Once you reach your final university semester, it’s time to think about which career you’d like to move forward with. In all likelihood, you’ll consider two vital factors when choosing a potential future:
- Will this career give me work satisfaction?
- Can this career provide me with financial security?
University education isn’t a child’s play. You’ve worked hard for years, stayed up all night to complete hundreds of assignments, scrambled to find last-minute online exam help and battled challenging coursework every day. On top of that, you’re probably under the burden of an education loan that you have to pay off. Hence, there’s no surprise that you’d look for a career that will make all these hardships worth suffering.
If you’ve not decided on one yet, you can browse through these 10 highest paying jobs in the world for better reference.
- Surgeon
Becoming a surgeon requires years of specialized training and hard work, but it is one of the highest-paying careers in the medical field. A surgeon can make an average of $402,301 in a year. However, you can expect it to increase up to $545,920 depending upon:
- Education
- Additional skills
- The number of years you serve in the role
With more years of experience under the belt, you can expect higher salaries and better employment benefits.
- Anaesthesiologist
Similar to a surgeon, anaesthesiologists play a vital role in critical medical care. They are responsible for monitoring and caring for the patient before, after and during surgery. Their expertise makes it possible for patients to go through safe surgeries and recover properly.
Anaesthesiologists make an average of $397,300 in a year.
- Data scientist
Even in 2021, there is a shocking lack of data scientists despite it being one of the highest-paying jobs in the world. Companies are always on the lookout for hiring capable people who can help them-
- Clean and organize a massive amount of data
- Analyze complex raw and processed information
- Find patterns from the data
Data scientists are crucial to help a company make a strategic business decision based on the data evidence. As a result, the average salary of a data scientist in the US can be around $120,172 per annum.
- CEO
The chief-executive-officer of a company is the highest-ranking official who is responsible for-
- Making vital executive decisions
- Managing the operations of the company
- Implementing a solid future vision
- Maintaining good communications for smooth functioning
It’s not all holidays in foreign islands as some rom-com movies might make you believe. Instead, CEOs are the driving force behind a company’s success.
It’s no surprise that CEOs are also the highest-paid individuals in the world. In the US, the average salary you can expect in this career is $771,165.
- Engineering manager
If you’re pursuing an engineering degree in college, you can aim to reach the position of an engineering manager in the future. The job of an engineering manager entails-
- Supervising and leading engineers in a task
- Manage multiple projects at once
- Proposing and managing the budget for projects
Due to working with multiple teams, an engineering manager has to possess high communication and other soft skills. As a result, the average salary of an engineering manager can reach somewhere between $149,000 to $135,000.
- Pilots
The aviation industry provides one of the most lucrative salaries worldwide. Despite the job requiring you to be away from home most of the time, it can be an excellent choice if you love travelling. As a pilot, your primary responsibilities will include-
- Overseeing all in-flight operations
- Analyzing flight plans depending on the weather conditions
- Inspecting all systems operations for smooth flight
- Determining the safest routes
If you’ve watched the 2016 movie Sully, you would know how crucial the pilot’s role can be in emergencies that may arise at any time. Hence, pilots earn an average of $90,000 every year.
- IT systems manager
In an age where most companies store their sensitive data online, the role of an IT systems manager becomes more crucial. They are responsible for-
- Keeping the office network free from malware
- Protecting the sensitive data from hackers
- Conducting regular maintenance on hardware and software
- Take care of technical issues
If you plan to take up this career, you can get an average of $87,000 per year.
- Corporate lawyers
If you’re studying law, there are plenty of branches you can choose to specialize in, like:
- Intellectual property lawyer
- Family lawyer
- Business or corporate lawyer
- Tax lawyer
- Labor lawyer
- Immigration lawyer
- Real estate lawyer
Out of these, being a corporate lawyer is both exciting and pays a substantial amount of money. You have to manage all legal issues related to a company, such as contracts, acquisitions, mergers, taxes, etc.
The job is demanding, but a corporate lawyer makes an average of $120,000 in the US, making the responsibilities that come with the job worth it.
- University professors
If you have a passion for teaching and undying love for a subject, you could consider the career of a university professor. As a professor, your job won’t end at teaching students. You can conduct workshops, work on your thesis, carry out researches, and represent your university in conferences.
To become a university professor, you must complete your master’s degree. However, while it is recommended that you complete your PhD, you can find plenty of jobs that don’t require it. For example, many professors work on their PhD while teaching.
As a university professor, you can earn anything between $150,000 to $200,000 depending on your teaching experience and several other factors.
- Judge
Once you study law and spend a few years practising as an attorney, you can seek to be elected as a judge. Unfortunately, the job of a judge isn’t as exciting as it might seem in dramas. Most of the primary duties include overseeing trespassing and traffic violation cases.
While the highest-paid individual is the Chief Supreme Court Justice with an average salary of $267,000, a district judge can expect around $210,900.
To sum it up,
All the stress and hard work that you experienced while working on your university assignments will help you in your journey to land your dream job. Depending on your specialization, you can find plenty of careers that pay well and are equally enjoyable.
Author bio:
Rosie Lang is an educational expert at an esteemed university in the US. She conducts regular seminars on paper rater career counselling and loves to spend her weekends with a good storybook and a cup of coffee.