boonchoke // Shutterstock
1 / 50#50. Business operations specialists, all other
- Median annual wage: $65,960
- Median hourly wage: $31.71
- Total employment: 710 people (3.17 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Highest-paying jobs in Springfield 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. Registered nurses
- Median annual wage: $66,530
- Median hourly wage: $31.98
- Total employment: 7,450 people (33.56 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Rawpixel.com //Shutterstock
3 / 50#48. Web and digital interface designers
- Median annual wage: $67,250
- Median hourly wage: $32.33
- Total employment: 80 people (0.35 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
REDPIXEL.PL // Shutterstock
4 / 50#47. Commercial and industrial designers
- Median annual wage: $68,450
- Median hourly wage: $32.91
- Total employment: 50 people (0.23 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Aleksandar Karanov // Shutterstock
5 / 50#46. Occupational health and safety specialists
- Median annual wage: $68,960
- Median hourly wage: $33.16
- Total employment: 150 people (0.66 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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6 / 50#45. Web developers
- Median annual wage: $70,670
- Median hourly wage: $33.98
- Total employment: 60 people (0.27 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
7 / 50#44. General and operations managers
- Median annual wage: $72,400
- Median hourly wage: $34.81
- Total employment: 7,340 people (33.04 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Krakenimages.com // Shutterstock
8 / 50#43. Education administrators, all other
- Median annual wage: $72,430
- Median hourly wage: $34.82
- Total employment: 40 people (0.18 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Deemerwha studio // Shutterstock
9 / 50#42. Conservation scientists
- Median annual wage: $72,550
- Median hourly wage: $34.88
- Total employment: 30 people (0.14 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Chaay_Tee // Shutterstock
10 / 50#41. Data scientists
- Median annual wage: $74,010
- Median hourly wage: $35.58
- Total employment: 180 people (0.8 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
11 / 50#40. Mechanical engineers
- Median annual wage: $74,070
- Median hourly wage: $35.61
- Total employment: 170 people (0.76 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
12 / 50#39. Management analysts
- Median annual wage: $74,190
- Median hourly wage: $35.67
- Total employment: 470 people (2.1 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
13 / 50#38. Database administrators
- Median annual wage: $74,640
- Median hourly wage: $35.88
- Total employment: 70 people (0.33 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
N.Z.Photography // Shutterstock
14 / 50#37. Computer occupations, all other
- Median annual wage: $75,700
- Median hourly wage: $36.40
- Total employment: 500 people (2.24 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Undrey // Shutterstock
15 / 50#36. Financial and investment analysts
- Median annual wage: $76,000
- Median hourly wage: $36.54
- Total employment: 190 people (0.84 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
16 / 50#35. Engineers, all other
- Median annual wage: $76,470
- Median hourly wage: $36.77
- Total employment: 40 people (0.2 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Arjuna Kodisinghe // Shutterstock
17 / 50#34. Network and computer systems administrators
- Median annual wage: $76,550
- Median hourly wage: $36.80
- Total employment: 320 people (1.44 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Natee K Jindakum // Shutterstock
18 / 50#33. Financial examiners
- Median annual wage: $77,120
- Median hourly wage: $37.08
- Total employment: 140 people (0.62 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
19 / 50#32. Project management specialists
- Median annual wage: $77,230
- Median hourly wage: $37.13
- Total employment: 1,190 people (5.36 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
20 / 50#31. Architects, except landscape and naval
- Median annual wage: $78,150
- Median hourly wage: $37.57
- Total employment: 150 people (0.66 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
21 / 50#30. Computer systems analysts
- Median annual wage: $78,310
- Median hourly wage: $37.65
- Total employment: 280 people (1.28 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
22 / 50#29. Art directors
- Median annual wage: $79,160
- Median hourly wage: $38.06
- Total employment: 40 people (0.16 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
23 / 50#28. Social scientists and related workers, all other
- Median annual wage: $80,250
- Median hourly wage: $38.58
- Total employment: 30 people (0.14 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
THICHA SATAPITANON // Shutterstock
24 / 50#27. Financial risk specialists
- Median annual wage: $80,420
- Median hourly wage: $38.66
- Total employment: 40 people (0.16 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
25 / 50#26. Securities, commodities, and financial services sales agents
- Median annual wage: $81,330
- Median hourly wage: $39.10
- Total employment: 320 people (1.42 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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fizkes // Shutterstock
26 / 50#25. Labor relations specialists
- Median annual wage: $82,870
- Median hourly wage: $39.84
- Total employment: 40 people (0.2 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
wutzkohphoto // Shutterstock
27 / 50#24. Civil engineers
- Median annual wage: $84,280
- Median hourly wage: $40.52
- Total employment: 360 people (1.62 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
28 / 50#23. Industrial engineers
- Median annual wage: $84,310
- Median hourly wage: $40.54
- Total employment: 320 people (1.44 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Quality Stock Arts // Shutterstock
29 / 50#22. Facilities managers
- Median annual wage: $84,750
- Median hourly wage: $40.74
- Total employment: 160 people (0.72 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
creativemarc // Shutterstock
30 / 50#21. Administrative services managers
- Median annual wage: $84,820
- Median hourly wage: $40.78
- Total employment: 300 people (1.34 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
31 / 50#20. Computer network architects
- Median annual wage: $87,780
- Median hourly wage: $42.20
- Total employment: 120 people (0.56 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BalanceFormCreative // Shutterstock
32 / 50#19. Information security analysts
- Median annual wage: $88,150
- Median hourly wage: $42.38
- Total employment: 100 people (0.43 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
PIYAWAT WONGOPASS // Shutterstock
33 / 50#18. Computer programmers
- Median annual wage: $89,820
- Median hourly wage: $43.18
- Total employment: 130 people (0.56 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
dokurose // Shutterstock
34 / 50#17. Sales managers
- Median annual wage: $90,800
- Median hourly wage: $43.66
- Total employment: 580 people (2.63 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
35 / 50#16. Medical and health services managers
- Median annual wage: $93,550
- Median hourly wage: $44.98
- Total employment: 700 people (3.16 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Roman Samborskyi // Shutterstock
36 / 50#15. Software developers
- Median annual wage: $98,460
- Median hourly wage: $47.34
- Total employment: 630 people (2.85 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Bannafarsai_Stock // Shutterstock
37 / 50#14. Construction managers
- Median annual wage: $98,880
- Median hourly wage: $47.54
- Total employment: 160 people (0.7 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
38 / 50#13. Electrical engineers
- Median annual wage: $98,940
- Median hourly wage: $47.57
- Total employment: 60 people (0.29 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
39 / 50#12. Database architects
- Median annual wage: $100,190
- Median hourly wage: $48.17
- Total employment: 50 people (0.24 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
SpeedKingz // Shutterstock
40 / 50#11. Managers, all other
- Median annual wage: $101,150
- Median hourly wage: $48.63
- Total employment: 360 people (1.63 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Sunshine Seeds // Shutterstock
41 / 50#10. Industrial production managers
- Median annual wage: $101,290
- Median hourly wage: $48.70
- Total employment: 280 people (1.25 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
42 / 50#9. Marketing managers
- Median annual wage: $105,890
- Median hourly wage: $50.91
- Total employment: 270 people (1.22 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
GaudiLab // Shutterstock
43 / 50#8. Personal financial advisors
- Median annual wage: $108,420
- Median hourly wage: $52.13
- Total employment: 160 people (0.74 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
44 / 50#7. Purchasing managers
- Median annual wage: $108,600
- Median hourly wage: $52.21
- Total employment: 50 people (0.22 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
45 / 50#6. Human resources managers
- Median annual wage: $109,790
- Median hourly wage: $52.78
- Total employment: 210 people (0.94 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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46 / 50#5. Public relations managers
- Median annual wage: $115,450
- Median hourly wage: $55.51
- Total employment: 50 people (0.2 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Frame Stock Footage // Shutterstock
47 / 50#4. Computer and information systems managers
- Median annual wage: $123,360
- Median hourly wage: $59.31
- Total employment: 420 people (1.88 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Kanghophoto // Shutterstock
48 / 50#3. Financial managers
- Median annual wage: $123,380
- Median hourly wage: $59.32
- Total employment: 740 people (3.32 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BOY ANTHONY // Shutterstock
49 / 50#2. Architectural and engineering managers
- Median annual wage: $129,440
- Median hourly wage: $62.23
- Total employment: 40 people (0.19 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
50 / 50#1. Chief executives
- Median annual wage: $152,960
- Median hourly wage: $73.54
- Total employment: 260 people (1.18 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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