PIYAWAT WONGOPASS // Shutterstock
1 / 50#50. Computer programmers
- Median annual wage: $83,010
- Median hourly wage: $39.91
- Total employment: 140 people (0.4 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Highest-paying jobs in Greensboro 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 Greensboro, using annual compensation data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
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2 / 50#49. Credit analysts
- Median annual wage: $83,460
- Median hourly wage: $40.12
- Total employment: 130 people (0.35 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
3 / 50#48. Registered nurses
- Median annual wage: $84,200
- Median hourly wage: $40.48
- Total employment: 6,000 people (16.73 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
4 / 50#47. Management analysts
- Median annual wage: $85,870
- Median hourly wage: $41.28
- Total employment: 970 people (2.71 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
5 / 50#46. Database administrators
- Median annual wage: $88,620
- Median hourly wage: $42.60
- Total employment: 100 people (0.27 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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6 / 50#45. Industrial engineers
- Median annual wage: $89,360
- Median hourly wage: $42.96
- Total employment: 1,080 people (3.01 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
N.Z.Photography // Shutterstock
7 / 50#44. Computer occupations, all other
- Median annual wage: $89,690
- Median hourly wage: $43.12
- Total employment: 370 people (1.04 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
wutzkohphoto // Shutterstock
8 / 50#43. Civil engineers
- Median annual wage: $90,430
- Median hourly wage: $43.48
- Total employment: 550 people (1.53 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
9 / 50#42. Architects, except landscape and naval
- Median annual wage: $92,300
- Median hourly wage: $44.37
- Total employment: 60 people (0.17 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Undrey // Shutterstock
10 / 50#41. Financial and investment analysts
- Median annual wage: $94,110
- Median hourly wage: $45.25
- Total employment: 350 people (0.98 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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11 / 50#40. Project management specialists
- Median annual wage: $94,390
- Median hourly wage: $45.38
- Total employment: 1,750 people (4.89 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Roman Samborskyi // Shutterstock
12 / 50#39. Software quality assurance analysts and testers
- Median annual wage: $94,760
- Median hourly wage: $45.56
- Total employment: 160 people (0.45 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Halfpoint // Shutterstock
13 / 50#38. Materials engineers
- Median annual wage: $95,640
- Median hourly wage: $45.98
- Total employment: Not available
THICHA SATAPITANON // Shutterstock
14 / 50#37. Financial risk specialists
- Median annual wage: $96,380
- Median hourly wage: $46.34
- Total employment: 80 people (0.22 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
creativemarc // Shutterstock
15 / 50#36. Administrative services managers
- Median annual wage: $96,540
- Median hourly wage: $46.42
- Total employment: 460 people (1.27 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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16 / 50#35. Data scientists
- Median annual wage: $97,040
- Median hourly wage: $46.66
- Total employment: 240 people (0.67 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
17 / 50#34. General and operations managers
- Median annual wage: $97,150
- Median hourly wage: $46.71
- Total employment: 5,090 people (14.18 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
kittirat roekburi // Shutterstock
18 / 50#33. Environmental engineers
- Median annual wage: $98,390
- Median hourly wage: $47.30
- Total employment: 80 people (0.21 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
TaLaNoVa // Shutterstock
19 / 50#32. Sales engineers
- Median annual wage: $99,490
- Median hourly wage: $47.83
- Total employment: 100 people (0.29 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
20 / 50#31. Training and development managers
- Median annual wage: $99,850
- Median hourly wage: $48.01
- Total employment: 100 people (0.27 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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21 / 50#30. Computer systems analysts
- Median annual wage: $100,180
- Median hourly wage: $48.16
- Total employment: 900 people (2.5 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
22 / 50#29. Engineers, all other
- Median annual wage: $100,480
- Median hourly wage: $48.31
- Total employment: 190 people (0.54 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Krakenimages.com // Shutterstock
23 / 50#28. Education administrators, all other
- Median annual wage: $100,660
- Median hourly wage: $48.39
- Total employment: 70 people (0.19 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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24 / 50#27. Facilities managers
- Median annual wage: $101,780
- Median hourly wage: $48.93
- Total employment: 330 people (0.93 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
25 / 50#26. Fundraising managers
- Median annual wage: $103,030
- Median hourly wage: $49.53
- Total employment: 70 people (0.2 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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26 / 50#25. Construction managers
- Median annual wage: $103,360
- Median hourly wage: $49.69
- Total employment: 1,190 people (3.31 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
27 / 50#23. Electrical engineers (tie)
- Median annual wage: $105,360
- Median hourly wage: $50.65
- Total employment: 330 people (0.91 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BalanceFormCreative // Shutterstock
28 / 50#23. Information security analysts (tie)
- Median annual wage: $105,360
- Median hourly wage: $50.65
- Total employment: 190 people (0.52 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
29 / 50#22. Mechanical engineers
- Median annual wage: $106,430
- Median hourly wage: $51.17
- Total employment: 1,060 people (2.94 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
GaudiLab // Shutterstock
30 / 50#21. Personal financial advisors
- Median annual wage: $108,130
- Median hourly wage: $51.99
- Total employment: 540 people (1.51 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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31 / 50#20. Medical and health services managers
- Median annual wage: $109,640
- Median hourly wage: $52.71
- Total employment: 1,040 people (2.89 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
32 / 50#19. Health and safety engineers, except mining safety engineers and inspectors
- Median annual wage: $109,990
- Median hourly wage: $52.88
- Total employment: 30 people (0.09 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
33 / 50#18. Electronics engineers, except computer
- Median annual wage: $113,040
- Median hourly wage: $54.34
- Total employment: 80 people (0.21 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
34 / 50#17. Database architects
- Median annual wage: $113,270
- Median hourly wage: $54.46
- Total employment: 100 people (0.28 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
35 / 50#16. Compensation and benefits managers
- Median annual wage: $113,500
- Median hourly wage: $54.57
- Total employment: 30 people (0.09 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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36 / 50#15. Public relations managers
- Median annual wage: $114,080
- Median hourly wage: $54.85
- Total employment: 70 people (0.2 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Sunshine Seeds // Shutterstock
37 / 50#14. Industrial production managers
- Median annual wage: $114,810
- Median hourly wage: $55.20
- Total employment: 1,020 people (2.85 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
38 / 50#13. Purchasing managers
- Median annual wage: $118,680
- Median hourly wage: $57.06
- Total employment: 220 people (0.62 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
39 / 50#12. Computer network architects
- Median annual wage: $118,990
- Median hourly wage: $57.21
- Total employment: 210 people (0.58 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Roman Samborskyi // Shutterstock
40 / 50#11. Software developers
- Median annual wage: $122,900
- Median hourly wage: $59.09
- Total employment: 1,580 people (4.42 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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41 / 50#10. Managers, all other
- Median annual wage: $123,990
- Median hourly wage: $59.61
- Total employment: 1,170 people (3.25 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
dokurose // Shutterstock
42 / 50#9. Sales managers
- Median annual wage: $125,190
- Median hourly wage: $60.19
- Total employment: 1,150 people (3.21 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
43 / 50#8. Human resources managers
- Median annual wage: $125,330
- Median hourly wage: $60.26
- Total employment: 410 people (1.16 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
SeventyFour // Shutterstock
44 / 50#7. Computer hardware engineers
- Median annual wage: $129,530
- Median hourly wage: $62.27
- Total employment: Not available
fizkes // Shutterstock
45 / 50#6. Marketing managers
- Median annual wage: $135,290
- Median hourly wage: $65.04
- Total employment: 580 people (1.62 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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46 / 50#5. Natural sciences managers
- Median annual wage: $142,560
- Median hourly wage: $68.54
- Total employment: 170 people (0.48 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Frame Stock Footage // Shutterstock
47 / 50#4. Computer and information systems managers
- Median annual wage: $147,560
- Median hourly wage: $70.94
- Total employment: 920 people (2.58 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Kanghophoto // Shutterstock
48 / 50#3. Financial managers
- Median annual wage: $153,450
- Median hourly wage: $73.77
- Total employment: 1,340 people (3.73 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BOY ANTHONY // Shutterstock
49 / 50#2. Architectural and engineering managers
- Median annual wage: $155,600
- Median hourly wage: $74.81
- Total employment: 440 people (1.23 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
50 / 50#1. Chief executives
- Median annual wage: At least $239,200
- Median hourly wage: At least $115.00
- Total employment: 170 people (0.47 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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