6 high-paying jobs that don't require a degree

published 7 September 2020

No degree? No problem. Turns out you don’t have to go to university to score a great job - these are the highest paying roles out there…

The pandemic has completely changed the way we look at work, leaving many questioning what they want from their future careers and whether going to university is the right fit for them. So if three years of studying doesn't sound all that appealing, fear not - as having a degree isn't the only way to bag the high-paying jobs.

Career advisor Charlotte Moore, of the lifestyle brand GearHungry, has revealed the highest paying roles that don't require a degree - proving that you don't need uni to be earning big bucks. From estate agent (a la Selling Sunset) to HR manager, here are the best positions to start hunting for:

The top six sectors for high-paying jobs

Dive into the digital realm

The digital industry is constantly adapting, meaning the practical skills needed to work for a website don’t necessarily derive from what can be taught in a lecture theatre.

Keep your eyes peeled for apprenticeships that allow you to gain the experience needed to nab a job in the digital sector, and get you earning around 42k after just a couple of years. If coding isn’t quite your thing but you’re interested in social media and content writing, there are a myriad of high-paying jobs within the creative side of the digital industry. This could see you working your way up from an internship to a salary of 50k. Not too shabby.

Have a mosey around the marketing world

Moving away from digital, but still within the creative realm, marketing is a great industry to look into if you’re brimming with ideas about selling products. Turn your creative juices into a career that can earn you up to 45k a year, and look out for research assistant roles that will allow you to learn on the job.

Sell someone their dream home

Now if you're amongst the many binge watching Selling Sunset and day dreaming of spending your days flogging beautiful houses, why not make it a reality? Becoming a real estate agent doesn’t require a degree and you can train quickly to become qualified, which could lead to an annual pay cheque of up to 30k after just a few years in the biz. Those Beverly Hills mansions are calling your name!

Change lives as a medical practicioner

Working in the world of medicine might seem unattainable without a medical degree, but in actuality, there are a whole host of jobs that can be secured through fast-tracked courses. Take an audiologist, who works with patients that are suffering from hearing loss. Senior specialists in this area can earn up to 65k a year - so gaining a certificate as a practitioner will pay off, literally.

Turn organisation into a lucrative HR career

Integral to the smooth running of a company and a great job if you're a people person, managers in the HR field can earn up to 42k a year, with a role as an admin assistant helping to get a foot in the door.

So if you're one of many young people who are feeling the pressure to go to university, take a deep breath and consider the career options that don’t include sacrificing a top salary. Keep calm and carry on, my friends...

Words by Maya Coomarasamy

Maria Coole is a contributing editor on Marie Claire.

Hello Marie Claire readers – you have reached your daily destination. I really hope you’re enjoying our reads and I'm very interested to know what you shared, liked and didn’t like (gah, it happens) by emailing me at: maria.coole@freelance.ti-media.com

But if you fancy finding out who you’re venting to then let me tell you I’m the one on the team that remembers the Spice Girls the first time round. I confidently predicted they’d be a one-hit wonder in the pages of Bliss magazine where I was deputy editor through the second half of the 90s. Having soundly killed any career ambitions in music journalism I’ve managed to keep myself in glow-boosting moisturisers and theatre tickets with a centuries-spanning career in journalism.

Yes, predating t’internet, when 'I’ll fax you' was grunted down a phone with a cord attached to it; when Glastonbury was still accessible by casually going under or over a flimsy fence; when gatecrashing a Foo Fighters aftershow party was easy-peasy-lemon-squeezy and tapping Dave Grohl on the shoulder was... oh sorry I like to ramble.

Originally born and bred in that there Welsh seaside town kindly given a new lease of life by Gavin & Stacey, I started out as a junior writer for the Girl Guides and eventually earned enough Brownie points to move on and have a blast as deputy editor of Bliss, New Woman and editor of People newspaper magazine. I was on the launch team of Look in 2007 - where I stuck around as deputy editor and acting editor for almost ten years - shaping a magazine and website at the forefront of body positivity, mental wellbeing and empowering features. More recently, I’ve been Closer executive editor, assistant editor at the Financial Times’s How To Spend It (yes thanks, no probs with that life skill) and now I’m making my inner fangirl’s dream come true by working on this agenda-setting brand, the one that inspired me to become a journalist when Marie Claire launched back in 1988.

I’m a theatre addict, lover of Marvel franchises, most hard cheeses, all types of trees, half-price Itsu, cats, Dr Who, cherry tomatoes, Curly-Wurly, cats, blueberries, cats, boiled eggs, cats, maxi dresses, cats, Adidas shelltops, cats and their kittens. I’ve never knowingly operated any household white goods and once served Ripples as a main course. And finally, always remember what the late great Nora Ephron said, ‘Everything is copy.’