Grace Nichols // U.S. Air Force

Highest paying jobs in Tuscaloosa that require a graduate degree

Those with graduate degrees earn more on average than those without them—but not all jobs are equal. And while rising tuition costs are enough to turn people away from the prospect of a master’s or doctoral degree, many high-paying professions still require such degrees to get in the door. Stacker compiled a list of the highest- paying jobs that require a graduate degree in Tuscaloosa, AL using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Jobs are ranked by 2020 annual mean wage.

The best way to guarantee a high return on investment in a graduate degree is to be aware of professions that pay top-dollar for that added educational investment. Keep reading to see where a graduate degree is required—and can earn you the most.

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#19. Mental health and substance abuse social workers

Tuscaloosa, AL
– Annual mean salary: $35,890 (#246 highest pay among all metros)
– Employment: 210

National
– Annual mean salary: $54,540 (116,780 employed)
– Entry level education requirements: Master’s degree
– Metros with highest average pay:
— Madera, CA ($92,870)
— Vallejo-Fairfield, CA ($91,480)
— Santa Rosa, CA ($89,730)

Job description: Assess and treat individuals with mental, emotional, or substance abuse problems, including abuse of alcohol, tobacco, and/or other drugs. Activities may include individual and group therapy, crisis intervention, case management, client advocacy, prevention, and education.

Photographee.eu // Shutterstock

#18. Rehabilitation counselors

Tuscaloosa, AL
– Annual mean salary: $36,160 (#192 highest pay among all metros)
– Employment: 110

National
– Annual mean salary: $42,080 (100,260 employed)
– Entry level education requirements: Master’s degree
– Metros with highest average pay:
— California-Lexington Park, MD ($74,170)
— Trenton, NJ ($66,330)
— Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA ($64,940)

Job description: Counsel individuals to maximize the independence and employability of persons coping with personal, social, and vocational difficulties that result from birth defects, illness, disease, accidents, aging, or the stress of daily life. Coordinate activities for residents of care and treatment facilities. Assess client needs and design and implement rehabilitation programs that may include personal and vocational counseling, training, and job placement.

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#17. Healthcare social workers

Tuscaloosa, AL
– Annual mean salary: $44,030 (#346 highest pay among all metros)
– Employment: 180

National
– Annual mean salary: $60,470 (176,110 employed)
– Entry level education requirements: Master’s degree
– Metros with highest average pay:
— San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($100,410)
— San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($98,980)
— Salinas, CA ($95,690)

Job description: Provide individuals, families, and groups with the psychosocial support needed to cope with chronic, acute, or terminal illnesses. Services include advising family caregivers. Provide patients with information and counseling, and make referrals for other services. May also provide case and care management or interventions designed to promote health, prevent disease, and address barriers to access to healthcare.

VH-studio // Shutterstock

#16. Educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors

Tuscaloosa, AL
– Annual mean salary: $47,580 (#339 highest pay among all metros)
– Employment: 300

National
– Annual mean salary: $62,320 (292,230 employed)
– Entry level education requirements: Master’s degree
– Metros with highest average pay:
— Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA ($91,420)
— El Centro, CA ($91,110)
— Fresno, CA ($90,860)

Job description: Advise and assist students and provide educational and vocational guidance services.

Simon Fraser Universtiy // flickr

#15. Instructional coordinators

Tuscaloosa, AL
– Annual mean salary: $53,180 (#291 highest pay among all metros)
– Employment: 90

National
– Annual mean salary: $70,160 (174,900 employed)
– Entry level education requirements: Master’s degree
– Metros with highest average pay:
— New Haven, CT ($111,440)
— Warner Robins, GA ($110,800)
— Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA ($104,000)

Job description: Develop instructional material, coordinate educational content, and incorporate current technology into instruction in order to provide guidelines to educators and instructors for developing curricula and conducting courses. May train and coach teachers. Includes educational consultants and specialists, and instructional material directors.

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#14. Clinical, counseling, and school psychologists

Tuscaloosa, AL
– Annual mean salary: $62,290 (#258 highest pay among all metros)
– Employment: 50

National
– Annual mean salary: $89,290 (111,320 employed)
– Entry level education requirements: Doctoral or professional degree
– Metros with highest average pay:
— Santa Rosa, CA ($138,550)
— Jefferson City, MO ($133,640)
— Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA ($125,020)

Job description: Assess, diagnose, and treat mental and emotional disorders of individuals through observation, interview, and psychological tests. Help individuals with distress or maladjustment understand their problems through their knowledge of case history, interviews with patients, and theory. Provide individual or group counseling services to assist individuals in achieving more effective personal, social, educational, and vocational development and adjustment. May design behavior modification programs and consult with medical personnel regarding the best treatment for patients.

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#13. Speech-language pathologists

Tuscaloosa, AL
– Annual mean salary: $72,790 (#252 highest pay among all metros)
– Employment: 60

National
– Annual mean salary: $83,240 (148,450 employed)
– Entry level education requirements: Master’s degree
– Metros with highest average pay:
— Modesto, CA ($128,540)
— Santa Rosa, CA ($120,920)
— Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA ($115,480)

Job description: Assess and treat persons with speech, language, voice, and fluency disorders. May select alternative communication systems and teach their use. May perform research related to speech and language problems.

Pressmaster // Shutterstock

#12. Art, drama, and music teachers, postsecondary

Tuscaloosa, AL
– Annual mean salary: $77,580 (#49 highest pay among all metros)
– Employment: 140

National
– Annual mean salary: $84,780 (91,170 employed)
– Entry level education requirements: Master’s degree
– Metros with highest average pay:
— Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA ($122,920)
— Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI ($115,740)
— Rochester, NY ($115,080)

Job description: Teach courses in drama, music, and the arts including fine and applied art, such as painting and sculpture, or design and crafts. Includes both teachers primarily engaged in teaching and those who do a combination of teaching and research.

Jacob Lund // Shutterstock

#11. Biological science teachers, postsecondary

Tuscaloosa, AL
– Annual mean salary: $82,800 (#73 highest pay among all metros)
– Employment: 80

National
– Annual mean salary: $101,320 (51,500 employed)
– Entry level education requirements: Doctoral or professional degree
– Metros with highest average pay:
— Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR ($195,730)
— San Diego-Carlsbad, CA ($161,980)
— Salt Lake City, UT ($147,290)

Job description: Teach courses in biological sciences. Includes both teachers primarily engaged in teaching and those who do a combination of teaching and research.

ABO PHOTOGRAPHY // Shutterstock

#10. Occupational therapists

Tuscaloosa, AL
– Annual mean salary: $88,960 (#110 highest pay among all metros)
– Employment: 40

National
– Annual mean salary: $87,480 (126,610 employed)
– Entry level education requirements: Master’s degree
– Metros with highest average pay:
— The Villages, FL ($115,920)
— Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV ($115,060)
— Modesto, CA ($112,870)

Job description: Assess, plan, and organize rehabilitative programs that help build or restore vocational, homemaking, and daily living skills, as well as general independence, to persons with disabilities or developmental delays. Use therapeutic techniques, adapt the individual’s environment, teach skills, and modify specific tasks that present barriers to the individual.

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David Bibo // Wikimedia Commons

#9. Education administrators, kindergarten through secondary

Tuscaloosa, AL
– Annual mean salary: $90,080 (#203 highest pay among all metros)
– Employment: 190

National
– Annual mean salary: $103,010 (262,480 employed)
– Entry level education requirements: Master’s degree
– Metros with highest average pay:
— Modesto, CA ($154,970)
— New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA ($146,070)
— Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT ($145,590)

Job description: Plan, direct, or coordinate the academic, administrative, or auxiliary activities of kindergarten, elementary, or secondary schools.

Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock

#8. Nurse practitioners

Tuscaloosa, AL
– Annual mean salary: $99,180 (#320 highest pay among all metros)
– Employment: 160

National
– Annual mean salary: $114,510 (211,280 employed)
– Entry level education requirements: Master’s degree
– Metros with highest average pay:
— Vallejo-Fairfield, CA ($188,070)
— San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($177,800)
— Salinas, CA ($155,310)

Job description: Diagnose and treat acute, episodic, or chronic illness, independently or as part of a healthcare team. May focus on health promotion and disease prevention. May order, perform, or interpret diagnostic tests such as lab work and x rays. May prescribe medication. Must be registered nurses who have specialized graduate education.

Aykut Erdogdu // Shutterstock

#7. Physical therapists

Tuscaloosa, AL
– Annual mean salary: $99,480 (#43 highest pay among all metros)
– Employment: 90

National
– Annual mean salary: $91,680 (220,870 employed)
– Entry level education requirements: Doctoral or professional degree
– Metros with highest average pay:
— El Centro, CA ($143,500)
— Modesto, CA ($123,370)
— Visalia-Porterville, CA ($119,510)

Job description: Assess, plan, organize, and participate in rehabilitative programs that improve mobility, relieve pain, increase strength, and improve or correct disabling conditions resulting from disease or injury.

Rappaport Center // Wikimedia Commons

#6. Lawyers

Tuscaloosa, AL
– Annual mean salary: $114,370 (#167 highest pay among all metros)
– Employment: 200

National
– Annual mean salary: $148,910 (658,120 employed)
– Entry level education requirements: Doctoral or professional degree
– Metros with highest average pay:
— San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($231,610)
— San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($201,920)
— Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV ($186,070)

Job description: Represent clients in criminal and civil litigation and other legal proceedings, draw up legal documents, or manage or advise clients on legal transactions. May specialize in a single area or may practice broadly in many areas of law.

Grace Nichols // U.S. Air Force

#5. Pharmacists

Tuscaloosa, AL
– Annual mean salary: $115,820 (#326 highest pay among all metros)
– Employment: 240

National
– Annual mean salary: $125,460 (315,470 employed)
– Entry level education requirements: Doctoral or professional degree
– Metros with highest average pay:
— Madera, CA ($165,350)
— Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA ($162,540)
— Vallejo-Fairfield, CA ($161,120)

Job description: Dispense drugs prescribed by physicians and other health practitioners and provide information to patients about medications and their use. May advise physicians and other health practitioners on the selection, dosage, interactions, and side effects of medications.

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Jacob Lund // Shutterstock

#4. Education administrators, postsecondary

Tuscaloosa, AL
– Annual mean salary: $123,330 (#52 highest pay among all metros)
– Employment: 430

National
– Annual mean salary: $115,200 (140,880 employed)
– Entry level education requirements: Master’s degree
– Metros with highest average pay:
— Ithaca, NY ($205,810)
— Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC ($178,210)
— Charlottesville, VA ($176,040)

Job description: Plan, direct, or coordinate student instruction, administration, and services, as well as other research and educational activities, at postsecondary institutions, including universities, colleges, and junior and community colleges.

Matej Kastelic // Shutterstock

#3. Business teachers, postsecondary

Tuscaloosa, AL
– Annual mean salary: $143,270 (#4 highest pay among all metros)
– Employment: 150

National
– Annual mean salary: $107,270 (79,810 employed)
– Entry level education requirements: Doctoral or professional degree
– Metros with highest average pay:
— Ann Arbor, MI ($174,050)
— College Station-Bryan, TX ($172,650)
— Durham-Chapel Hill, NC ($149,740)

Job description: Teach courses in business administration and management, such as accounting, finance, human resources, labor and industrial relations, marketing, and operations research. Includes both teachers primarily engaged in teaching and those who do a combination of teaching and research.

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#2. Dentists, general

Tuscaloosa, AL
– Annual mean salary: $152,010 (#209 highest pay among all metros)
– Employment: 70

National
– Annual mean salary: $180,830 (95,920 employed)
– Entry level education requirements: Doctoral or professional degree
– Metros with highest average pay:
— Dover-Durham, NH-ME ($286,540)
— North Port-Sarasota-Bradenton, FL ($278,790)
— Portland-South Portland, ME ($278,390)

Job description: Examine, diagnose, and treat diseases, injuries, and malformations of teeth and gums. May treat diseases of nerve, pulp, and other dental tissues affecting oral hygiene and retention of teeth. May fit dental appliances or provide preventive care.

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#1. Nurse anesthetists

Tuscaloosa, AL
– Annual mean salary: $181,250 (#49 highest pay among all metros)
– Employment: 60

National
– Annual mean salary: $189,190 (41,960 employed)
– Entry level education requirements: Master’s degree
– Metros with highest average pay:
— Duluth, MN-WI ($271,940)
— Ann Arbor, MI ($262,890)
— Green Bay, WI ($239,140)

Job description: Administer anesthesia, monitor patient’s vital signs, and oversee patient recovery from anesthesia. May assist anesthesiologists, surgeons, other physicians, or dentists. Must be registered nurses who have specialized graduate education.