There has been a big push in Australia in the past three or four decades for school leavers to go onto university and study for a degree so that you won’t be able to land a high-paying job or have a lucrative career without one. While this is certainly true for some jobs and careers, such as becoming a lawyer or a doctor or an engineer, to name just a few, it’s not the case for many other job roles that can be quite lucrative.
That’s not to say jobs that don’t require degrees and diplomas are just easy to walk into with no qualifications at all. Many require some form of training, whether it’s on-the-job training, such as an apprenticeship or traineeship, completing one or more certificate courses, or some form of an online course. There are also jobs that can become lucrative careers that don’t require any certificates to get started. It depends on the job role and whether someone is willing to give you a go to learn the ropes from the ground up.
The point is, Australia has many industries with loads of well-paying jobs that don’t require you to complete a university degree to work in that job.
Let’s now take a look at some of the highest paying jobs without a degree that you can get in Australia in no particular order.
Construction Manager
If you can work your way up to ultimately become a construction manager, you can realistically be expecting to make at $150,000 a year or even considerably more, depending on the scope and budget for the building project.
Aside from obviously having much experience in the building trade, construction managers need to be good with people, as you will be coordinating with many different tradies, builders, delivery drivers, project engineers, architects, members of the public, and so on. A successful construction manager will know the industry well and be able to build a strong rapport with people.
An ICT Manager Is a Great Career Path
ICT represents “Information and Communications Technology. Obviously, this role is a technical one and takes someone with a lot of savvy for computers and technology to succeed as an ICT manager. As far as your salary goes, you can anticipate making upwards of $170k per annum, so quite rewarding financially.
While many people working in this job position have attained a university degree, it’s not a mandatory requirement to be able to aspire to the role of an ICT manager. One reason for this is that IT and technology in general change so rapidly that no university degree is ever really going to be up to date with the current technology climate.
Project Management
Being a project manager is a fairly broad term, as it can be used to describe a team leadership position in many different jobs and industries. You will need exceptional people skills to be successful in a career as a project manager, as well as very good organisational skills.
What can you expect to be earning? Many project managers in Australia earn upwards of $120,000 per year and sometimes considerably more. It really depends on how major the project is and what industry you are working in.
Chief Executives
Often also referred to as managing director, a chief executive is the highest form of leadership in a management position. Now, there are numerous people in these positions boasting degrees, but it’s not a prerequisite for many chief executive positions. To become a chief executive or managing director, you can climb the proverbial corporate ladder and gain the position through hard work and experience. Expect to be earning in excess of $155k per year if you become a chief executive.
Target a Career As a Human Resource Manager
Pay rates per year for HR managers can vary quite a lot in this country. It depends on who you are working for and just how lucrative that business is. Some HR managers are pulling in salaries well in excess of $100k, while others are even earning above the $150k per year mark.
The Takeaway This post has only listed a handful of lucrative careers that don’t require a degree. There are literally dozens more to choose from.
