10 Jobs You’d Expect To Pay Well but Will Never Make You Rich
Written by
Sean Bryant
Edited by
Amber Barkley
Commitment to Our Readers
GOBankingRates' editorial team is committed to bringing you unbiased reviews and information. We use data-driven methodologies to evaluate financial products and services - our reviews and ratings are not influenced by advertisers. You can read more about our editorial guidelines and our products and services review methodology.
20 Years
Helping You Live Richer
Reviewed
by Experts
Trusted by
Millions of Readers
Some jobs are widely known to pay a very attractive salary. These are careers like lawyers, doctors and even jobs in finance. However, there are also some career paths that people might believe pay a generous salary but actually pay employees much less.
Continue reading to learn about 10 jobs that pay less than most people think.
Veterinarian
- Salary range: $63,000-$160,000
Being a veterinarian should pay well — you are essentially a doctor for animals. However, veterinary education is expensive, and the earning potential may not match the cost of those years in school.
Salaries may differ, depending on the types of animals you specialize in. Veterinarians who focus on household animals may have a different salary range than those who work with farm animals. Plus, veterinarians with a specialty, like cancer treatment or joint issues, could potentially earn more.
Marine Biologist
- Salary range: $34,000-$57,000
Marine biologists may sound exciting and exotic, but it is not all adventure and exploration. Finding a job, especially a well-paying job, can be difficult. Many marine biologist jobs are within academia or research institutions, which usually do not offer salaries that are as high as other industries. You may also have to depend on applying for and receiving funding to do your job.
Plus, there are only so many marine biologist positions, and those that exist are limited in location. This will create a significant amount of competition for the best job openings.
“Often jobs that require significant education and training, such as those needing advanced degrees, involve trade-offs between personal passion and compensation,” said Sean Spittle, software engineer and managing partner at InspectNTrack. “Scientists, academics and archeologists fall under this category. Their pursuit, no matter how noble, will remain unrewarded, at least in a strictly financial aspect.”
Environmental Scientist
- Salary range: $56,000-$93,000
Like a marine biologist, an environmental scientist’s career often depends on academia or research institutions. Environmental scientists may need to apply for and compete to receive funding for research projects to do their work.
Social Worker
- Salary range: $59,000-$86,000
Social workers provide essential services to communities and families, but they are not paid well. Social workers often have emotionally demanding jobs, and higher education is required, but the salaries for social workers are generally low.
“Some vocations classified as ‘public service’ jobs, such as teachers, community leaders or non-profit roles, enable people to help others or society in meaningful ways,” said Spittle. “Though the emotional and social returns can be immense, the financial rewards are generally modest. Those drawn to these positions tend to value purpose over pay.”
Fashion Designer
- Salary range: $41,000-$92,000
Have you ever dreamed of becoming the next Ralph Lauren or Vera Wang? If so, you should be aware that most fashion designers don’t make Vera Wang type money.
The competition is tough, the hours are long, and the pay generally does not match the effort fashion designers put into their designs.
University Professor
- Salary range: $73,000-$260,000
A university professor is a job with a lot of respect but is not paid as well as you might think. To be a university professor, you must have a Ph.D. (Doctor of Philosophy). However, university professors’ salaries often do not make up for the expense of the years of schooling.
Journalist
- Salary range: $26,000-$61,000
The journalism industry has faced economic challenges in recent years due to a decline in physical newspaper consumption and an increase in alternative forms of news, like social media. The future of journalism careers is uncertain, and salaries may continue declining as fewer jobs exist.
Architect
- Salary range: $63,000-$89,000
Architecture requires years of school and extensive training, and the compensation may not reflect that. Architects may have to work long hours to finish a project, but they may not get paid for that overtime. Plus, very few architects become well-known or extremely successful.
Head Chef
- Salary range: $81,000-$109,000
You might assume that the head chef at a restaurant overseeing many others would probably earn a generous salary. Unfortunately, that’s not the case. Even though most chefs work very long hours, most are not compensated for the time and effort put into their craft.
One thing to remember is that salaries can fluctuate significantly for chefs at a chain restaurant compared to a Michelin-star restaurant.
Psychologist
- Salary range: $69,000-$120,000
Psychologists require extensive schooling but may not get paid as much as you might think.
The ideal career path is to open a private practice to make the most money as a psychologist. This will give you the ability to charge more per hour and avoid being limited by insurance or large companies. However, building up enough clients can take years and lots of work.
The Bottom Line
Some people choose their careers based on how much they can expect to make. Others have different reasons for choosing a career. If you are considering switching or starting a career based on how much money you can make, it is important to understand salary ranges beforehand.
If you want to enter one of the careers mentioned above, the money shouldn’t stop you. A job can make you rich in other ways besides financially — like personal satisfaction, a sense of purpose, fulfillment and enjoyment.
Salary ranges were sourced from Salary.com.
More From GOBankingRates
