Switch to Tech for Jobs that Pay 80K a Year (Without a CS Degree!)

“There has to be a better job out there.” Have you been thinking something along those lines during your morning commute? Changing careers isn’t always easy, but there’s one popular option if you’re looking for a fresh start: a tech bootcamp. Pick the right bootcamp, and within a year, you can train for a new, in-demand role that comes with a better salary, reliable hours, and other perks. Switching to tech can land you a job that pays up to $80,000 a year without a degree.

Wages: the state we’re in

Wages have been stagnating for decades, and it’s even more noticeable with today’s high inflation. If your grocery bill seems to be ballooning, it’s not all in your head: according to Pew Research, “today’s real average wage (that is, the wage after accounting for inflation) has about the same purchasing power it did 40 years ago.” Beyond low salaries, too many jobs are inflexible, with unpredictable schedules, little time off, or minimal parental leave policies.

By contrast, the tech sector has traditionally offered high-paying jobs, more generous benefits, and perks like remote or hybrid work_{Work From Home. It’s Good for You.}. Wage stagnation is hard to fix, but you can gain technical skills that boost your salary and give you better work options. Demand for software developers, data scientists and business analysts continues to grow (for example, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics is projecting a 35% increase in data scientist jobs in the next 10 years!) And bootcamps offer a bridge into these highly paid careers for people of any background: in fact, 87% of TripleTen students come from non-STEM backgrounds such as teachers, service industry workers, customer service professionals, and lab techs. 

Entry-level salaries in tech

Here are the typical roles TripleTen grads get hired into, and the average entry-level, full-time salaries for these types of roles (U.S. salary data via Glassdoor):

And that’s just the starting level

An entry level salary is just that: the first salary you get in your new field. While there’s a big range in starting salaries, it’s possible to land tech jobs that pay $80,000 a year or more. 

As you gain experience and specialized skills, you can increase your compensation through promotions or switching roles. Once you’re working in the field, you’ll also get a better sense of what problems you enjoy solving, what you’re good at, and how you can grow your skill set. For example, as you can see in this list of top-paying companies for software engineers_{The Top 18 Companies That Pay Software Engineers the Most in 2024},  experienced developers can command six-figure salaries, depending on their specific tech stack. (You should also check out that article to understand the difference between salary and total compensation, which may include things like stock options).

What bootcamp grads earn

TripleTen’s Outcomes Report offers great news for bootcamp grads: their median average salary was $76,600 in their first job after graduation — no degree required. By comparison, they earned a median salary of $46,000 in the jobs they previously held.

You don’t need an undergrad degree in computer science, or even a college degree at all_{Forging His Own Path to Tech: Luke Schmidt’s TripleTen Story}, to complete a bootcamp. Plus, a bootcamp is significantly cheaper than a college degree, and gets you a job much sooner (TripleTen’s bootcamps take between 5 and 10 months to complete). 

How quickly can you change careers?

The majority of TripleTen’s 2023 graduates completed their bootcamp within 6-10 months: that’s at least five times faster than the average time to complete a bachelor’s degree. And the majority of them increased their income by more than $27,000/year: that’s the difference in earning power between a high school diploma and a bachelor’s degree, but in a fraction of the time. 

Finally, on average, 87% of them got hired within 6 months of graduation. In fact, 50% got hired before they even finished their course!

How our grads switched careers 

Jenny's story: From music teacher to software engineer

Jenny started working as an elementary school music teacher a year before covid forced all instruction to go virtual. Teaching four-year-olds via Zoom was not what she had in mind for her career. Between the online-only teaching, and having no time to make music for herself, Jenny was burning out. She was creating lessons using basic HTML, and realized that this was the aspect of her job she enjoyed the most. So she joined TripleTen’s Software Engineering Bootcamp. It appealed to her because she “found that with software engineering, and especially the web development that I did through TripleTen, there was a creative aspect.” Jenny landed her new job before she even completed the bootcamp. She’s now a software engineer at Booz Allen Hamilton, and has enough time to enjoy music as a hobby once again.

Rachelle’s story: from tourism sales to data science

When Rachelle was laid off from her role in tourism sales, she decided she might as well try something new. She was already interested in data and landed an entry-level job in the field, but she needed to level up if she was serious about her new career path. That’s when she found TripleTen. The program was rigorous, but she credits that rigor for helping her land a data analyst role at Spotify. This new job is satisfying, and comes with some huge perks: she has great health insurance, more paid time off and sick days, and she can work remotely. “I actually probably put in less hours now than I ever did in my older jobs. I spend much more time with my son now,” says Rachelle.

Start your path: is a bootcamp right for you?

So if you want to make the change and go for those jobs that pay 80K without a degree, a bootcamp might be right for you. Take our quiz to discover your ideal path to tech.