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Forget Silicon Valley, It Still Pays More to Be a Doctor in America

Four of the top five paying jobs in the U.S. are within the world of medicine and dentistry.

Forget Silicon Valley, It Still Pays More to Be a Doctor in America
A medical doctor examines a patient with a stethoscope at a CCI Health and Wellness Services health center in Gaithersburg, Maryland, U.S.,(Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg)

(Bloomberg) -- Welcome to Bloomberg Work Wise, a series of reports aimed at helping young professionals navigate their way to financial and career success. To learn how your salary stacks up and how much your dream job might pay, try our career calculator.

Tech jobs are supposed to be the golden door to wealth in 21st century America.

But Bloomberg’s Work Wise—our special report on how young professionals can get ahead, make money and give back—reveals that some things haven’t changed since the last century. Remember when your mother told you to be a doctor?  She was right.

Four of the top five paying jobs in the U.S. are within the world of medicine and dentistry, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

General practitioners makes the most money, with a median annual salary of $201,100. You’d have to scroll down to No. 10 before you hit a tech job: Computer and information systems managers have a median annual salary of $142,530. Software developers came in at No. 36, with a median salary of $110,000 a year.

As for lawyers, the industry’s consolidation as law schools kept minting graduates has taken its toll. Being an attorney in America these days puts you at No. 24 on the list, with a median annual salary of $120,910, wedged between physicists and purchasing managers.

Forget Silicon Valley, It Still Pays More to Be a Doctor in America

Wondering who really gets the short end of the stick? Well, you may want to give your dealer a few more chips the next time you hit Atlantic City. Also, try not to stiff your waiter the next time you eat out. Both jobs have two of the lowest median annual salaries, according to the BLS.

Forget Silicon Valley, It Still Pays More to Be a Doctor in America

If you’re not happy about how much money you make, and are thinking of borrowing tens of thousands of dollars to get a master’s degree, you may want to check whether it’s worth it. College professors, predictably, benefit financially from that advanced degree, but then again, so does tech support.

Here are some of the jobs where a master’s degree means a significant salary bump.

Forget Silicon Valley, It Still Pays More to Be a Doctor in America

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Joshua Petri at jpetri4@bloomberg.net, Martin Keohan

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