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

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June 13, 2022
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Highest-paying jobs in Corpus Christi that don't require a college degree

From the moment they arrive on campus, today's high school students are inundated with messages about the importance of receiving a college education. They hear it from their guidance counselors, teachers, parents, family members, neighbors, and coaches. While graduation from a four-year college can certainly work wonders for students' future careers, it's not necessary for all fields — something admissions officers and guidance counselors sometimes fail to mention.

To find the highest paying jobs that don't require a college degree, Stacker consulted the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook to compile a list of all jobs that don't require higher education. All professions that listed a high school diploma, some college education (without a degree conferred), postsecondary nondegree award, or no formal education requirements for entry-level positions were considered. Jobs that didn't list any entry-level education requirement were excluded, as were job titles that grouped several positions together. Jobs are ranked by 2021 annual mean wage.

Keep reading to discover the highest paying jobs in Corpus Christi, TX that don't require a college degree.

#50. Inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers, and weighers

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $50,870
- #58 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 530

National
- Annual mean salary: $44,810
- Employment: 551,380
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Odessa, TX ($70,950)
--- Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA ($66,260)
--- Bismarck, ND ($64,940)

#49. Postal service mail sorters, processors, and processing machine operators

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $51,860
- #51 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 80

National
- Annual mean salary: $51,010
- Employment: 112,130
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Huntsville, AL ($55,830)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($55,260)
--- Wausau, WI ($55,060)

#48. Surgical technologists

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $52,430
- #120 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 160

National
- Annual mean salary: $53,590
- Employment: 109,060
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($80,450)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($80,170)
--- Vallejo-Fairfield, CA ($77,460)

#47. Postal service mail carriers

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $53,710
- #246 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 380

National
- Annual mean salary: $54,370
- Employment: 335,540
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Modesto, CA ($57,160)
--- Bismarck, ND ($57,090)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($56,820)

#46. Postal service clerks

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $54,040
- #134 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 90

National
- Annual mean salary: $53,210
- Employment: 79,320
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Houma-Thibodaux, LA ($59,410)
--- Florence, SC ($59,360)
--- Monroe, MI ($59,320)

#45. Claims adjusters, examiners, and investigators

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $54,070
- #365 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 120

National
- Annual mean salary: $70,960
- Employment: 278,140
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Kennewick-Richland, WA ($104,350)
--- Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT ($95,200)
--- Salinas, CA ($90,800)

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

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $54,230
- #326 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 220

National
- Annual mean salary: $60,350
- Employment: 172,830
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Anchorage, AK ($88,140)
--- Fairbanks, AK ($84,690)
--- Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH ($80,570)

#43. Mobile heavy equipment mechanics, except engines

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $54,270
- #218 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 430

National
- Annual mean salary: $57,280
- Employment: 145,230
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Fairbanks, AK ($86,740)
--- Urban Honolulu, HI ($82,520)
--- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA ($79,470)

#42. Construction and building inspectors

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $54,330
- #316 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 220

National
- Annual mean salary: $68,480
- Employment: 117,830
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- New Haven, CT ($121,510)
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($107,330)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($106,190)

#41. Plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $54,780
- #254 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 860

National
- Annual mean salary: $63,350
- Employment: 417,620
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($94,580)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($89,500)
--- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI ($89,190)

#40. Welders, cutters, solderers, and brazers

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $54,980
- #46 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 870

National
- Annual mean salary: $48,290
- Employment: 397,600
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Fairbanks, AK ($72,500)
--- Anchorage, AK ($71,840)
--- Urban Honolulu, HI ($66,920)

#39. Firefighters

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $56,330
- #115 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 740

National
- Annual mean salary: $55,290
- Employment: 317,310
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($114,210)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($98,150)
--- Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA ($97,470)

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

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $56,430
- #395 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 1,030

National
- Annual mean salary: $71,110
- Employment: 1,026,390
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($103,810)
--- Boulder, CO ($101,630)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($97,360)

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

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $56,580
- #270 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 1,930

National
- Annual mean salary: $63,380
- Employment: 1,443,630
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($82,050)
--- Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA ($79,520)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($78,430)

#36. Food service managers

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $56,780
- #312 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 280

National
- Annual mean salary: $63,970
- Employment: 210,680
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Trenton, NJ ($91,320)
--- Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA ($89,860)
--- Kahului-Wailuku-Lahaina, HI ($87,750)

#35. Structural iron and steel workers

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $57,140
- #80 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 100

National
- Annual mean salary: $61,270
- Employment: 68,620
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA ($95,020)
--- Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA ($88,250)
--- Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH ($83,340)

#34. Electricians

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $57,500
- #241 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 1,090

National
- Annual mean salary: $63,310
- Employment: 650,580
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($93,900)
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($91,090)
--- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI ($86,600)

#33. Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $57,990
- #225 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 370

National
- Annual mean salary: $66,870
- Employment: 466,910
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($94,590)
--- Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT ($87,760)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($87,420)

#32. Machinists

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $58,660
- #17 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 430

National
- Annual mean salary: $49,020
- Employment: 333,220
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Urban Honolulu, HI ($71,070)
--- Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV ($69,300)
--- Monroe, MI ($66,560)

#30 (tie). Boilermakers

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $59,450
- #32 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 140

National
- Annual mean salary: $69,070
- Employment: 12,920
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($106,660)
--- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI ($96,080)
--- Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD ($90,620)

#30 (tie). Maintenance workers, machinery

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $59,450
- #37 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 40

National
- Annual mean salary: $53,570
- Employment: 57,660
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Savannah, GA ($76,260)
--- Cedar Rapids, IA ($70,980)
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($69,980)

#29. Production, planning, and expediting clerks

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $59,510
- #27 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 580

National
- Annual mean salary: $52,220
- Employment: 367,200
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Idaho Falls, ID ($74,970)
--- Norwich-New London-Westerly, CT-RI ($71,160)
--- Bremerton-Silverdale, WA ($67,140)

#28. Property, real estate, and community association managers

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $59,640
- #220 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 380

National
- Annual mean salary: $70,030
- Employment: 234,680
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA ($109,540)
--- Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO ($106,420)
--- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA ($103,610)

#27. Rotary drill operators, oil and gas

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $60,000
- #13 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 50

National
- Annual mean salary: $61,840
- Employment: 11,170
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA ($84,210)
--- Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO ($75,750)
--- Lafayette, LA ($75,710)

#26. Industrial machinery mechanics

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $60,180
- #136 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 750

National
- Annual mean salary: $58,780
- Employment: 373,090
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Fairbanks, AK ($85,900)
--- Lake Charles, LA ($85,360)
--- Anchorage, AK ($82,890)

#25. Telecommunications line installers and repairers

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $60,230
- #98 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 230

National
- Annual mean salary: $62,250
- Employment: 101,530
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($90,680)
--- Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH ($90,370)
--- Salinas, CA ($88,050)

#24. Pump operators, except wellhead pumpers

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $60,560
- #11 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 70

National
- Annual mean salary: $54,400
- Employment: 10,600
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH ($75,030)
--- Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX ($69,840)
--- St. Louis, MO-IL ($68,630)

#23. Sheet metal workers

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $60,850
- #87 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 380

National
- Annual mean salary: $58,760
- Employment: 122,630
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Fairbanks, AK ($101,150)
--- Kennewick-Richland, WA ($94,930)
--- Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA ($93,840)

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

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $61,430
- #420 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 960

National
- Annual mean salary: $72,390
- Employment: 1,242,490
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($102,280)
--- Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT ($92,660)
--- Napa, CA ($92,620)

#21. Lodging managers

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $63,630
- #105 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 80

National
- Annual mean salary: $67,770
- Employment: 35,920
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Kahului-Wailuku-Lahaina, HI ($121,090)
--- Urban Honolulu, HI ($111,410)
--- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA ($99,600)

#20. Crane and tower operators

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $64,140
- #58 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 280

National
- Annual mean salary: $65,270
- Employment: 43,400
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA ($131,160)
--- Syracuse, NY ($103,350)
--- Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV ($99,990)

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

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $65,960
- #122 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 170

National
- Annual mean salary: $67,310
- Employment: 44,870
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA ($98,380)
--- Salt Lake City, UT ($94,070)
--- Santa Rosa, CA ($92,800)

#18. Aircraft mechanics and service technicians

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $66,040
- #98 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 880

National
- Annual mean salary: $69,470
- Employment: 125,440
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($86,470)
--- Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD ($86,370)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($85,860)

#17. Electrical power-line installers and repairers

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $67,070
- #316 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 180

National
- Annual mean salary: $79,060
- Employment: 123,940
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA ($117,700)
--- Salinas, CA ($110,180)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($109,490)

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

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $67,120
- #287 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 1,510

National
- Annual mean salary: $75,060
- Employment: 665,870
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($112,020)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($103,820)
--- Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA ($101,210)

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

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $69,110
- #407 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 210

National
- Annual mean salary: $92,320
- Employment: 243,920
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Portland-South Portland, ME ($129,860)
--- Durham-Chapel Hill, NC ($121,360)
--- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA ($121,250)

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

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $71,060
- #225 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 1,120

National
- Annual mean salary: $73,590
- Employment: 526,240
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Bremerton-Silverdale, WA ($93,830)
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($93,030)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($92,870)

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

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $74,400
- #30 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 210

National
- Annual mean salary: $64,230
- Employment: 50,780
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Vallejo-Fairfield, CA ($87,890)
--- Fresno, CA ($86,230)
--- Fairbanks, AK ($85,640)

#12. Petroleum pump system operators, refinery operators, and gaugers

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $76,510
- #43 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 800

National
- Annual mean salary: $80,500
- Employment: 34,230
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($105,090)
--- St. Louis, MO-IL ($97,860)
--- Vallejo-Fairfield, CA ($96,520)

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

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $76,800
- #151 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 210

National
- Annual mean salary: $83,270
- Employment: 80,890
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($171,060)
--- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA ($145,740)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($135,860)

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

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $77,120
- #94 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 30

National
- Annual mean salary: $87,640
- Employment: 22,490
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA ($120,210)
--- Sacramento--Roseville--Arden-Arcade, CA ($118,510)
--- Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA ($114,280)

#9. Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $78,560
- #43 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 140

National
- Annual mean salary: $98,330
- Employment: 33,490
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($126,420)
--- Anchorage, AK ($118,620)
--- New Orleans-Metairie, LA ($110,750)

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

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $82,090
- #20 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 780

National
- Annual mean salary: $67,330
- Employment: 629,420
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Baton Rouge, LA ($98,170)
--- Lake Charles, LA ($97,910)
--- Norwich-New London-Westerly, CT-RI ($90,410)

#7. Power distributors and dispatchers

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $82,210
- #38 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 50

National
- Annual mean salary: $95,520
- Employment: 9,660
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA ($131,560)
--- Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA ($129,570)
--- Birmingham-Hoover, AL ($123,540)

#6. Detectives and criminal investigators

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $82,530
- #143 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 170

National
- Annual mean salary: $90,370
- Employment: 107,890
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($132,210)
--- Anchorage, AK ($127,070)
--- Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV ($123,460)

#5. Chemical plant and system operators

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $88,120
- #5 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 470

National
- Annual mean salary: $69,020
- Employment: 21,740
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Lima, OH ($92,450)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($91,210)
--- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA ($90,170)

#4. Gas plant operators

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $93,360
- #7 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 130

National
- Annual mean salary: $76,970
- Employment: 15,110
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA ($99,600)
--- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA ($98,750)
--- Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX ($97,080)

#3. Commercial pilots

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $97,770
- #112 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 60

National
- Annual mean salary: $115,080
- Employment: 42,770
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($185,920)
--- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA ($184,260)
--- Savannah, GA ($177,450)

#2. First-line supervisors of police and detectives

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $98,010
- #118 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 170

National
- Annual mean salary: $98,760
- Employment: 128,230
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($182,700)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($170,740)
--- Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA ($164,600)

#1. Transportation, storage, and distribution managers

Corpus Christi, TX
- Annual mean salary: $100,690
- #143 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 170

National
- Annual mean salary: $105,580
- Employment: 144,640
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($159,890)
--- Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT ($154,170)
--- Trenton, NJ ($144,620)

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