Highest-paying jobs in Milwaukee 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 Milwaukee 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.

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1 / 50

#50. Industrial machinery mechanics

- Median annual wage: $68,550
- Median hourly wage: $32.96
- Total employment: 3,550 people (4.34 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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2 / 50

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

- Median annual wage: $68,570
- Median hourly wage: $32.96
- Total employment: 7,240 people (8.84 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock

3 / 50

#48. Lodging managers

- Median annual wage: $69,320
- Median hourly wage: $33.33
- Total employment: 140 people (0.17 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Gorgev // Shutterstock

4 / 50

#47. First-line supervisors of security workers

- Median annual wage: $70,350
- Median hourly wage: $33.82
- Total employment: 260 people (0.32 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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5 / 50

#46. Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants

- Median annual wage: $70,390
- Median hourly wage: $33.84
- Total employment: 1,230 people (1.5 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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Kmpzzz // Shutterstock

6 / 50

#45. Construction and building inspectors

- Median annual wage: $70,710
- Median hourly wage: $33.99
- Total employment: 440 people (0.54 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

BearFotos // Shutterstock

7 / 50

#44. First-line supervisors of protective service workers, all other

- Median annual wage: $70,770
- Median hourly wage: $34.03
- Total employment: 60 people (0.07 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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8 / 50

#43. Hearing aid specialists

- Median annual wage: $71,190
- Median hourly wage: $34.22
- Total employment: 80 people (0.1 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Stock Rocket // Shutterstock

9 / 50

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

- Median annual wage: $71,410
- Median hourly wage: $34.33
- Total employment: 10,790 people (13.17 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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10 / 50

#41. Cement masons and concrete finishers

- Median annual wage: $71,470
- Median hourly wage: $34.36
- Total employment: 950 people (1.16 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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Vadim Ratnikov // Shutterstock

11 / 50

#40. Earth drillers, except oil and gas

- Median annual wage: $72,290
- Median hourly wage: $34.75
- Total employment: 50 people (0.06 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

welcomia // Shutterstock

12 / 50

#39. Mobile heavy equipment mechanics, except engines

- Median annual wage: $72,560
- Median hourly wage: $34.89
- Total employment: 640 people (0.78 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

SpeedKingz // Shutterstock

13 / 50

#38. Personal service managers, all other

- Median annual wage: $73,120
- Median hourly wage: $35.16
- Total employment: Not available

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14 / 50

#37. Miscellaneous construction and related workers

- Median annual wage: $73,760
- Median hourly wage: $35.46
- Total employment: 100 people (0.12 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Chok Chokchai // Shutterstock

15 / 50

#36. Separating, filtering, clarifying, precipitating, and still machine setters, operators, and tenders

- Median annual wage: $74,330
- Median hourly wage: $35.74
- Total employment: 690 people (0.84 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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Rebekah Zemansky // Shutterstock

16 / 50

#35. First-line supervisors of correctional officers

- Median annual wage: $74,660
- Median hourly wage: $35.89
- Total employment: 140 people (0.17 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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17 / 50

#34. Aircraft mechanics and service technicians

- Median annual wage: $76,090
- Median hourly wage: $36.58
- Total employment: 460 people (0.57 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Oleg Golovnev // Shutterstock

18 / 50

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

- Median annual wage: $76,260
- Median hourly wage: $36.66
- Total employment: 6,370 people (7.78 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Etaphop photo // Shutterstock

19 / 50

#32. Electricians

- Median annual wage: $76,820
- Median hourly wage: $36.93
- Total employment: 3,690 people (4.5 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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20 / 50

#31. Operating engineers and other construction equipment operators

- Median annual wage: $77,510
- Median hourly wage: $37.26
- Total employment: 1,730 people (2.11 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock

21 / 50

#30. Claims adjusters, examiners, and investigators

- Median annual wage: $77,620
- Median hourly wage: $37.32
- Total employment: 2,150 people (2.62 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Leszek Glasner // Shutterstock

22 / 50

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

- Median annual wage: $78,160
- Median hourly wage: $37.58
- Total employment: 740 people (0.9 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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23 / 50

#28. Avionics technicians

- Median annual wage: $78,400
- Median hourly wage: $37.69
- Total employment: 50 people (0.07 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Roman023_photography // Shutterstock

24 / 50

#27. Riggers

- Median annual wage: $78,480
- Median hourly wage: $37.73
- Total employment: 100 people (0.12 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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25 / 50

#26. Healthcare practitioners and technical workers, all other

- Median annual wage: $78,790
- Median hourly wage: $37.88
- Total employment: Not available

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26 / 50

#25. Sheet metal workers

- Median annual wage: $79,490
- Median hourly wage: $38.22
- Total employment: 950 people (1.17 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

John Leung // Shutterstock

27 / 50

#24. Brickmasons and blockmasons

- Median annual wage: $80,320
- Median hourly wage: $38.62
- Total employment: 240 people (0.29 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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28 / 50

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

- Median annual wage: $80,440
- Median hourly wage: $38.67
- Total employment: 180 people (0.22 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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29 / 50

#22. Surgical assistants

- Median annual wage: $80,850
- Median hourly wage: $38.87
- Total employment: 230 people (0.28 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Andrey_Popov // Shutterstock

30 / 50

#21. Plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters

- Median annual wage: $82,080
- Median hourly wage: $39.46
- Total employment: 2,710 people (3.3 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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31 / 50

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

- Median annual wage: $83,430
- Median hourly wage: $40.11
- Total employment: 2,590 people (3.16 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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32 / 50

#19. Millwrights

- Median annual wage: $83,800
- Median hourly wage: $40.29
- Total employment: 170 people (0.21 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

muratart // Shutterstock

33 / 50

#18. Pipelayers

- Median annual wage: $85,180
- Median hourly wage: $40.95
- Total employment: 100 people (0.12 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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34 / 50

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

- Median annual wage: $85,390
- Median hourly wage: $41.05
- Total employment: 420 people (0.52 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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35 / 50

#16. Gas plant operators

- Median annual wage: $87,170
- Median hourly wage: $41.91
- Total employment: 90 people (0.11 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

rawpixel.com // Shutterstock

36 / 50

#15. Real estate brokers

- Median annual wage: $89,070
- Median hourly wage: $42.82
- Total employment: 160 people (0.2 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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37 / 50

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

- Median annual wage: $91,280
- Median hourly wage: $43.89
- Total employment: 3,400 people (4.15 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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38 / 50

#13. Police and sheriff's patrol officers

- Median annual wage: $91,670
- Median hourly wage: $44.07
- Total employment: 3,580 people (4.37 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

N_Sakarin // Shutterstock

39 / 50

#12. Structural iron and steel workers

- Median annual wage: $93,370
- Median hourly wage: $44.89
- Total employment: 270 people (0.33 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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40 / 50

#11. Transportation inspectors

- Median annual wage: $93,950
- Median hourly wage: $45.17
- Total employment: 50 people (0.06 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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41 / 50

#10. Reinforcing iron and rebar workers

- Median annual wage: $95,160
- Median hourly wage: $45.75
- Total employment: 60 people (0.07 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

goodluz // Shutterstock

42 / 50

#9. Transportation, storage, and distribution managers

- Median annual wage: $98,910
- Median hourly wage: $47.55
- Total employment: 1,120 people (1.37 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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43 / 50

#8. Detectives and criminal investigators

- Median annual wage: $98,970
- Median hourly wage: $47.58
- Total employment: 510 people (0.62 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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44 / 50

#7. Boilermakers

- Median annual wage: $99,050
- Median hourly wage: $47.62
- Total employment: 70 people (0.08 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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45 / 50

#6. Postmasters and mail superintendents

- Median annual wage: $99,470
- Median hourly wage: $47.82
- Total employment: 40 people (0.05 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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46 / 50

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

- Median annual wage: $99,730
- Median hourly wage: $47.95
- Total employment: 1,930 people (2.35 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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47 / 50

#4. First-line supervisors of police and detectives

- Median annual wage: $108,130
- Median hourly wage: $51.99
- Total employment: 520 people (0.64 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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48 / 50

#3. Electrical power-line installers and repairers

- Median annual wage: $108,840
- Median hourly wage: $52.33
- Total employment: 540 people (0.66 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

michaeljung // Shutterstock

49 / 50

#2. Power plant operators

- Median annual wage: $118,490
- Median hourly wage: $56.97
- Total employment: 110 people (0.14 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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50 / 50

#1. Commercial pilots

- Median annual wage: $158,330
- Median hourly wage: Not available
- Total employment: 300 people (0.36 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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