In a world where AI, cloud computing, and the Internet of Things are shaping the job landscape of the future, technology expertise is a hot commodity. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, computer and IT jobs are expected to grow at an above-average 12% from 2014 to 2024. Developers and computer systems analysts in particular are among the 20 occupations projected to create the most new jobs overall.
But expertise can be earned in a variety of ways, not just from a college degree. A recent example is Airbnb’s vice president of engineering Mike Curtis, who was working as a barista and had no college degree when he decided to learn how to code from a customer at the coffee shop.
Purpose of the study
With the value of having a college education a subject of national debate, Comparably dug through thousands of anonymous salary records to find out which tech jobs pay most for those without a college degree. The results are derived from the records of more than 1,800 employees, all of whom have either a high school diploma or attended college without graduating.
Comparably then ran an analysis of these job titles from a broader level, comparing the average salaries for people of all education levels in terms of gender, ethnicity, and location.
The results
| Average for workers without a college degree | |||
| 1 | VP of Engineering | VPs of Engineering predominantly focus primarily on managing engineers and product delivery. | $178,062 |
| 2 | Director of Sales | High-level executives that manage the sales strategy of tech products and services. | $165,579 |
| 3 | Sales Engineer | Combining technological knowledge with sales skills, sales engineers sell complex tech-based products and services to companies. | $148,726 |
| 4 | Architect | Architects define the overarching structure, specs, and guidelines of software programs and systems. | $143,879 |
| 5 | Lead Engineer | An experienced engineer with management skills, this person leads teams of engineers through the completion of projects. | $132,856 |
| 6 | Director of IT | High-ranking executive in charge of an organization’s information technology. | $122,532 |
| 7 | DevOps Engineer | A challenging job to fill, the DevOps engineer uses a variety of technologies and programs to automate systems and manage software deployments. | $121,262 |
| 8 | Director of Marketing | High-ranking executive that steers the marketing efforts of a company. | $114,987 |
| 9 | Product Manager | Workers in product management outline a strategy and roadmap for products that the engineering team will build. | $101,421 |
| 10 | IT Manager | IT managers implement and maintain a company’s information technology. | $100,177 |
— The data shows that a VP of Engineering without a college degree can make upwards of $170,000.
— Data is for workers of all experience levels, genders, ethnicities, and locations.
Compensation by gender
| Women
(all education levels) |
Men
(all education levels) |
|
| Architect | $135,951 | $144,009 |
| DevOps Engineer | $106,146 | $115,933 |
| Director of IT | $140,361 | $148,559 |
| Director of Marketing | $137,557 | $146,173 |
| Director of Sales | $168,021 | $185,744 |
| IT Manager | $114,050 | $110,905 |
| Lead Engineer | $123,421 | $134,337 |
| Product Manager | $109,041 | $116,935 |
| Sales Engineer | $124,102 | $143,459 |
| VP of Engineering | $198,884 | $192,214 |
— Men earned more than women in every job role except IT manager and VP of engineering.
— Salaries shown are averages for workers of all education levels, experience levels, and locations.
Compensation by ethnicity
| African Americans | Hispanic/Latino | Asian/Pacific Islanders | Caucasian | |
| Architect | $116,487 | $146,532 | $149,062 | $142,914 |
| DevOps Engineer | $108,058 | $111,620 | $118,518 | $114,342 |
| Director of IT | $143,912 | $132,592 | $168,025 | $143,538 |
| Director of Marketing | $128,160 | $131,482 | $165,271 | $138,023 |
| Director of Sales | $122,640 | $167,071 | $183,798 | $185,341 |
| IT Manager | $100,320 | $104,703 | $125,746 | $108,982 |
| Lead Engineer | $128,424 | $131,077 | $140,784 | $131,443 |
| Product Manager | $116,016 | $115,280 | $123,868 | $112,125 |
| Sales Engineer | $134,995 | $126,461 | $147,025 | $142,765 |
| VP of Engineering | $169,874 | $172,216 | $197,764 | $191,203 |
— African Americans earned the least in every category while Asians/Pacific Islanders and Caucasians earned the most.
— Salaries shown are averages for workers of all education levels, experience levels, and locations.
— Salaries shaded in the darkest blue are the highest.
Compensation by location
| San Fran | LA | NYC | Boston | Chicago | Austin | Seattle | |
| Architect | $175,247 | $146,149 | $151,833 | $155,110 | $139,729 | $138,409 | $149,444 |
| DevOps Engineer | $141,998 | $127,272 | $127,429 | $116,191 | $108,315 | $115,946 | $128,637 |
| Director of IT | $187,818 | $146,615 | $163,099 | $158,695 | $149,684 | $145,846 | $163,670 |
| Director of Marketing | $174,012 | $141,231 | $141,894 | $138,893 | $142,194 | $141,499 | $151,528 |
| Director of Sales | $207,711 | $173,623 | $193,809 | $200,354 | $187,640 | $185,931 | $188,953 |
| IT Manager | $134,476 | $112,546 | $122,486 | $107,006 | $116,674 | $120,171 | $121,245 |
| Lead Engineer | $157,321 | $136,200 | $137,323 | $126,520 | $118,599 | $130,413 | $148,472 |
| Product Manager | $131,961 | $112,197 | $112,820 | $107,019 | $102,955 | $99,321 | $125,404 |
| Sales Engineer | $153,490 | $126,066 | $155,022 | $143,492 | $137,620 | $133,726 | $139,395 |
| VP of Engineering | $237,233 | $204,687 | $196,301 | $216,847 | $207,346 | $184,620 | $233,257 |
— Director of Sales is the highest-earning role in most cities.
— San Francisco pays the best overall.
— Salaries shown are averages for workers of all education levels and experience levels.
— Salaries shaded in the darkest blue are the highest.
Methodology
— The results were compiled from 1,800 Comparably users who have an education level of either “high school” or “some college” in job titles that have at least 1,200 overall employee records on Comparably.
— The salaries displayed are nationwide averages.
— Employees hail from small, mid-size, and large tech companies (VC-funded, privately-held, and public) to household brands like Amazon, Apple, Google, Facebook, Uber, etc.
— Data was collected between March 2016 and October 2017.
About Comparably
Comparably is one of the fastest growing compensation, culture, and career monitoring sites in the U.S. With a mission to make work dramatically more transparent and rewarding, it is the only platform with comprehensive and structured data that can be segmented by gender, ethnicity, age, location, tenure, company size, equity, title/department, and education. Since the Santa Monica-based startup’s launch in March 2016, the site has become a popular resource for employees to anonymously input and compare salaries, rate their workplace culture and CEOs, and have their dream jobs find them. With more than 1 million ratings and hundreds of thousands of salary and culture data, over 3,000 companies are now using Comparably’s employer branding and jobs tools to recruit talent. For more information, please visit www.comparably.com
