Highest Paying Jobs with Advanced Degrees

Financial planning management is imperative for physicians, who spend years getting their degrees (and racking up debt) and make far more than the average American.

A list from Bloomberg proves just how extraordinary the financial situation for those in the health care industry is. When ranking the careers with the highest pay for an advanced college degree, the top 10 consisted entirely of health care jobs.

Bloomberg determined the ranking by median annual pay of occupations held by individuals with advanced degrees, although it excluded jobs with fewer than 10,000 jobs nationwide and those lacking pay data. Data is from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Other professions in the top 20 include judges, physicists and engineering teachers (postsecondary schooling). Although they don’t make the top 10, optometrists, physician assistants and psychologists all land in the top 20.

10. Pharmacists

Median annual pay: $116,670

Job growth prospects: 25% between 2010 and 2020

States with the highest employment level: California, Texas, New York, Florida, Pennsylvania

Top-paying metro area: El Centro, California

9. Dentists (General)

Median annual pay: $145,240

Job growth prospects: 21% between 2010 and 2020

States with the highest employment level: California, New York, Texas, Florida, Illinois

Top-paying metro area: Nashua, New Hampshire

8. Nurse Anesthetists

Median annual pay: $148,260

Job growth prospects: 24% (grouped with physicians and surgeons)

States with the highest employment level: Texas, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia

Top-paying metro area: Hickory-Lenoir-Morgantown, North Carolina

7. Pediatricians (General)

Median annual pay: $154,650

Job growth prospects: 24% (grouped with physicians and surgeons)

States with the highest employment level: California, Texas, Massachusetts, New York, Ohio

Top-paying metro area: Baton Rouge, Louisiana

6. Family and General Practitioners

Median annual pay: $172,020

Job growth prospects: 24% (grouped with physicians and surgeons)

States with the highest employment level: California, Florida, Pennsylvania, Texas, Illinois

Top-paying metro area: Waterloo-Cedar Falls, Iowa

5. Psychiatrists

Median annual pay: $173,330

Job growth prospects: 24% (grouped with physicians and surgeons)

States with the highest employment level: California, New York, Texas, Ohio, Pennsylvania

Top-paying metro area: Sherman-Denison, Texas

4. Internists (General)

Mean annual pay: $191,520

Job growth prospects: 24% (grouped with physicians and surgeons)

States with the highest employment level: California, Michigan, Florida, New York, Texas

Top-paying metro area: Wilmington, North Carolina

3. Obstetricians and Gynecologists

Mean annual pay: $216,760

Job growth prospects: 24% (grouped with physicians and surgeons)

States with the highest employment level: California, Texas, Ohio, New Jersey, North Carolina

Top-paying metro area: Winston-Salem, North Carolina

2. Surgeons

Mean annual pay: $230,540

Job growth prospects: 24% (grouped with physicians and surgeons)

States with the highest employment level: California, Texas, New York, Ohio, Florida

Top-paying metro area: Worcester, Massachusetts

1. Anesthesiologists

Mean annual pay: $232,830

Job growth prospects: 24% (grouped with physicians and surgeons)

States with the highest employment level: California, New York, Texas, Illinois, Pennsylvania

Top-paying metro area: Hartford, Connecticut