The average federal student loan debt in the United States is $38,375. The average bachelor’s degree takes around four years to graduate. Meanwhile, each of these three skills can be grasped in less than one year and will cost you a fraction of the cost of a degree–between $400 to $1,000 on average–to learn them. Once you’ve acquired these skills, the return on investment is extremely lucrative. You can make $130,000 or more with them and not have to worry about paying back student debt, which means you get to keep more of your hard-earned salary.
Plus, the jobs that require these competencies are in high demand in almost every industry you can think of globally (you’ll see why below), which means that your career is future-proofed because you have easily-transferable skills and you’ll receive a steady flow of clients (if you’re freelancing) and job opportunities. And, as if the benefits of learning these skills couldn’t get any better, the roles commonly associated with them are popular as remote jobs. By now you must be curious…what are these three high-income skills that you can learn without expending the same time or finances as a traditional degree? (Salaries listed are from Salary.com.)
1. Project Management Skills
Project management is the backbone of the successful execution of projects within companies. Project managers not only cover internal projects, but client-facing projects as well. Without project managers, business operations would not run smoothly. Need a brand campaign? A project manager would be behind that. Need to roll out internal training? A project manager covers that too. Essentially, project managers are the jack-of-all-trades. This is perhaps why they are commonly referred to or confused with operations managers. They lead and have oversight of people, budgets, timelines, and deliverables. And this skill set is universally needed in today’s job market. Perhaps that’s why PMI (Project Management Institute) predicts that by 2030, 25 million project management professionals will be needed.
Where to learn it: Coursera’s Google Project Management Professional Certificate, PMI’s Project Management Professional (PMP)
Jobs you can get: project manager, program manager, operations lead, implementation manager
Average salary for project manager: $145,690
2. Product Management Skills
Product management skills are essential, particularly for companies that develop digital and physical products. Many start-ups require a product manager as part of their founding team, and the demand is high in industries like tech, fintech, edtech, and SaaS. This enables them to bring their idea to life, connect with end users, and bridge the gap between user pain points and business goals, creating and maintaining a viable solution that answers to both needs. One of the most amazing things about product management is that it is one of the most lucrative yet accessible roles in tech, meaning you don’t need to be a coder or have a tech degree to be successful in this field. You will however, need to understand basic technical terminology so that you can effectively liaise with stakeholders and with the product development team, but you don’t need to be a technical expert. If you’re the type of person who enjoys taking things from idea to launch, this is the perfect six-figure path for you. You will need strong execution skills and user empathy to succeed in this role.
Where to learn it: Association of International Product Marketing and Management (AIPMM) Product Manager Certification
Jobs you can get: product manager, head of product, technical product owner, senior product manager
Average salary for product manager: $82,459, senior product managers make $130,775
3. Agile Methodology And Scrum Skills
The next high-paying skillset you can learn without a degree is agile/scrum. This is the framework or system behind successful project and product teams, and learning this skill can increase the array of career opportunities that are available to you as a project or product manager. You can work freelance or full-time as an agile practitioner or scrum master and build proof of results through delivering successful projects and creating a portfolio of them.
Where to learn it: PMI’s Agile Certification, PRINCE2 Agile Foundation course
Jobs you can get: project manager, agile coach, scrum master
Average salary for lead scrum master: $146,410
What If I Need Experience First?
Some of these certifications, like the PMP certification from PMI, require that you first have a few years of experience in project management or similar under your belt as a prerequisite to studying. So how do you gain this experience?
Thankfully, there are a few workarounds, such as:
• Studying a Google or Microsoft project management career certificate or other relevant course on Coursera first
• Studying the CAPM certification which is perfect for entry-level (or find other beginner-friendly courses)
• Using these courses to gain practical hands-on experience in a job
• Starting out as a freelancer and offering your services at a reduced rate until you’re confident in your skills
• Telling your boss about your career goals in your 1:1 meetings and asking your employer for exposure to opportunities in your chosen field You may notice that all these skills are very similar, but they complement each other well. Through developing them using the courses suggested, you position yourself and your career where you’ll be in consistently high demand, and it will be much easier for you to achieve your financial goals.
• Rachel Wells is a writer who covers freelancing, AI, and remote work.
