Dragon Images // Shutterstock
1 / 50#50. Chemical technicians
- Median annual wage: $74,620
- Median hourly wage: $35.88
- Total employment: 3,070 people (0.95 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Highest-paying jobs for people with 2-year degrees in Houston
For many, a two-year associate degree can be the ticket to higher earning power at an affordable price. Though some types of associate degrees can be a stepping stone to a bachelor's, others are geared toward middle-skilled careers that require specialized knowledge, such as criminal justice, cybersecurity, hospitality management, and more.
Across all fields of study, someone with a two-year degree can earn a median annual salary of $49,500 as of May 2024, around 18% more than that of a high school graduate. By comparison, bachelor's degree holders can earn a median salary of $66,600 but have to invest much more time—and money—into their degree.
According to March 2025 data from the Education Data Initiative, the total cost for a degree from a two-year in-district public college averages about $35,000, compared to nearly $109,000 for a bachelor's degree. And lower costs mean fewer student loans. Just 2 in 5 associate degree recipients took on student loan debt in the 2019-2020 school year (the most recent year with available data), compared to 64% of bachelor's degree students. The two-year degree holders who did use loans borrowed less money, incurring lower interest payments.
Despite the benefits of earning a two-year degree, the number of these credentials produced across the United States is lagging. A September 2024 study from Georgetown University forecasts a nationwide shortage of nearly 361,000 credentials to fill middle-skilled jobs through 2032. However, this could be good news for anyone holding one of these versatile degrees, since the number of available jobs may soon outnumber the employees qualified to work them.
In the meantime, Stacker used Bureau of Labor Statistics data to find the highest-paying jobs in Houston for people with a two-year associate degree. The analysis also included jobs that listed a high school diploma, some college but no degree, a postsecondary nondegree award, or had no formal education requirement. 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.
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Oil and Gas Photographer // Shutterstock
2 / 50#49. Mechanical engineering technologists and technicians
- Median annual wage: $74,970
- Median hourly wage: $36.05
- Total employment: 750 people (0.23 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Syda Productions // Shutterstock
3 / 50#48. Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants
- Median annual wage: $75,110
- Median hourly wage: $36.11
- Total employment: 7,070 people (2.18 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
sculpies // Shutterstock
4 / 50#47. First-line supervisors of construction trades and extraction workers
- Median annual wage: $75,150
- Median hourly wage: $36.13
- Total employment: 24,650 people (7.59 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
pio3 // Shutterstock
5 / 50#45. Police and sheriff's patrol officers (tie)
- Median annual wage: $75,450
- Median hourly wage: $36.28
- Total employment: 15,910 people (4.9 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Vladeep // Shutterstock
6 / 50#45. Crane and tower operators (tie)
- Median annual wage: $75,450
- Median hourly wage: $36.27
- Total employment: 2,390 people (0.74 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Leszek Glasner // Shutterstock
7 / 50#44. Property, real estate, and community association managers
- Median annual wage: $75,750
- Median hourly wage: $36.42
- Total employment: Not available
Neale Cousland // Shutterstock
8 / 50#43. Athletes and sports competitors
- Median annual wage: $76,070
- Median hourly wage: Not available
- Total employment: 450 people (0.14 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
9 / 50#42. Claims adjusters, examiners, and investigators
- Median annual wage: $76,290
- Median hourly wage: $36.68
- Total employment: 2,970 people (0.91 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BGStock72 // Shutterstock
10 / 50#41. Engineering technologists and technicians, except drafters, all other
- Median annual wage: $76,740
- Median hourly wage: $36.89
- Total employment: 3,750 people (1.16 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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11 / 50#40. Industrial engineering technologists and technicians
- Median annual wage: $77,400
- Median hourly wage: $37.21
- Total employment: 1,450 people (0.45 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Dmytro Zinkevych // Shutterstock
12 / 50#39. Respiratory therapists
- Median annual wage: $77,680
- Median hourly wage: $37.35
- Total employment: 3,380 people (1.04 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Photostriker // Shutterstock
13 / 50#38. Precision instrument and equipment repairers, all other
- Median annual wage: $77,800
- Median hourly wage: $37.40
- Total employment: 60 people (0.02 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Toa55 // Shutterstock
14 / 50#37. Occupational therapy assistants
- Median annual wage: $78,040
- Median hourly wage: $37.52
- Total employment: 1,060 people (0.33 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Tyler Olson // Shutterstock
15 / 50#36. Physical therapist assistants
- Median annual wage: $78,180
- Median hourly wage: $37.59
- Total employment: 1,970 people (0.61 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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16 / 50#35. First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers
- Median annual wage: $78,190
- Median hourly wage: $37.59
- Total employment: 17,510 people (5.39 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Elizaveta Galitckaia // Shutterstock
17 / 50#34. Wellhead pumpers
- Median annual wage: $78,290
- Median hourly wage: $37.64
- Total employment: 3,940 people (1.21 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Aleksander Krsmanovic // Shutterstock
18 / 50#33. Health information technologists and medical registrars
- Median annual wage: $78,650
- Median hourly wage: $37.81
- Total employment: 610 people (0.19 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
lenetstan // Shutterstock
19 / 50#32. Radiologic technologists and technicians
- Median annual wage: $78,860
- Median hourly wage: $37.91
- Total employment: 4,870 people (1.5 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
20 / 50#31. Lodging managers
- Median annual wage: $79,020
- Median hourly wage: $37.99
- Total employment: 470 people (0.14 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Indypendenz // Shutterstock
21 / 50#30. Electrical and electronics drafters
- Median annual wage: $79,060
- Median hourly wage: $38.01
- Total employment: 590 people (0.18 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Vladimir Endovitskiy // Shutterstock
22 / 50#29. Rotary drill operators, oil and gas
- Median annual wage: $79,150
- Median hourly wage: $38.05
- Total employment: 1,660 people (0.51 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Andrei Agape // Shutterstock
23 / 50#28. Avionics technicians
- Median annual wage: $79,780
- Median hourly wage: $38.36
- Total employment: 280 people (0.09 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Washburn HM // Shutterstock
24 / 50#27. Transportation inspectors
- Median annual wage: $80,260
- Median hourly wage: $38.59
- Total employment: 560 people (0.17 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Luisa Leal Photography // Shutterstock
25 / 50#26. Electrical power-line installers and repairers
- Median annual wage: $80,480
- Median hourly wage: $38.69
- Total employment: 3,240 people (1.0 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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26 / 50#25. Aircraft mechanics and service technicians
- Median annual wage: $80,850
- Median hourly wage: $38.87
- Total employment: 3,060 people (0.94 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Dmitry Kalinovsky // Shutterstock
27 / 50#24. Chemical equipment operators and tenders
- Median annual wage: $81,540
- Median hourly wage: $39.20
- Total employment: 6,930 people (2.13 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Tyler Olson // Shutterstock
28 / 50#23. First-line supervisors of firefighting and prevention workers
- Median annual wage: $82,680
- Median hourly wage: $39.75
- Total employment: 1,930 people (0.59 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Christian Lagerek // Shutterstock
29 / 50#22. Gas plant operators
- Median annual wage: $82,780
- Median hourly wage: $39.80
- Total employment: 820 people (0.25 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Roman Zaiets // Shutterstock
30 / 50#21. Electrical and electronics repairers, commercial and industrial equipment
- Median annual wage: $83,360
- Median hourly wage: $40.08
- Total employment: 3,530 people (1.09 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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funnyangel // Shutterstock
31 / 50#20. Fire inspectors and investigators
- Median annual wage: $83,370
- Median hourly wage: $40.08
- Total employment: 390 people (0.12 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gearstd // Shutterstock
32 / 50#19. Mechanical drafters
- Median annual wage: $84,640
- Median hourly wage: $40.69
- Total employment: 1,360 people (0.42 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
SofikoS // Shutterstock
33 / 50#18. Diagnostic medical sonographers
- Median annual wage: $85,300
- Median hourly wage: $41.01
- Total employment: 1,620 people (0.5 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Prath // Shutterstock
34 / 50#17. Detectives and criminal investigators
- Median annual wage: $86,440
- Median hourly wage: $41.56
- Total employment: 1,830 people (0.56 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
industryviews // Shutterstock
35 / 50#16. Aerospace engineering and operations technologists and technicians
- Median annual wage: $87,550
- Median hourly wage: $42.09
- Total employment: 150 people (0.05 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Avatar_023 // Shutterstock
36 / 50#15. Gas compressor and gas pumping station operators
- Median annual wage: $88,080
- Median hourly wage: $42.35
- Total employment: Not available
Suwin // Shutterstock
37 / 50#14. Electrical and electronics repairers, powerhouse, substation, and relay
- Median annual wage: $94,940
- Median hourly wage: $45.64
- Total employment: 640 people (0.2 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Peakstock // Shutterstock
38 / 50#13. Magnetic resonance imaging technologists
- Median annual wage: $97,150
- Median hourly wage: $46.71
- Total employment: 760 people (0.23 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Ken Wolter // Shutterstock
39 / 50#12. Postmasters and mail superintendents
- Median annual wage: $99,130
- Median hourly wage: $47.66
- Total employment: 90 people (0.03 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
goodluz // Shutterstock
40 / 50#11. Transportation, storage, and distribution managers
- Median annual wage: $100,450
- Median hourly wage: $48.29
- Total employment: 7,730 people (2.38 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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kittirat roekburi // Shutterstock
41 / 50#10. Chemical plant and system operators
- Median annual wage: $101,150
- Median hourly wage: $48.63
- Total employment: 1,820 people (0.56 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
My Ocean Production // Shutterstock
42 / 50#9. Nuclear medicine technologists
- Median annual wage: $102,350
- Median hourly wage: $49.21
- Total employment: 320 people (0.1 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Unai Huizi Photography // Shutterstock
43 / 50#8. Dental hygienists
- Median annual wage: $103,050
- Median hourly wage: $49.55
- Total employment: 3,900 people (1.2 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Tyler Olson // Shutterstock
44 / 50#7. Radiation therapists
- Median annual wage: $103,220
- Median hourly wage: $49.63
- Total employment: 470 people (0.15 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Oil and Gas Photographer // Shutterstock
45 / 50#6. Petroleum pump system operators, refinery operators, and gaugers
- Median annual wage: $103,280
- Median hourly wage: $49.66
- Total employment: 6,200 people (1.91 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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46 / 50#5. First-line supervisors of police and detectives
- Median annual wage: $110,030
- Median hourly wage: $52.90
- Total employment: 1,390 people (0.43 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Igor Kardasov // Shutterstock
47 / 50#4. Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels
- Median annual wage: $116,620
- Median hourly wage: $56.07
- Total employment: 2,850 people (0.88 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
ITisha // Shutterstock
48 / 50#3. Court reporters and simultaneous captioners
- Median annual wage: $129,820
- Median hourly wage: $62.42
- Total employment: 190 people (0.06 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
curraheeshutter // Shutterstock
49 / 50#2. Ship engineers
- Median annual wage: $130,180
- Median hourly wage: $62.59
- Total employment: 690 people (0.21 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Skycolors // Shutterstock
50 / 50#1. Commercial pilots
- Median annual wage: $167,210
- Median hourly wage: Not available
- Total employment: 950 people (0.29 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 363 metros.
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