Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
1 / 46#46. Substitute teachers, short-term
- Median annual wage: $28,270
- Median hourly wage: $13.59
- Total employment: 140 people (3.92 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Highest-paying jobs in Great Falls 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 Great Falls, using annual compensation data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
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2 / 46#45. Community and social service specialists, all other
- Median annual wage: $37,820
- Median hourly wage: $18.19
- Total employment: 60 people (1.51 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
George Rudy // Shutterstock
3 / 46#44. Directors, religious activities and education
- Median annual wage: $39,520
- Median hourly wage: $19.00
- Total employment: Not available
Iam_Anupong // Shutterstock
4 / 46#43. Kindergarten teachers, except special education
- Median annual wage: $44,520
- Median hourly wage: Not available
- Total employment: 30 people (0.93 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
5 / 46#42. Graphic designers
- Median annual wage: $47,420
- Median hourly wage: $22.80
- Total employment: 40 people (1.05 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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6 / 46#41. Probation officers and correctional treatment specialists
- Median annual wage: $48,140
- Median hourly wage: $23.15
- Total employment: 40 people (1.2 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Pressmaster // Shutterstock
7 / 46#40. Public relations specialists
- Median annual wage: $49,240
- Median hourly wage: $23.67
- Total employment: 60 people (1.55 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Rido // Shutterstock
8 / 46#39. Social workers, all other
- Median annual wage: $49,640
- Median hourly wage: $23.87
- Total employment: 30 people (0.91 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
VH-studio // Shutterstock
9 / 46#38. Child, family, and school social workers
- Median annual wage: $50,340
- Median hourly wage: $24.20
- Total employment: 140 people (3.85 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Kzenon // Shutterstock
10 / 46#37. Training and development specialists
- Median annual wage: $50,770
- Median hourly wage: $24.41
- Total employment: 70 people (1.99 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
11 / 46#36. Elementary school teachers, except special education
- Median annual wage: $56,900
- Median hourly wage: Not available
- Total employment: 290 people (7.84 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Pressmaster // Shutterstock
12 / 46#35. Market research analysts and marketing specialists
- Median annual wage: $58,500
- Median hourly wage: $28.12
- Total employment: 70 people (2.01 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Rido // Shutterstock
13 / 46#34. Human resources specialists
- Median annual wage: $58,820
- Median hourly wage: $28.28
- Total employment: 180 people (4.95 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
SeventyFour // Shutterstock
14 / 46#33. Clergy
- Median annual wage: $58,970
- Median hourly wage: $28.35
- Total employment: 70 people (1.78 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
B Brown // Shutterstock
15 / 46#32. Secondary school teachers, except special and career/technical education
- Median annual wage: $59,420
- Median hourly wage: Not available
- Total employment: 280 people (7.53 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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DGLimages // Shutterstock
16 / 46#31. Special education teachers, kindergarten and elementary school
- Median annual wage: $59,840
- Median hourly wage: Not available
- Total employment: 30 people (0.82 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Photographee.eu // Shutterstock
17 / 46#30. Special education teachers, secondary school
- Median annual wage: $60,240
- Median hourly wage: Not available
- Total employment: 90 people (2.47 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
18 / 46#29. Fundraisers
- Median annual wage: $60,420
- Median hourly wage: $29.05
- Total employment: 30 people (0.91 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
anyaivanova // Shutterstock
19 / 46#28. Clinical laboratory technologists and technicians
- Median annual wage: $61,630
- Median hourly wage: $29.63
- Total employment: 110 people (2.93 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
20 / 46#27. Securities, commodities, and financial services sales agents
- Median annual wage: $61,680
- Median hourly wage: $29.65
- Total employment: 80 people (2.04 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Mongta Studio // Shutterstock
21 / 46#26. Cost estimators
- Median annual wage: $64,190
- Median hourly wage: $30.86
- Total employment: 90 people (2.43 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
GLRL // Shutterstock
22 / 46#25. Buyers and purchasing agents
- Median annual wage: $64,520
- Median hourly wage: $31.02
- Total employment: 100 people (2.63 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Arjuna Kodisinghe // Shutterstock
23 / 46#24. Network and computer systems administrators
- Median annual wage: $64,940
- Median hourly wage: $31.22
- Total employment: 60 people (1.62 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Lopolo // Shutterstock
24 / 46#23. Middle school teachers, except special and career/technical education
- Median annual wage: $65,420
- Median hourly wage: Not available
- Total employment: 240 people (6.57 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
25 / 46#22. Compliance officers
- Median annual wage: $66,440
- Median hourly wage: $31.94
- Total employment: 90 people (2.54 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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comzeal images // Shutterstock
26 / 46#21. Loan officers
- Median annual wage: $68,790
- Median hourly wage: $33.07
- Total employment: 90 people (2.48 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
27 / 46#20. Computer systems analysts
- Median annual wage: $70,130
- Median hourly wage: $33.72
- Total employment: 40 people (1.06 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
boonchoke // Shutterstock
28 / 46#19. Business operations specialists, all other
- Median annual wage: $72,550
- Median hourly wage: $34.88
- Total employment: 280 people (7.6 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
ImageFlow // Shutterstock
29 / 46#18. Accountants and auditors
- Median annual wage: $73,350
- Median hourly wage: $35.27
- Total employment: 300 people (8.13 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
30 / 46#17. Registered nurses
- Median annual wage: $75,470
- Median hourly wage: $36.29
- Total employment: 1,000 people (27.18 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Aleksandar Karanov // Shutterstock
31 / 46#16. Occupational health and safety specialists
- Median annual wage: $76,210
- Median hourly wage: $36.64
- Total employment: 50 people (1.46 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
wutzkohphoto // Shutterstock
32 / 46#15. Civil engineers
- Median annual wage: $79,380
- Median hourly wage: $38.16
- Total employment: 100 people (2.74 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
33 / 46#14. General and operations managers
- Median annual wage: $81,670
- Median hourly wage: $39.27
- Total employment: 650 people (17.7 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Stock Rocket // Shutterstock
34 / 46#13. Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing, technical and scientific products
- Median annual wage: $82,140
- Median hourly wage: $39.49
- Total employment: 40 people (1.05 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
N.Z.Photography // Shutterstock
35 / 46#12. Computer occupations, all other
- Median annual wage: $83,050
- Median hourly wage: $39.93
- Total employment: 70 people (1.91 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
36 / 46#11. Project management specialists
- Median annual wage: $84,260
- Median hourly wage: $40.51
- Total employment: 190 people (5.04 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BalanceFormCreative // Shutterstock
37 / 46#10. Information security analysts
- Median annual wage: $88,040
- Median hourly wage: $42.33
- Total employment: 30 people (0.82 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
38 / 46#9. Management analysts
- Median annual wage: $92,380
- Median hourly wage: $44.41
- Total employment: 80 people (2.24 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Bannafarsai_Stock // Shutterstock
39 / 46#8. Construction managers
- Median annual wage: $97,060
- Median hourly wage: $46.66
- Total employment: 100 people (2.84 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Roman Samborskyi // Shutterstock
40 / 46#7. Software developers
- Median annual wage: $97,470
- Median hourly wage: $46.86
- Total employment: 30 people (0.9 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
41 / 46#6. Medical and health services managers
- Median annual wage: $99,150
- Median hourly wage: $47.67
- Total employment: 200 people (5.5 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
dokurose // Shutterstock
42 / 46#5. Sales managers
- Median annual wage: $107,760
- Median hourly wage: $51.81
- Total employment: 60 people (1.6 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Kanghophoto // Shutterstock
43 / 46#4. Financial managers
- Median annual wage: $123,460
- Median hourly wage: $59.36
- Total employment: 80 people (2.29 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
SpeedKingz // Shutterstock
44 / 46#3. Managers, all other
- Median annual wage: $123,970
- Median hourly wage: $59.60
- Total employment: 50 people (1.46 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
GaudiLab // Shutterstock
45 / 46#2. Personal financial advisors
- Median annual wage: $126,530
- Median hourly wage: $60.83
- Total employment: 50 people (1.26 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
46 / 46#1. Chief executives
- Median annual wage: $219,600
- Median hourly wage: $105.58
- Total employment: 40 people (0.98 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.
