# "High-Prestige but Low-Pay" jobs? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 1, 2021, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-prestige-but-low-pay-jobs/951733 "2021-10-01T15:23:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![gdave](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gdave/32/3683_2.png) [@gdave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gdave)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2021, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-prestige-but-low-pay-jobs/951733/41 "2021-10-02T13:39:51Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > Pun intended? Not initially, but I immediately saw what I had done, and decided to roll with it. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2021, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-prestige-but-low-pay-jobs/951733/42 "2021-10-02T13:45:53Z")
> [@gdave](#): > > > [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > > > Pun intended? > > Not initially, but I immediately saw what I had done, and decided to roll with it. - In a major way. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2021, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-prestige-but-low-pay-jobs/951733/43 "2021-10-02T15:51:39Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > Depending on your definition of “low-pay,” perhaps military officer or fire fighter. > > Also, County Prosecutor (D.A.). Add EMT to that. When I first got certified (in 2007), I was making barely $8 an hour. The wages have gone up, sure, but many EMTs still have to get a second job to scrape by. ---
**Author:** ![Icantdance](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/ce73a5/32.png) [@Icantdance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icantdance)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2021, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-prestige-but-low-pay-jobs/951733/44 "2021-10-02T16:03:45Z")
Chief Hydrological and Hydrodynamical Engineer ---
**Author:** ![pullin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c57346/32.png) [@pullin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pullin)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2021, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-prestige-but-low-pay-jobs/951733/45 "2021-10-02T17:03:05Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > Airline pilots were/are high prestige but many are regional commuters earning relatively little. They might make more than you think. At the very beginning the pay sucks, but it goes up pretty fast. One of my kids did this, and was around $120K/year when he left the regionals (ERJ Captain). > [@Velocity](#): > > They aren’t the big-haul captains making $140k a year. Also, I’m pretty sure “big-haul” captains make considerably more than this. Same kid is now captain on a widebody and earning $250K. He’s in his early 30s and (using current contract) will be pushing 300K before he’s 40. Professor Google claims the median for all airline pilots is over $120K. Except for those early in their careers, I don’t think they qualify for the “low pay” part of the title. > [@Velocity](#): > > And certain jobs like “movie actor or actress” sound glamorous but may actually pay little if you’re not a star. I think you’re correct about this one though. Professor G claims their median is only about $40K. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2021, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-prestige-but-low-pay-jobs/951733/46 "2021-10-02T17:14:45Z")
There’s an airline pilot named Patrick Smith who has an “[Ask the Pilot](https://askthepilot.com/)” column. In one, I remember he talked about pilot salaries and he said that when pilots move from one airline to another, they start the salary (and seniority) ladder all over again. ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2021, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-prestige-but-low-pay-jobs/951733/47 "2021-10-02T17:15:49Z")
Movie actor is a typical example of what economists call a “glamor job”. That is, a profession where the vast majority make hardly anything but a few at the top get rich. There are many examples: music, writing, fashion, sports, etc. ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2021, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-prestige-but-low-pay-jobs/951733/48 "2021-10-02T17:19:13Z")
The thing about teachers is not that their pay is low in absolute terms (though in some places, it is) but that it’s low considering the amount of education needed for it and the difficulty of the job. ---
**Author:** ![psychonaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/psychonaut/32/4655_2.png) [@psychonaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychonaut)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2021, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-prestige-but-low-pay-jobs/951733/49 "2021-10-02T20:12:55Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > Those in an even more rarified tier who have achieved a high level of academic fame effectively have no ceiling on their salaries or other perks (such as lavish research facilities and grants). I wouldn’t call “lavish research facilities and grants” perks, since they’re used for research purposes and not for the personal enrichment/enjoyment of the professor. Probably the closest thing to personal luxury you can use grant money for is paying for a higher class of hotel or restaurants during conference/research trips, though if you squander all your grant money on stuff like that, the funding agency is going to notice, and you also aren’t going to be applying it to the sort of high-quality research that’s required to net you future “lavish” grants. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2021, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-prestige-but-low-pay-jobs/951733/50 "2021-10-02T21:11:57Z")
There are people who came to the US from foreign nations to become physicians, then end up going back to their home country to be physicians for $10k a year. ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2021, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-prestige-but-low-pay-jobs/951733/51 "2021-10-02T21:19:58Z")
That’s… strange. We have a shortage of medical school slots in this country, right? Some would say an artificial shortage. That’s one of the reason we import a lot of foreign physicians. Why would we give up limited medical school slots to foreign students for them to go back home and practice there? Why would they incur a multi-hundred thousand dollar medical school debt to go home and practice for pennies when they could train elsewhere? ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Mouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mighty_mouse/32/7776_2.png) [@Mighty\_Mouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Mouse)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2021, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-prestige-but-low-pay-jobs/951733/52 "2021-10-02T21:42:42Z")
> [@Wesley\_Clark](#): > > There are people who came to the US from foreign nations to become physicians, then end up going back to their home country to be physicians for $10k a year. The folks I know who came here from a country with a GDP per capita 1/10 of the US did NOT go back to jobs making $10k per year. They were making more than $150k per year in a place where you can have an army of domestic workers for $20k per year (I mean a cook, driver, gardener and two maids). Heck one of my classmates in Pakistan (got his MD from a KU, is sending his two kids to US universities at a total cost of $150k per year. He’s not doing this on $10k per year. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2021, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-prestige-but-low-pay-jobs/951733/53 "2021-10-02T22:00:33Z")
Being a local news anchor seems like it would be a pretty high-paying gig because they’re on TV, but the median income is a hair over $69,000. Certainly not poverty-level, but it won’t enable a lifestyle of leather-bound books and rich mahogany. [https://www.comparably.com/salaries/salaries-for-local-news-anchor](https://www.comparably.com/salaries/salaries-for-local-news-anchor) ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2021, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-prestige-but-low-pay-jobs/951733/54 "2021-10-02T22:18:05Z")
> [@psychonaut](#): > > > [@wolfpup](#): > > > > Those in an even more rarified tier who have achieved a high level of academic fame effectively have no ceiling on their salaries or other perks (such as lavish research facilities and grants). > > I wouldn’t call “lavish research facilities and grants” perks, since they’re used for research purposes and not for the personal enrichment/enjoyment of the professor … Valid points, and I agree. I was throwing the word “perks” around perhaps a bit too loosely. I didn’t mean literally the kinds of personal luxuries that tend to be common in the business world, but rather, as implied in my example, that the opportunity to direct major prestigious research programs is a form of recognition and job satisfaction. Or, for another example, the ability to negotiate few teaching responsibilities or none at all, so the professor can focus entirely on his or her research, with “teaching” perhaps limited to mentoring grad students who collaborate on his/her work. Same with the ability to attract major grant money. I’m not suggesting that it ever should or would be misappropriated for personal use. But it does buy equipment and staff that facilitates productivity. And FWIW, I didn’t mean the word “lavish” in any sort of snide or critical sense. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2021, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-prestige-but-low-pay-jobs/951733/55 "2021-10-03T04:41:44Z")
> [@gkster](#): > > Some of them give up and teach in high schools while others can’t make that move. I have never understood the whole mentality of grinding it out as an adjunct with no hope of ever being tenured. Why in God’s name would you intentionally sign on as a part-time adjunct if there are other jobs that pay better? Being an adjunct isn’t going to help you in the long run either from what I gather; you’re probably better off jumping to another institution or finding a better paying job, even if it’s teaching high school or doing something else entirely. It’s like the movie “Rudy” but in real life with careers, and nobody’s going to let you have garbage time tenure either. ---
**Author:** ![Enjoy\_Slurm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/enjoy_slurm/32/3937_2.png) [@Enjoy\_Slurm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enjoy_Slurm)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2021, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-prestige-but-low-pay-jobs/951733/56 "2021-10-03T05:28:54Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > Superman never made any money saving the world from Solomon Grundy. Hey Bob, Supe had a straight job. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2021, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-prestige-but-low-pay-jobs/951733/57 "2021-10-03T06:15:41Z")
Porn Star #7 ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2021, 6:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-prestige-but-low-pay-jobs/951733/58 "2021-10-03T06:26:21Z")
> [@Enjoy\_Slurm](#): > > > [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > > > Superman never made any money saving the world from Solomon Grundy. > > Hey Bob, Supe had a straight job. Superman also had that coal-to-diamond trick. I bet there were collectors who’d pay a premium for Superman-diamonds. ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2021, 10:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-prestige-but-low-pay-jobs/951733/59 "2021-10-03T10:27:59Z")
You have to actually have this hypothetical high-paying job offer, which, if you did, why would you have fucked yourself by accepting an adjunct teaching job in the first place? You took it because the choice was to teach French 101 or starve. IME competing offers at academic and other institutions are one form of leverage to obtain tenured positions and, yes, salary increases. ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_was\_in\_Saudi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b77776/32.png) [@Paul\_was\_in\_Saudi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_was_in_Saudi)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2021, 11:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-prestige-but-low-pay-jobs/951733/60 "2021-10-03T11:30:48Z")
Architects. Give the size of some projects and how horribly things can go wrong, they are paid very little. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-prestige-but-low-pay-jobs/951733.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-prestige-but-low-pay-jobs/951733.md?page=4)