16 Fantastic Higher Paying Jobs That Don’t Require Experience (Or a Degree)
Everyone would take a high-paying job if it were available to them. The question is whether investing the substantial funds required to obtain a college degree is worth the economic benefit. What if you didn’t have to attend university to secure a lucrative career?
Many industrious, financially astute Americans have learned firsthand that a degree is not the only means to a high-paying career path. At least 16 jobs don’t necessarily require a formal university degree and don’t require much experience.
Consider these alternative career paths if you have grown wary of the albatross-like burden of obtaining a formal education.
1. UPS Driver
Though UPS stands for United Parcel Service, it may also stand for the United Paper Stackers. UPS CEO Carol Tome recently claimed that drivers earn an average of $170,000 in salary and benefits at the end of their five-year contract agreements.
As you might suspect, you don’t need to graduate from Harvard to become a UPS delivery driver (though there’s no reason you couldn’t). With little more than a valid Commercial Driver’s License (CDL), an ability to lift 70-pound boxes, good physical health, and a submitted application, you may be on your way to a lucrative career behind the wheel.
2. Salesperson
Saying “salesperson” is a good job is like saying “people” are good. There is simply too much variance in the word “salesperson” to make blanket statements about the worthiness of starting a sales career.
Those with the charisma, persuasive penchant, and interpersonal skills to derive energy from the sales grind can make a lucrative living without any prior experience or formal degree.
3. Waste Management Professional
You’re probably not going to get rich being a garbage collector, as the median salary was $43,540 in 2022. The job is also dangerous and rife with foul-smelling unidentified liquids and just as many rotting solids.
Yet, there’s a reason the industry was projected to see a 13% rise in workers between 2018 and 2026. Paid vacation, full health benefits, and pensions are among the benefits that many (if not most) waste disposal professionals receive in addition to their salary.
4. Recruiter
You may not need much more than an eye for circular pegs and round holes to be an effective recruiter. That is, you must be able to determine what applicants would be a strong fit for an open position.
While some recruiting jobs require a Bachelor’s degree, that’s not always the case. An impressive interview in which you display strong interpersonal and analytical skills may secure you a job that can realistically command a six-figure income.
5. Writer
If you can write, you can make a healthy living. While income ranges among writers vary significantly, the quality of your work will speak for itself.
You might be an engineer whose expertise lends itself to highly technical writing. You might have a one-of-a-kind idea for a work of fiction. You might be an authority on your favorite sports team and may have perspectives that the fan base connects with to the degree that you earn a loyal following. If you have something to say, consider trying your hand as a writer. No experience is required for many gigs, and your fate is in your own hands—quite literally.
6. Personal (Potentially Remote) Assistant
Virtual assistants allow the recipients of their assistance to do virtually anything they set their mind to. The power of a helping hand can be immense, which is why a career (or side gig) as a virtual assistant is worth considering.
There are far worse gigs, too. Virtual assistants oversee schedules, make administrative calls, facilitate projects, manage books, and do whatever else their clients need to do. Platforms like Udemy and Alison offer affordable courses specific to a virtual assistantship, and landing the right client could mean a financially liberating career pivot.
7. Long-Haul Truck Driver
Are you ready to put the Grateful Dead’s Truckin’ on repeat? As many cargo-hauling former disgruntled accountants and fast-food workers have discovered, long-haul trucking can be a well-paying career. Data suggests truck drivers can make nearly six figures, especially as they move up the ranks.
Organizations like Wal-Mart have a reputation for paying drivers especially well and have high hiring standards. However, this job comes with significant sacrifices, namely, being over the road for weeks at a time.
8. Real Estate Agent
Real estate can be a highly economy-dependent, feast-or-famine sector for those tasked with pairing buyers with sellers. Many factors, including interest rates and the performance of the markets, hold the average real estate agent at their mercy.
Agents can feast in times of cheap money (low interest rates) and economic prosperity. This is evidenced by an average salary of over $99,000 in the United States. The fact that you only need to spend a few hundred bucks on courses and licensing fees before you can sell makes real estate an attractive option for those seeking a career start or professional change.
9. Cop
Being a police officer is not for everyone, possibly including those who don’t respond well to conflict, cannot handle any added psychological or emotional strain, or fear the power of the badge would go to their head.
However, those stuck in a dead-end career or seeking a more active profession might consider law enforcement. More cops were hired in 2023 than in any of the four previous years, but there is still demand for more. The average annual salary for police officers in the top-ten highest paying states is $73,000 or more.
10. Translator
Whether your client is the latest Japanese player to join the New York Yankees (one can dream), a class of ESL students, a law firm, or any other person or organization that needs one language translated into the other, being a translator can be a fruitful and fulfilling gig.
Admittedly, this is one of the industries potentially at risk of an AI takeover, but in the meantime, consider whether you have adequately monetized your bilingual (or trilingual?) status.
11. Any of the Home Service Occupations
Some Americans embark on a never-ending quest for a job that will provide guaranteed security, but there’s no such thing. The pipe dream of the “secure” career leads many to forego gigs that could prove more lucrative, even if they have a hard-to-predict financial ceiling.
If you feel mired in a miserable or dead-end profession, consider that starting a handyman business, lawn-mowing service, or other home-service-related side gig could lead to something far more significant. While you should be competent in these fields, you shouldn’t dismiss such careers because you’re not an expert.
12. Claims Adjuster
Few professional fields are less exciting than insurance, but we’re guessing you didn’t get into your current career for excitement. Most Americans seek a steady, financially rewarding, and sufficiently challenging job, and the role of claims adjuster can deliver these illusive benefits.
A high school diploma or equivalent is the expected prerequisite for most claims adjuster positions. And we’re confident you can get a GED if you don’t have one already. Once you take the necessary courses to become a licensed adjuster, you’ll be off to your latest roof leak or auto accident in no time.
13. Customer Service Representative
You’ll find no shortage of customer service representatives who feel their job is an adequately-paid form of torture. Being degraded daily by miserable complain-alcoholics is the haunting reality of some customer service reps. Still, for others, the ability to help strangers in need is a rewarding way to make a buck.
Like so many careers, the fulfillment and financial rewards you find (or don’t find) as a customer service rep will largely depend on your unique position and the pay structure for that position, including whether there are performance-based incentives. If you can find a position that rewards you for persuading callers to take a specific action, you may find yourself quickly out-earning your current means of making a living.
14. Firefighter
Some of us speak about “putting out fires” daily, but have you ever considered putting out fires? It’s a dangerous job for only the brave. But depending on where you are employed, it could be a highly rewarding gig that’s not as dangerous as you might assume.
While firefighters train frequently, the number of fires they fight can be few and far between in certain locales. However, increasing numbers of calls to drug-related scenes can be emotionally taxing for first responders, so a considerable salary and robust benefits may not be worth the toll for some.
15. Armed Forces
The Armed Forces is a career that you should only pursue with careful consideration. It has been a bridge for countless veterans to free school, long-term medical benefits, and lucrative careers outside the military.
Famously, the Army and other branches of the Armed Forces require nothing but an ID proving you’re 18 to sign up. This doesn’t necessarily mean that you should, and the military does not generally pay incredibly well. But it can be a solid stepping stone if you find yourself without better options.
16. Rideshare Driver
Uber and Lyft aren’t the steady hustles they were a few years ago. An influx of drivers willing to accept minuscule fares has contributed to downward pressure on driver pay, with an increasing number of trips paying drivers $3 or less.
Yet, those who choose their fares selectively, occupy an underserved area for ridesharing services or face other circumstances outside the norm may still find that Uber and Lyft are a solid revenue source.
Jobs With High Pay
If you have no degree, it can be hard to find a great job. With this list of 16 jobs, there are opportunities for you to take advantage of. You can create a great career with a good work ethic and the right career. Delivering packages for UPS may not be your list’s number one job, but you could do a lot worse with that benefits package.
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