $72.24
- Total employment: 150 people (0.08 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
dokurose // Shutterstock
40 / 50#11. Sales managers
- Median annual wage: $150,860
- Median hourly wage: $72.53
- Total employment: 7,270 people (3.76 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
41 / 50#10. Human resources managers
- Median annual wage: $157,360
- Median hourly wage: $75.66
- Total employment: 3,250 people (1.69 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
SpeedKingz // Shutterstock
42 / 50#9. Managers, all other
- Median annual wage: $161,320
- Median hourly wage: $77.56
- Total employment: 3,970 people (2.05 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
43 / 50#8. Purchasing managers
- Median annual wage: $162,190
- Median hourly wage: $77.98
- Total employment: 1,090 people (0.56 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Kanghophoto // Shutterstock
44 / 50#7. Financial managers
- Median annual wage: $163,330
- Median hourly wage: $78.52
- Total employment: 12,230 people (6.33 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
45 / 50#6. Physical scientists, all other
- Median annual wage: $168,870
- Median hourly wage: $81.19
- Total employment: 540 people (0.28 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
46 / 50#5. Marketing managers
- Median annual wage: $169,760
- Median hourly wage: $81.61
- Total employment: 6,670 people (3.45 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BOY ANTHONY // Shutterstock
47 / 50#4. Architectural and engineering managers
- Median annual wage: $170,970
- Median hourly wage: $82.20
- Total employment: 3,410 people (1.76 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Frame Stock Footage // Shutterstock
48 / 50#3. Computer and information systems managers
- Median annual wage: $173,630
- Median hourly wage: $83.47
- Total employment: 8,680 people (4.49 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
YAKOBCHUK VIACHESLAV // Shutterstock
49 / 50#2. Airline pilots, copilots, and flight engineers
- Median annual wage: $184,560
- Median hourly wage: Not available
- Total employment: Not available
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
50 / 50#1. Chief executives
- Median annual wage: $210,000
- Median hourly wage: $100.96
- Total employment: 4,590 people (2.38 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.
