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Highest-Paying UK Jobs
Paul MacKenzie-Cummins | Friday 20 February 2009 | 09:43
What jobs can earn you the most money? We reveal all!
What do Sir Richard Branson, Bill Gates, Steve Jobs and Sir Alan Sugar have in common? Besides being multi-millionaires, none of them have a university degree yet since the Labour Government took office way back in 1997, there has been a concerted drive to encourage more people to go to university and obtain a degree with the 'expectation' that a degree almost guarantees a higher salary.
However, Labour's Education, Education, Education mantra has seen spiralling student fees with graduates leaving university with an average debt of £12,363, according to Credit Action. Yet many people still maintain that you need a degree to secure a high-paying job and although a degree does have its advantages in fast-tracking your career, it is not the only path to take.
Indeed, four out of the top 10 highest-paying careers in the UK do not require a university education. Admittedly, there will be an element of on-the-job training and apprenticeships along the way.
Based on data from the Office for National Statistics, the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE) report and our own research, below are the 20 highest paying jobs in the UK that don't require a degree.
It goes without saying that the earnings in some of the occupations below may be higher than the national average stated above. For instance, it is not unusual for an airline pilot's salary to top £100,000, whereas many marketing and sales managers can earn almost double the industry average salary. And we should also factor that there will be regional variations to -- a customer care manager in South Wales will typically earn less than their counterpart in the South East of England, for example.
However, the list above demonstrates that university degree does not necessarily determine a higher salary than a non-degree position despite the common misconception among job seekers that graduate entrants can command a higher salary than non-graduatses.but that is not the case.
Indeed, official figures indicate that the average starting salary offered to 2008 graduates is £24,048 and the median salary is £23,500, according to the Association of Graduate Recruiters (AGR). But this is misleading because the sources that the AGR use are from mainly large companies and organisations which offer vacancies aimed specifically at graduates and are predominantly London-based -- where salaries are higher than the national average. This has the effect of over-inflating the average graduate salary.
So, in an age when the UK increasingly develops into a knowledge-based and high-tech economy, it seems that an individual's ability -- not qualifications -- will determine an employee's overall earnings.
Looking for a better paid job? Use Sky Careers extensive database to help you find your dream job!
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Pilots certainly fliy high in the salary stakes, taking the number one spot, earning on average £60,000 a year.
User Comments
lkgbrecon
Saturday 27 June, 16:06actually, their number one is false because i.t managers earn 100,000 + p.a so its false
Linda Lindi
Friday 06 March, 08:30Actually the average salary is around £18,000 to £25,000. Who ever thinks different they are talking out of their you know what!!
Andy
Monday 02 March, 21:02I believe you don’t need a job at all if your an Asylum seeker. I was thinking of claiming asylum myself but I don’t meet the criteria cuz I’m already a working taxpaying british citizen. I must have done something wrong.
rob
Tuesday 24 February, 02:23I work as a foster carer but to be honest if I was younger then I would become a benefit’s claimant for sure and earn upto 30,000 a year with a family of lets say 5 tax free thansk to this government and the taxpayer !
Sarah
Monday 23 February, 22:57The jobs listed are ones for which you do not need a degree. It does say that.
Clearly lawyers and economists etc earn the top salaries. A trainee lawyer (essentially an apprentice) can earn up to 40 grand in their first year alone!
You don’t need a degree to be a manager!
Ryan
Monday 23 February, 22:46Forgive me for asking, but where is the mentkion of company directors? Doctors? Dentists? Lawyers? Economists? Financial Bankers?Stock Broker?
- Surely these make the top 10, in the UK most certianally given the current economic crysis.
Ryan.
Daniel
Friday 20 February, 16:01Hey Paul,
Well done with compiling this slideshow of jobs. Very inspirational. Just one question though. Where did you compile the information for the average salary of a journalist to be £31,256 and what type of journalist does one have to be to earn this amount, as well as working in which organisation?
Thank you
Best wishes
Dan
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Amy Crispin
Tuesday 30 June, 14:33Work in law, be a barrister they get around £25,000 to £200,000 and if you go in the private sector you can be earing up to £750,000 but theres alot of training to do but its worth a think!
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