Good Pay Without a 4-Year Degree

(Excerpts from an interesting article)

Carol Tice, PayScale.com, Yahoo! HotJobs

A well-paying, rewarding career doesn’t have to mean a four-year slog through college. There are plenty of jobs that pay nicely with less education, ranging from certificate courses just a few months long to two-year community college programs.

Education costs for most of these careers are modest — you might even pay nothing at all. If you’re from a low-income family and between 18-24, you may qualify to receive up to three years of free job training, housing and support services through the federal program Job Corps. National program director Esther Jacobs says Job Corps serves roughly 100,000 students a year.

“We’re the best-kept secret in this country,” she says.

Otherwise, state-sponsored technical and vocational schools will usually be a cheaper option than private training companies, and many offer financial aid. Most training programs will help you with job placement when you’re done, too.

Here’s a look at some of the best-paying jobs you can get into fast, listed with their median annual pay rate for someone with three to five years’ experience, according to PayScale.com.

Network installers, network administrators, computer systems administrators
If you enjoy tinkering with computers and wireless-network routers, consider this field. The business slowdown may have damped demand a bit, but it’ll rebound fast as the economy picks up, says Laurence Shatkin, co-author of “300 Best Jobs Without a Four-Year Degree.” Salary: $49,801.

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