N.Z.Photography // Shutterstock
1 / 50#50. Computer occupations, all other
- Median annual wage: $94,370
- Median hourly wage: $45.37
- Total employment: 1,650 people (4.07 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Highest-paying jobs in Madison 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 Madison, using annual compensation data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
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2 / 50#49. Art directors
- Median annual wage: $94,960
- Median hourly wage: $45.66
- Total employment: 110 people (0.28 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
3 / 50#48. Database administrators
- Median annual wage: $95,530
- Median hourly wage: $45.93
- Total employment: 410 people (1.0 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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4 / 50#47. Cartographers and photogrammetrists
- Median annual wage: $96,100
- Median hourly wage: $46.20
- Total employment: 50 people (0.11 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
5 / 50#46. Mechanical engineers
- Median annual wage: $96,680
- Median hourly wage: $46.48
- Total employment: 1,070 people (2.64 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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6 / 50#45. Civil engineers
- Median annual wage: $96,910
- Median hourly wage: $46.59
- Total employment: 1,430 people (3.53 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
7 / 50#44. Health and safety engineers, except mining safety engineers and inspectors
- Median annual wage: $97,130
- Median hourly wage: $46.70
- Total employment: 90 people (0.22 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
8 / 50#43. Management analysts
- Median annual wage: $97,680
- Median hourly wage: $46.96
- Total employment: 3,350 people (8.27 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
THICHA SATAPITANON // Shutterstock
9 / 50#42. Financial risk specialists
- Median annual wage: $97,800
- Median hourly wage: $47.02
- Total employment: 110 people (0.26 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
industryviews // Shutterstock
10 / 50#41. Career/technical education teachers, postsecondary
- Median annual wage: $98,040
- Median hourly wage: $47.14
- Total employment: 220 people (0.55 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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11 / 50#40. Labor relations specialists
- Median annual wage: $98,300
- Median hourly wage: $47.26
- Total employment: 320 people (0.78 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
12 / 50#39. Industrial engineers
- Median annual wage: $98,360
- Median hourly wage: $47.29
- Total employment: 1,370 people (3.37 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Chaay_Tee // Shutterstock
13 / 50#38. Data scientists
- Median annual wage: $98,510
- Median hourly wage: $47.36
- Total employment: 830 people (2.05 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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14 / 50#37. Information security analysts
- Median annual wage: $98,850
- Median hourly wage: $47.52
- Total employment: 380 people (0.93 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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15 / 50#36. Computer hardware engineers
- Median annual wage: $100,690
- Median hourly wage: $48.41
- Total employment: 140 people (0.36 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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16 / 50#35. Architects, except landscape and naval
- Median annual wage: $100,820
- Median hourly wage: $48.47
- Total employment: 350 people (0.86 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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17 / 50#34. Financial and investment analysts
- Median annual wage: $101,790
- Median hourly wage: $48.94
- Total employment: 960 people (2.37 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
18 / 50#33. Atmospheric and space scientists
- Median annual wage: $102,130
- Median hourly wage: $49.10
- Total employment: 110 people (0.27 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
19 / 50#32. Electrical engineers
- Median annual wage: $102,670
- Median hourly wage: $49.36
- Total employment: 580 people (1.44 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
dokurose // Shutterstock
20 / 50#31. Actuaries
- Median annual wage: $103,330
- Median hourly wage: $49.68
- Total employment: 160 people (0.4 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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21 / 50#30. Software developers
- Median annual wage: $104,670
- Median hourly wage: $50.32
- Total employment: 6,380 people (15.74 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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22 / 50#29. Materials engineers
- Median annual wage: $106,850
- Median hourly wage: $51.37
- Total employment: 60 people (0.15 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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23 / 50#28. Public relations managers
- Median annual wage: $107,080
- Median hourly wage: $51.48
- Total employment: 260 people (0.65 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
24 / 50#27. Engineers, all other
- Median annual wage: $107,400
- Median hourly wage: $51.63
- Total employment: 230 people (0.58 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
25 / 50#26. Electronics engineers, except computer
- Median annual wage: $107,550
- Median hourly wage: $51.71
- Total employment: 50 people (0.12 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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26 / 50#25. Administrative services managers
- Median annual wage: $111,930
- Median hourly wage: $53.81
- Total employment: 1,210 people (2.99 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
27 / 50#24. Training and development managers
- Median annual wage: $115,410
- Median hourly wage: $55.48
- Total employment: 120 people (0.29 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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28 / 50#23. Facilities managers
- Median annual wage: $115,740
- Median hourly wage: $55.65
- Total employment: 210 people (0.52 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
29 / 50#22. Computer network architects
- Median annual wage: $116,590
- Median hourly wage: $56.05
- Total employment: 330 people (0.82 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
TaLaNoVa // Shutterstock
30 / 50#21. Sales engineers
- Median annual wage: $119,100
- Median hourly wage: $57.26
- Total employment: 150 people (0.37 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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31 / 50#20. Compensation and benefits managers
- Median annual wage: $119,280
- Median hourly wage: $57.34
- Total employment: 70 people (0.18 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
32 / 50#19. Fundraising managers
- Median annual wage: $119,970
- Median hourly wage: $57.68
- Total employment: 50 people (0.13 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
H_Ko // Shutterstock
33 / 50#18. Materials scientists
- Median annual wage: $120,520
- Median hourly wage: $57.94
- Total employment: 50 people (0.13 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
SpeedKingz // Shutterstock
34 / 50#17. Managers, all other
- Median annual wage: $120,970
- Median hourly wage: $58.16
- Total employment: 2,670 people (6.58 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Tonhom1009 // Shutterstock
35 / 50#16. Bioengineers and biomedical engineers
- Median annual wage: $121,270
- Median hourly wage: $58.30
- Total employment: 70 people (0.17 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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36 / 50#15. Industrial production managers
- Median annual wage: $122,730
- Median hourly wage: $59.01
- Total employment: 810 people (1.99 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
37 / 50#14. General and operations managers
- Median annual wage: $123,460
- Median hourly wage: $59.36
- Total employment: 4,930 people (12.17 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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38 / 50#13. Personal financial advisors
- Median annual wage: $123,840
- Median hourly wage: $59.54
- Total employment: 580 people (1.44 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Bannafarsai_Stock // Shutterstock
39 / 50#12. Construction managers
- Median annual wage: $125,010
- Median hourly wage: $60.10
- Total employment: 720 people (1.78 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
40 / 50#11. Purchasing managers
- Median annual wage: $126,660
- Median hourly wage: $60.89
- Total employment: 130 people (0.31 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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41 / 50#10. Natural sciences managers
- Median annual wage: $131,560
- Median hourly wage: $63.25
- Total employment: 530 people (1.32 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
42 / 50#9. Marketing managers
- Median annual wage: $133,460
- Median hourly wage: $64.16
- Total employment: 870 people (2.15 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
43 / 50#8. Human resources managers
- Median annual wage: $136,600
- Median hourly wage: $65.68
- Total employment: 630 people (1.56 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
44 / 50#7. Medical and health services managers
- Median annual wage: $137,930
- Median hourly wage: $66.31
- Total employment: 1,220 people (3.01 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Frame Stock Footage // Shutterstock
45 / 50#6. Computer and information systems managers
- Median annual wage: $138,010
- Median hourly wage: $66.35
- Total employment: 1,850 people (4.56 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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46 / 50#5. Financial managers
- Median annual wage: $149,180
- Median hourly wage: $71.72
- Total employment: 2,010 people (4.96 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
dokurose // Shutterstock
47 / 50#4. Sales managers
- Median annual wage: $151,610
- Median hourly wage: $72.89
- Total employment: 1,360 people (3.36 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
48 / 50#3. Database architects
- Median annual wage: $158,140
- Median hourly wage: $76.03
- Total employment: 60 people (0.14 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BOY ANTHONY // Shutterstock
49 / 50#2. Architectural and engineering managers
- Median annual wage: $161,170
- Median hourly wage: $77.48
- Total employment: 850 people (2.09 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
50 / 50#1. Chief executives
- Median annual wage: $228,960
- Median hourly wage: $110.08
- Total employment: 560 people (1.38 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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