Highest-paying jobs in Dayton that don't require a college degree

Gen Z has figured out that college isn't the only way to land a high-paying job. According to the most recent data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, nearly 2 in 5 (38.6%) of recent high school graduates opted out of college in 2023, up from 33.8% in 2019.

This shift comes at a good time for high school grads, as companies face labor shortages for many jobs that don't require a college degree. Baby boomers retiring and a trend to reopen factories in the United States have both driven demand for young talent. A July 2024 Intelligent report found that 1 in 3 companies have already dropped bachelor's degree requirements across entry-level, mid-tier, and even senior positions to attract more employees.

The need for skilled workers, regardless of educational attainment, means better pay. Median wages for those with a high school degree are at their highest since 1990, according to the New York Federal Reserve.

At $40,000 on average, these wages are still $20,000 lower than those of a college grad. Yet nearly 1 in 5 workers who opt out of college earn more than employees with bachelor's degrees. Two million high school grads across the U.S. make six-figure annual salaries—without the financial burden of attending a four-year university. As of 2025, the average annual cost of college is more than $38,200 per student, and the average college graduate has more than $39,000 in student debt. It's little wonder that, according to a May 2024 survey from Pew Research, 29% of Americans think attending college is not worthwhile.

However, not every career field pays high school grads equally well, and understanding what the good jobs are is the first step to landing one. Stacker ranked the 50 highest-paying jobs that don't require a college degree in Dayton using annual compensation data from the BLS. The analysis included jobs that listed a high school diploma, a postsecondary nondegree award, or had no formal education requirements for entry-level positions. 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.

Josep Suria // Shutterstock

1 / 50

#50. Healthcare practitioners and technical workers, all other

- Median annual wage: $60,030
- Median hourly wage: $28.86
- Total employment: 60 people (0.17 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Paolo Bona // Shutterstock

2 / 50

#49. Food service managers

- Median annual wage: $60,130
- Median hourly wage: $28.91
- Total employment: 860 people (2.3 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Jacob Lund // Shutterstock

3 / 50

#48. Licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses

- Median annual wage: $60,560
- Median hourly wage: $29.11
- Total employment: 2,820 people (7.56 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Joey Chung // Shutterstock

4 / 50

#47. Sales representatives of services, except advertising, insurance, financial services, and travel

- Median annual wage: $60,590
- Median hourly wage: $29.13
- Total employment: 2,180 people (5.85 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Dragana Gordic // Shutterstock

5 / 50

#46. Community health workers

- Median annual wage: $60,890
- Median hourly wage: $29.27
- Total employment: 110 people (0.3 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

ALPA PROD // Shutterstock

6 / 50

#45. First-line supervisors of transportation and material moving workers, except aircraft cargo handling supervisors

- Median annual wage: $61,090
- Median hourly wage: $29.37
- Total employment: 1,540 people (4.14 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

fizkes // Shutterstock

7 / 50

#44. Public safety telecommunicators

- Median annual wage: $61,100
- Median hourly wage: $29.37
- Total employment: 330 people (0.88 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

David Spates // Shutterstock

8 / 50

#43. Heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers

- Median annual wage: $61,220
- Median hourly wage: $29.43
- Total employment: 1,040 people (2.78 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Syda Productions // Shutterstock

9 / 50

#42. Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants

- Median annual wage: $61,270
- Median hourly wage: $29.46
- Total employment: 540 people (1.45 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

GolF2532 // Shutterstock

10 / 50

#41. Security and fire alarm systems installers

- Median annual wage: $61,280
- Median hourly wage: $29.46
- Total employment: 170 people (0.45 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Kot500 // Shutterstock

11 / 50

#40. Bus and truck mechanics and diesel engine specialists

- Median annual wage: $61,340
- Median hourly wage: $29.49
- Total employment: 750 people (2.02 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Etaphop photo // Shutterstock

12 / 50

#39. Electricians

- Median annual wage: $61,390
- Median hourly wage: $29.51
- Total employment: 1,790 people (4.8 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

rlat // Shutterstock

13 / 50

#38. Postal service clerks

- Median annual wage: $61,630
- Median hourly wage: $29.63
- Total employment: 200 people (0.54 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Andrey_Popov // Shutterstock

14 / 50

#37. Plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters

- Median annual wage: $61,740
- Median hourly wage: $29.68
- Total employment: 1,050 people (2.82 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

welcomia // Shutterstock

15 / 50

#36. Mobile heavy equipment mechanics, except engines

- Median annual wage: $62,170
- Median hourly wage: $29.89
- Total employment: 380 people (1.02 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Irene Miller // Shutterstock

16 / 50

#35. Operating engineers and other construction equipment operators

- Median annual wage: $62,410
- Median hourly wage: $30.01
- Total employment: 680 people (1.82 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Pixel B // Shutterstock

17 / 50

#34. Tool and die makers

- Median annual wage: $62,500
- Median hourly wage: $30.05
- Total employment: 410 people (1.1 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

GaudiLab // Shutterstock

18 / 50

#33. First-line supervisors of office and administrative support workers

- Median annual wage: $62,650
- Median hourly wage: $30.12
- Total employment: 2,680 people (7.18 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Gerain0812 // Shutterstock

19 / 50

#32. Surgical technologists

- Median annual wage: $62,680
- Median hourly wage: $30.14
- Total employment: 260 people (0.7 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

SatawatK // Shutterstock

20 / 50

#31. Telecommunications equipment installers and repairers, except line installers

- Median annual wage: $62,810
- Median hourly wage: $30.20
- Total employment: 320 people (0.85 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

wavebreakmedia // Shutterstock

21 / 50

#30. Hearing aid specialists

- Median annual wage: $63,340
- Median hourly wage: $30.45
- Total employment: 40 people (0.1 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Yulai Studio // Shutterstock

22 / 50

#29. Surgical assistants

- Median annual wage: $63,390
- Median hourly wage: $30.48
- Total employment: 30 people (0.09 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

SritanaN // Shutterstock

23 / 50

#28. Industrial machinery mechanics

- Median annual wage: $64,320
- Median hourly wage: $30.92
- Total employment: 850 people (2.29 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

John Leung // Shutterstock

24 / 50

#27. Brickmasons and blockmasons

- Median annual wage: $64,450
- Median hourly wage: $30.99
- Total employment: 100 people (0.27 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Yuriy Golub // Shutterstock

25 / 50

#26. Glaziers

- Median annual wage: $64,600
- Median hourly wage: $31.06
- Total employment: 140 people (0.38 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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Vera Larina // Shutterstock

26 / 50

#25. Sheet metal workers

- Median annual wage: $64,900
- Median hourly wage: $31.20
- Total employment: 360 people (0.96 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Drazen Zigic // Shutterstock

27 / 50

#24. Bus drivers, transit and intercity

- Median annual wage: $65,780
- Median hourly wage: $31.62
- Total employment: 250 people (0.67 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Oleg Golovnev // Shutterstock

28 / 50

#23. First-line supervisors of production and operating workers

- Median annual wage: $65,880
- Median hourly wage: $31.67
- Total employment: 1,950 people (5.22 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Oil and Gas Photographer // Shutterstock

29 / 50

#22. Control and valve installers and repairers, except mechanical door

- Median annual wage: $66,070
- Median hourly wage: $31.77
- Total employment: 130 people (0.34 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock

30 / 50

#21. Computer numerically controlled tool programmers

- Median annual wage: $66,140
- Median hourly wage: $31.80
- Total employment: 190 people (0.51 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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Carolina K. Smith MD // Shutterstock

31 / 50

#20. Transportation security screeners

- Median annual wage: $66,310
- Median hourly wage: $31.88
- Total employment: 60 people (0.16 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Roman Zaiets // Shutterstock

32 / 50

#19. Electrical and electronics repairers, commercial and industrial equipment

- Median annual wage: $71,680
- Median hourly wage: $34.46
- Total employment: 100 people (0.28 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Stock Rocket // Shutterstock

33 / 50

#18. Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing, except technical and scientific products

- Median annual wage: $73,680
- Median hourly wage: $35.42
- Total employment: 3,190 people (8.54 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

kittirat roekburi // Shutterstock

34 / 50

#17. Stationary engineers and boiler operators

- Median annual wage: $74,810
- Median hourly wage: $35.97
- Total employment: 50 people (0.14 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

g-stockstudio // Shutterstock

35 / 50

#16. First-line supervisors of non-retail sales workers

- Median annual wage: $76,240
- Median hourly wage: $36.66
- Total employment: 260 people (0.69 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

4 PM production // Shutterstock

36 / 50

#15. First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers

- Median annual wage: $76,360
- Median hourly wage: $36.71
- Total employment: 1,210 people (3.25 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

sculpies // Shutterstock

37 / 50

#14. First-line supervisors of construction trades and extraction workers

- Median annual wage: $76,910
- Median hourly wage: $36.98
- Total employment: 1,300 people (3.48 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

pio3 // Shutterstock

38 / 50

#13. Police and sheriff's patrol officers

- Median annual wage: $77,030
- Median hourly wage: $37.03
- Total employment: 1,500 people (4.02 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

santi lumubol // Shutterstock

39 / 50

#12. Aircraft mechanics and service technicians

- Median annual wage: $77,300
- Median hourly wage: $37.16
- Total employment: 250 people (0.67 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Kmpzzz // Shutterstock

40 / 50

#11. Construction and building inspectors

- Median annual wage: $77,730
- Median hourly wage: $37.37
- Total employment: 160 people (0.42 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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funnyangel // Shutterstock

41 / 50

#10. Fire inspectors and investigators

- Median annual wage: $80,690
- Median hourly wage: $38.79
- Total employment: 50 people (0.13 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Tyler Olson // Shutterstock

42 / 50

#9. First-line supervisors of firefighting and prevention workers

- Median annual wage: $80,830
- Median hourly wage: $38.86
- Total employment: 280 people (0.75 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Prath // Shutterstock

43 / 50

#8. Detectives and criminal investigators

- Median annual wage: $82,700
- Median hourly wage: $39.76
- Total employment: 160 people (0.42 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Vladeep // Shutterstock

44 / 50

#7. Crane and tower operators

- Median annual wage: $84,640
- Median hourly wage: $40.69
- Total employment: 90 people (0.23 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Luisa Leal Photography // Shutterstock

45 / 50

#6. Electrical power-line installers and repairers

- Median annual wage: $88,140
- Median hourly wage: $42.37
- Total employment: 230 people (0.61 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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socrates471 // Shutterstock

46 / 50

#5. Media and communication equipment workers, all other

- Median annual wage: $90,170
- Median hourly wage: $43.35
- Total employment: 30 people (0.08 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Suwin // Shutterstock

47 / 50

#4. Electrical and electronics repairers, powerhouse, substation, and relay

- Median annual wage: $96,180
- Median hourly wage: $46.24
- Total employment: 40 people (0.1 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Ground Picture // Shutterstock

48 / 50

#3. First-line supervisors of police and detectives

- Median annual wage: $96,870
- Median hourly wage: $46.57
- Total employment: 400 people (1.06 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

goodluz // Shutterstock

49 / 50

#2. Transportation, storage, and distribution managers

- Median annual wage: $97,470
- Median hourly wage: $46.86
- Total employment: 530 people (1.42 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Skycolors // Shutterstock

50 / 50

#1. Commercial pilots

- Median annual wage: $163,810
- Median hourly wage: Not available
- Total employment: 100 people (0.28 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.