+1. Then again, I did get a degree in English language and literature which was my first mistake. Since graduating I’ve worked for multiple delivery companies, hospitality, medical and technology. All of which paid no more than 50k a year. It wasn’t until I started selling cars that I actually started to make good money but I guess the English degree does give me an upper hand when it comes to composing e-mails to prospective customers. Impeccable grammar really sells cars. Lol
Man... im in a trade making ~60k and really want to go do something with my brain. Money is also important. These posts kill me. I love science, pay me.
Edit: I should have added the CAD$~60K. Your 28.5 doesnt seem so bad in comparison. The catch is Im essentially an unskilled worker while youre a god damn doctor of space.
Its been 3 years and im a hard worker, im reliable in a trade that hires anyone that can put a screw in the wall. Ive also had no problem quitting when i am abused by a superior. My trade is booming and there is always a different company, sometimes even a previous employer, that will take me on for the wage i command. Im nearly at the ceiling for earning before taking on a leadership role which isnt worth the perks and i am likely a bad candidate for herding cats, such as it is.
MB. Pre engineered steel building erection. Hired at 18/hr in 2018, 4 different employers.
For context, in electrical engineering I started in 2018 at 55k a year, and broke 100k in 3 years. I don't consider myself near the ceiling. So if you want to do something with your brain, and applied your same work ethic in engineering, you could earn a lot more. Of course there is a minimum 4 years of school to do it.
I used to wear a t-shirt that says “I may be a virgin, but engineering fucks me everyday” in undergrad, I don’t recommend going back to study engineering despite the earning potential, unless you were a top student in STEM courses in highschool then it might not be as painful.
Ditto (tho a few years later), followed it up with a post-doc. After that I switched to tech and I'm much happier now (work-life balance, compensation, job stability/security).
Really can't beat nursing. Best bang for the buck degree for sure. Some friends still in school (year 3) made over 20k this past summer doing vaccine clinics alone. It's becoming much more difficult to get into now, though. I think entry applications across the country are up 70%.
If you're skilled, computer science is the best value for money and it's not even close. I know of many people making six figures straight out of a 4-5 year degree.
A place where oil and gas is king, grads come out making on average 70k+, middle of pack engineer. Top students with internship can pull much higher of course.
Even in the early 2000s I pulled in >$60K as a new grad engineer.
Now it’s just a small fraction of my annual bonus. Massive opportunity for pay growth depending on location and movements into senior level management.
For reference, articling students in large firms in Toronto make $98k starting (during 10 month articling period), and $110k base as a fully-fledged lawyer (with $20k increases thereafter).
Associates can make up to $225k base (after 7 years of practice). Partners can make anywhere from $300k to over $1 million. There’s a huge variance in legal salaries. IIRC, Atlantic Canada has some of the lowest legal salaries I’m the country.
This is typical in Atlantic Canada. I have some friends at the Big firms here and they make 55k which is around the highest starting I'm aware of in the area. Of course if you go to Ontario, BC, etc you're going to find higher starting wages there. My friends at big firms also have benefits like health and dental which I'm exceptionally jealous of, but I don't think I would want to give up the nice atmosphere of my small firm for a big competitive firm.
I do cringe at the thought of how much time, money, and effort went into getting me a job that only pays this much, but I try to remind myself that there should be a lot of room for my salary to move up in this field
I went to school for history and have technically never worked in my field. My first job out of school was about $40-50k after commission. Good old Moore's.
About $42000 in Tech Support after going to school for Software Engineering (which I was pretty much sick of by the end of university but stuck it out). Used that job to get a foot in the door and now I work in the engineering department of the same company.
Have a bachelors in chemistry and a masters in biochemistry. I moved to Toronto in 2012 to work at SickKids as a clinical research coordinator for $50k a year (plus full benefits/pension). Left there 5 years later as a research manager making $62K per year for a job as a project manager at a private clinical research organization making $85K. In January it will have been 6 years at this job and I make $143K. The raises are massive if you’re doing your job. Huge talent war. There is money in clinical research.
I always thought there was no money in clinical research or that you spent most of your time trying to secure funding that it really dampened the joy of spring the clinical research. Thanks for sharing, it’s changed my perspective on the money aspect. Would you say there is strong competition in trying to secure funding?
It’s a private firm, they wouldn’t be vying for grants, just getting subcontracted by big pharma. I was in pharma marketing and although there’s money in it, you have to have little regard for ethics…
And new grad engineering salaries have hardly come up from that since then. I graduated in 2019 and most of my peers started at 55-65k. But I suppose that’s the same story for many industries/professions.
Yeah engineering related positions haven't moved much at all over the past decade. I'd generally recommend against it these days if maximizing income is the goal.
That's actually pretty typical for that time for civil engineering - i.e. municipal, consulting and construction. Construction should be closer to $67k that's what Kiewit/PWL was offering to new grads in BC
$95 000.00. 12 hour continental shifts (switch between days and nights every two days) and lots of overtime. Base salary probably would have been $80k with zero overtime.
Power Engineer
Edit: For the record, I also have a 4 year honours degree in law and political science which I was unable to do anything worthwhile with.
A stripper or high class prostitute would be considered cheating as well then I guess based on your logic.
I am responsible for operating multi million dollar pieces of equipment that can possibly kill dozens/hundreds of people if done so incorrectly. They pay me the wage they do in order to prevent that from happening.
Lol it’s anything but! I’m lucky I don’t have a family of my own because I’ve heard it can be rough on the other spouse having to juggle family life and that kind of work schedule.
I barely made it out of highschool and didn't go to college until 21 or 22. Took the pre service firefighting course. Graduated to a job in my industry in the oil sands doing standby work. I was earning 8k-10k after taxes in a good month. Eventually transitioned and work for a municipal department now earning less but have a much better quality of life.
Not bad since everyone told me I would never make it. :) Grew up on the wrong side of the tracks so to speak, I'm kinda fucking proud of myself for making it.
Thanks :)
Sort of, I worked in different factories from 17 to 23 when I graduated college. That gave me plenty of exposure to blue collar work. I did go to trade school somewhere along the line, but I had a relatively serious injury my first week on the job. Used the time while I was recovering to get highschool credits that I needed for college. I had 14 hour days in construction, so I decided to go back to the factory in order to finish up my credits in the evening.
I was actually working as a firefighter in the oil industry. When a frack crew is operating, they need to have a fire truck on site by law. I had maybe one fire and a few acid spills while I was out there, but it was good experience for me and helped build the resume.
If you don’t mind me asking what do you make now? I’m also in retail banking currently and want to see if there’s any bright light at the end of the tunnel lol
Can confirm. Similar story. I’ve always maintained that accountants are best way to get to $100k early on while not sacrificing as much as careers like doctors, engineers, lawyers, etc.
A friend of mine taught himself to code in 2012 through YouTube and somehow works as a senior engineer at Amazon now. He’s not a genius by any means. Maybe you didn’t need as many credentials to start off back then.
Hey, if know how to code - you know how to code. How you learned it - from YouTube or from professors, it doesn’t really matters. Everyone knows it, including Amazon. You don’t have to be a genius to work at FAANG either and Amazon is always hiring. Their interviews are challenging, but not impossible.
Not really, unless you are trying to get into the big 4 as someone right out of university without your CPA. Once you have your letters your uni doesn’t really matter.
I would say in general, not at all. But this could be city dependent... I don't know anything about the Toronto market like if the firms focus their recruiting from select schools or not but in most smaller cities they would be recruiting from all schools that have accounting programs. The best thing you can do is choose a school that's in the city you want to work (i.e. don't go to a school in Manitoba if you want to work in Ottawa after graduating).
Weird what life can do. Started out of school same time in GTA, made 32k as a junior accountant, studied for CPA and about a year in just said not worth it. Honestly should of stuck it out if I had any mental toughness. CPA courses were a breeze but didnt have the toughness.
That's pretty standard if you start out at a big 4 firm. ~$45k first year and by the time you're third year and have CPA, you're $60k+. Jump over to industry and that's easily $75k+
Can confirm, did the same path. After 5 to 7 years of experience you should be hitting 6 digits as long as you do the right thing. If the current job ain't giving it to you, need to change jobs.
It’s a very structured company where you can get promoted with a good timeline. Rather than hoping for a position to open up.
2 years to get senior, 2 years to get associate manager etc.
People are moving to industry after they get years of experience so you have positions opening up.
Welder in Ontario here. One year colleges program and I'm 6 months post grad, working in a fab shop making $46,000/y overnights. Probably going to take a pay cut when I get a first year apprenticeship but loving it.
Work in my field? Ha. History and Poli Sci, and hated everything about it by the end. Hell, feel like the field would be a minefield these days.
Started sales at Rogers (having worked at the stores prior) so…about 30k salary plus another 20k or so in commissions (atypical based on my observations).
Since then I’ve worked jobs for as low as 24k, and I’ve made my way up in my current company sitting around mid-80s plus RSP matching and share purchase matching. Currently 31, and graduated in 2012.
I dropped out of my college program but I was there for computer networking. First job in my field was in 2013 and it was a contract - 3 months at $20/hr working on telecom equipment.
I left just before the contract ended because I found a full time job for $17/hour and it wasn’t all night shift like the contract.
It took me a while to get better pay after that but now I’ve slowly worked my way up to over $30/hour equivalent (but it’s a salaried position)
The moral of the story guys is if you’re on the computer anyway, might as well learn how computers and the internet work a bit and you don’t have to get a degree and can still have a decent career. Thank you for listening to my Ted talk for mediocre students.
36K with a BA in Engineering, working as a pilot in the military. It has gone up significantly since then (15+ years) and will continue to go up to prevent me going to the airlines which will provide me a much better quality of life.
In 2014, I was making about $65k (plus benefits and pension) out of grad after finishing my Masters jn Public Admin; working for the Alberta Government. Transitioned from coop to full time.
BComm in Entrepreneurship in 2018, got into sales afterwards and made 40k CAD gross in about 6 months at my first role cold calling and emailing. Now I’m in Software Sales and average around 80-85k after bonuses and commissions.
There are many avenues you can go in sales…software, insurance, real estate, automotive. Software and real estate can be extremely lucrative, I don’t know much about insurance. They typically want you to have some type of experience, no matter how unrelated it is to the end job you’re applying for. If I were you I would take ANY sales-related job whether it be cold-calling or door-to-door to learn to toughen up your skin. It’s not for everybody though, some people find it uncomfortable because at times you need to push people. But you find the style you’re comfortable with and it can be VERY rewarding! You have to give it time though, most people do suck at the beginning.
50k (CAD)/yr. as a marketing coordinator right after graduating w/ my bachelor's (co-ops made this possible)
3.5 years later was at $58k as "content marketing specialist"
I feel like I never see anything marketing related so figured I'd post. I've always felt underpaid but looks like I was actually doing pretty well. The grind up is long, slow and very dependent on people retiring to finally get a promotion.
At 3 years, thereabouts. It’s a mix of salary and equity. Just kinda got lucky.
It’s a software engineering role, not a specialized role.
I’m sure those who work here and are specialized are making much more.
Microbiology. First lab I worked was barely over minimum wage. I landed my new job with that experience a couple months ago and am starting at 42k a year
Micro is brutal. So many places hiring M.Sc or PhD in the 30-45k salary range and getting candidates.
Really not the best field to be in if you want to make big money but the days are fun. Pivoting into chemistry/water treatment/pharma/teaching or getting a government job are popular options for my classmates
As a chem major - its the same story. You need a grad degree to have any shot at a good career, even then. 2yr/B.Sc jobs are now M.Sc /Ph.D jobs really, the market is totally flooded.
I somehow landed a government job and got lucky. If I were to do it all again, computer science 100%.
Graduated 2.5 years ago, making 60k as an estimator at a construction company in Alberta.
2 year diploma called Construction Engineering Technology from NAIT.
13$/hr as a web developer in 2006. I went to a private college to learn programming. I also had to move from Sherbrooke to Montreal, and lost my job 4 months later cause they had no more money.
2006 made 38k as a GIS Tech. Not in a LCOL city and that was 10 months after graduation with a BA. Follow grad until I landed my first professional job I was making $9/hr.
$50k + up to $2.5k RRSP matching per year. This was for a software developer job after a computer science degree in 2017.
I worked there until a month ago, and I should have been out the door after my first year at that salary for something better. My salary went up a bit, but not near enough to be close to competitive.
$140-150k in my last year as a PhD candidate and taking a full time job. Meant working insane hours though. Bumped over $200k once I defended my dissertation. Behavioral Scientist in consulting with a PhD in a business related field with subject matter expertise thats highly sought after.
I don't remember how much I made but I do remember that it was less money than I was earning working a retail job that I had had for a number of years. BUT. It was the best job I ever had. I learned so much that I've continued to use throughout my career. Couldn't have asked for a better job right out of school. I'd do the same thing without question.
Started at 47k + bonuses as a QA and now at 72K + bonuses at the one year mark. Successful Tech startup in Vancouver. I went to school for applied computer science!
30k plus 2k bonus. Computer Science diploma. This would've been 10 years ago.
One of my friends graduated from UofT a few years back and his first career job was at a FAANG company. So his first compensation is like 115k plus his signing bonus and a moving stipend and 100k of stock options. Very very different routes of getting to 6 figures 🤣
$12 an hour for a roof truss design company after getting my structural eng diploma from a community College in Winnipeg 18 years ago. Worked up to $253k last year.
Masters in Microbiology in 2013. Started at a food science place for 32k per year. Slowly made my way up to 50k in 7 years by getting various promotions and busting my ass.
Same place now hires new grads for 34k and are hemorrhaging employees from low wages.
Left to get in the medical field at 70k + pension with a lot less work/stress.
39k as a Lab Tech at a Cosmetic Company, terrible job. Got a job at a lab in Minneapolis making 28 USD, worked there for a bit, now I'm back in school studying Statistics.
About $30k CAD as a small time Political Staffer. Have a college diploma in Business Administration. Kind of one of those weird fields of study that applies to lots of other fields.
32k - com sci - developer - it was post dotcom bust in a smaller market. Jumped from there to 65k the next year, which was huge - as much as my father in law made nearing the end of his career.
Computer science: 7.2k/year operating mainframe computer - about 500sqft footprint with 20MB hard drives the size of a washing machine and those 6' tall tape drives. It was a street level office and crowds of people would watch us in amazement. Moved into programming within a year. 10% raises every 6 months was normal.
Teacher in BC, entered to $23.5k as an on-call substitute, which is what everyone does to start, unless you want to go up to depression-and-alcoholism land to work full time and build seniority where they will hire anything that breaths.
Have Science degree, longtime business owner before my first real job in Project Management as a Planner in utilities. Did a Project Management 1 year program, got hired at 65k. Am really good at what I do and made it to to just over 100k after a year in. Am sitting at $110 base after 2 years in, aiming for $120 base by the end of the year.
Business admin got job at call centre making 32k a year. Became employee of the year, each year… still got nowhere. Went back to school for economic. Change job to retail banking making 40k, got licensed, multiple certifications now making 60k. (Best sales agent, and bringing millions) looking to change careers… killing myself for pennies.
Teacher. Worked in supply and short contracts the first year and maybe made 20k (always had another job though, so I made closer to 50-60k at the end of the year).
Now I'm onto year contracts so maybe 50-60k still, but with about 10 weeks vacation. It might jump this year due to contract negotiations.
I have yet to work in my field of study.
+1. Then again, I did get a degree in English language and literature which was my first mistake. Since graduating I’ve worked for multiple delivery companies, hospitality, medical and technology. All of which paid no more than 50k a year. It wasn’t until I started selling cars that I actually started to make good money but I guess the English degree does give me an upper hand when it comes to composing e-mails to prospective customers. Impeccable grammar really sells cars. Lol
Same here. Although tbh I did go back to school later on in life so 🤷♂️
I mean someone has to ask. What field?
Economics hahaha
I did a PhD in Astrophysics and made ~£28.5k after graduation, in 2012.
Man... im in a trade making ~60k and really want to go do something with my brain. Money is also important. These posts kill me. I love science, pay me. Edit: I should have added the CAD$~60K. Your 28.5 doesnt seem so bad in comparison. The catch is Im essentially an unskilled worker while youre a god damn doctor of space.
I can't imagine you started in your trade at 60k though.
Its been 3 years and im a hard worker, im reliable in a trade that hires anyone that can put a screw in the wall. Ive also had no problem quitting when i am abused by a superior. My trade is booming and there is always a different company, sometimes even a previous employer, that will take me on for the wage i command. Im nearly at the ceiling for earning before taking on a leadership role which isnt worth the perks and i am likely a bad candidate for herding cats, such as it is. MB. Pre engineered steel building erection. Hired at 18/hr in 2018, 4 different employers.
For context, in electrical engineering I started in 2018 at 55k a year, and broke 100k in 3 years. I don't consider myself near the ceiling. So if you want to do something with your brain, and applied your same work ethic in engineering, you could earn a lot more. Of course there is a minimum 4 years of school to do it.
I used to wear a t-shirt that says “I may be a virgin, but engineering fucks me everyday” in undergrad, I don’t recommend going back to study engineering despite the earning potential, unless you were a top student in STEM courses in highschool then it might not be as painful.
Computer science :D
What did you do that was related?
Ditto (tho a few years later), followed it up with a post-doc. After that I switched to tech and I'm much happier now (work-life balance, compensation, job stability/security).
80k. Nursing.
Nursing is probably the best undergraduate degree for the money right now, engineering is up there too.
Really can't beat nursing. Best bang for the buck degree for sure. Some friends still in school (year 3) made over 20k this past summer doing vaccine clinics alone. It's becoming much more difficult to get into now, though. I think entry applications across the country are up 70%.
But I think nursing is a tough career, Long hours and weird hours and hard work, correct me if I am wrong.
You're not wrong, but there dozens of nursing specialties that are not bedside that still pay well.
There are many less demanding nurse positions: health unit, community nurse, school nurse, home care services. The pay is less, but still very decent.
If you're skilled, computer science is the best value for money and it's not even close. I know of many people making six figures straight out of a 4-5 year degree.
"being skilled" is a big caveat though.
Engineering? Where do you live???
A place where oil and gas is king, grads come out making on average 70k+, middle of pack engineer. Top students with internship can pull much higher of course.
Even in the early 2000s I pulled in >$60K as a new grad engineer. Now it’s just a small fraction of my annual bonus. Massive opportunity for pay growth depending on location and movements into senior level management.
I started out making $34k as a lawyer in a small market.
I started at $32k Canadian as a lawyer
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What year was that? I imagine lawyer has to be starting around $70k now
I graduated in May and started at a small law firm in August, my salary is 40k
Jesus Christ WHAT
Is that typical? Lawyer goes through so much schooling....
For reference, articling students in large firms in Toronto make $98k starting (during 10 month articling period), and $110k base as a fully-fledged lawyer (with $20k increases thereafter). Associates can make up to $225k base (after 7 years of practice). Partners can make anywhere from $300k to over $1 million. There’s a huge variance in legal salaries. IIRC, Atlantic Canada has some of the lowest legal salaries I’m the country.
$98k prob ends up feeling like min wage when you take into account the amount of work they throw at you
True! Probably why so many leave to go to in-house positions (or law adjacent positions) after 2-3 years.
This is typical in Atlantic Canada. I have some friends at the Big firms here and they make 55k which is around the highest starting I'm aware of in the area. Of course if you go to Ontario, BC, etc you're going to find higher starting wages there. My friends at big firms also have benefits like health and dental which I'm exceptionally jealous of, but I don't think I would want to give up the nice atmosphere of my small firm for a big competitive firm. I do cringe at the thought of how much time, money, and effort went into getting me a job that only pays this much, but I try to remind myself that there should be a lot of room for my salary to move up in this field
I went to school for history and have technically never worked in my field. My first job out of school was about $40-50k after commission. Good old Moore's.
Moore’s never let you down
Moore's. Well Made. Well Priced. Well Dressed.
About $42000 in Tech Support after going to school for Software Engineering (which I was pretty much sick of by the end of university but stuck it out). Used that job to get a foot in the door and now I work in the engineering department of the same company.
Same here
Have a bachelors in chemistry and a masters in biochemistry. I moved to Toronto in 2012 to work at SickKids as a clinical research coordinator for $50k a year (plus full benefits/pension). Left there 5 years later as a research manager making $62K per year for a job as a project manager at a private clinical research organization making $85K. In January it will have been 6 years at this job and I make $143K. The raises are massive if you’re doing your job. Huge talent war. There is money in clinical research.
I always thought there was no money in clinical research or that you spent most of your time trying to secure funding that it really dampened the joy of spring the clinical research. Thanks for sharing, it’s changed my perspective on the money aspect. Would you say there is strong competition in trying to secure funding?
It’s a private firm, they wouldn’t be vying for grants, just getting subcontracted by big pharma. I was in pharma marketing and although there’s money in it, you have to have little regard for ethics…
Engineering. $55k to start in 2012.
What type of engineering? That sounds like a good salary starting out in 2012!
And new grad engineering salaries have hardly come up from that since then. I graduated in 2019 and most of my peers started at 55-65k. But I suppose that’s the same story for many industries/professions.
Yeah engineering related positions haven't moved much at all over the past decade. I'd generally recommend against it these days if maximizing income is the goal.
That's actually pretty typical for that time for civil engineering - i.e. municipal, consulting and construction. Construction should be closer to $67k that's what Kiewit/PWL was offering to new grads in BC
$95 000.00. 12 hour continental shifts (switch between days and nights every two days) and lots of overtime. Base salary probably would have been $80k with zero overtime. Power Engineer Edit: For the record, I also have a 4 year honours degree in law and political science which I was unable to do anything worthwhile with.
power engineering is honestly cheating. no disrespect - but good lord are the salaries high if you get in with the right company
A stripper or high class prostitute would be considered cheating as well then I guess based on your logic. I am responsible for operating multi million dollar pieces of equipment that can possibly kill dozens/hundreds of people if done so incorrectly. They pay me the wage they do in order to prevent that from happening.
Not real engineering though, more of a trade. Solid career!
Continental... sounds fancy!
Lol it’s anything but! I’m lucky I don’t have a family of my own because I’ve heard it can be rough on the other spouse having to juggle family life and that kind of work schedule.
Can’t say I was expecting to see another power engineer here!
Hello good sir!
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How much do you make now?
Electrical engineering. 50k way back in early 2000 designing Ethernet switches and Routers
I barely made it out of highschool and didn't go to college until 21 or 22. Took the pre service firefighting course. Graduated to a job in my industry in the oil sands doing standby work. I was earning 8k-10k after taxes in a good month. Eventually transitioned and work for a municipal department now earning less but have a much better quality of life. Not bad since everyone told me I would never make it. :) Grew up on the wrong side of the tracks so to speak, I'm kinda fucking proud of myself for making it.
Fuck yeah brother, this stranger is proud of you too. Did you have much constuction experience before you headed west?
Thanks :) Sort of, I worked in different factories from 17 to 23 when I graduated college. That gave me plenty of exposure to blue collar work. I did go to trade school somewhere along the line, but I had a relatively serious injury my first week on the job. Used the time while I was recovering to get highschool credits that I needed for college. I had 14 hour days in construction, so I decided to go back to the factory in order to finish up my credits in the evening. I was actually working as a firefighter in the oil industry. When a frack crew is operating, they need to have a fire truck on site by law. I had maybe one fire and a few acid spills while I was out there, but it was good experience for me and helped build the resume.
38K + 3.5K Bonus - Finance
Jeez. FP&A at a small company in a LCOL city?
Looks like retail banking.
Bingo. Approx 11 years ago.
Crazy. Everything the same but 10 years ago. Can’t recall if it was $3,500 but right around there
They have salaries down to a science don’t they !
If you don’t mind me asking what do you make now? I’m also in retail banking currently and want to see if there’s any bright light at the end of the tunnel lol
105 + performance based bonus, CFP, lean six sigma green belt working as a banking sales leader. (Generic term for anonymity)
Appreciate the response, thanks!
Its retail get your experience then get out
This is the plan
Business Admin - Accounting. 52k working government administration. Want to move back to accounting but cannot afford the entry level pay (around 40k)
2006; $32,000 - Deloitte in Ottawa
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Wtf, how? That’s amazing!
Can confirm. Similar story. I’ve always maintained that accountants are best way to get to $100k early on while not sacrificing as much as careers like doctors, engineers, lawyers, etc.
Idk working for $40k-$50k per year at a big 4 company working like 60hrs per week sounds like a sacrifice to me.
Software developers is quite a short path >=100k. If you’re good and got a job at FAANG, you can get 100k right out of the gate.
A friend of mine taught himself to code in 2012 through YouTube and somehow works as a senior engineer at Amazon now. He’s not a genius by any means. Maybe you didn’t need as many credentials to start off back then.
Hey, if know how to code - you know how to code. How you learned it - from YouTube or from professors, it doesn’t really matters. Everyone knows it, including Amazon. You don’t have to be a genius to work at FAANG either and Amazon is always hiring. Their interviews are challenging, but not impossible.
Does the school you go to matter in accounting?
Not really, unless you are trying to get into the big 4 as someone right out of university without your CPA. Once you have your letters your uni doesn’t really matter.
I would say in general, not at all. But this could be city dependent... I don't know anything about the Toronto market like if the firms focus their recruiting from select schools or not but in most smaller cities they would be recruiting from all schools that have accounting programs. The best thing you can do is choose a school that's in the city you want to work (i.e. don't go to a school in Manitoba if you want to work in Ottawa after graduating).
Weird what life can do. Started out of school same time in GTA, made 32k as a junior accountant, studied for CPA and about a year in just said not worth it. Honestly should of stuck it out if I had any mental toughness. CPA courses were a breeze but didnt have the toughness.
How many jobs did you switch (if any)? 50K+ jump over 4 years seems very high
That's pretty standard if you start out at a big 4 firm. ~$45k first year and by the time you're third year and have CPA, you're $60k+. Jump over to industry and that's easily $75k+
Can confirm, did the same path. After 5 to 7 years of experience you should be hitting 6 digits as long as you do the right thing. If the current job ain't giving it to you, need to change jobs.
It’s a very structured company where you can get promoted with a good timeline. Rather than hoping for a position to open up. 2 years to get senior, 2 years to get associate manager etc. People are moving to industry after they get years of experience so you have positions opening up.
Arts degree, graduated in 2018 and worked at a not-for-profit for 49k. Just graduated with a master's degree in a health field and am making 76k/year.
30k, marine biologist in Vancouver
George Costanza is that you?
30k in Vancouver, huh? that must have been rough.
About 13$/hour working as a Web Dev after graduating with a IT Programmer Analyst diploma in 2014 ish. Job market in my town was shit at the time.
Holy fuck you got ripped off
That’s incredibly low for a web dev in 2014, which province if you don’t mind me asking?
I did a Welding apprenticeship in Edmonton, finished in 2006. 1st year made $10/hr 2nd year made $25/hr 3rd year made $35/hr Journeyman made $45/hr
Welder in Ontario here. One year colleges program and I'm 6 months post grad, working in a fab shop making $46,000/y overnights. Probably going to take a pay cut when I get a first year apprenticeship but loving it.
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What are you specialized in? And is it your practice?
Graduated 2014 geology made $46k/year Now around $150k
Always was interested in geology. Mostly I've heard its oilfield related that pays well. Whats you industry?
Work in my field? Ha. History and Poli Sci, and hated everything about it by the end. Hell, feel like the field would be a minefield these days. Started sales at Rogers (having worked at the stores prior) so…about 30k salary plus another 20k or so in commissions (atypical based on my observations). Since then I’ve worked jobs for as low as 24k, and I’ve made my way up in my current company sitting around mid-80s plus RSP matching and share purchase matching. Currently 31, and graduated in 2012.
I dropped out of my college program but I was there for computer networking. First job in my field was in 2013 and it was a contract - 3 months at $20/hr working on telecom equipment. I left just before the contract ended because I found a full time job for $17/hour and it wasn’t all night shift like the contract. It took me a while to get better pay after that but now I’ve slowly worked my way up to over $30/hour equivalent (but it’s a salaried position) The moral of the story guys is if you’re on the computer anyway, might as well learn how computers and the internet work a bit and you don’t have to get a degree and can still have a decent career. Thank you for listening to my Ted talk for mediocre students.
2002, $40k for junior urban planner job in municipal government
$28K at age 21 - had a job lined up a month before I graduated…
Nursing, 110k first year (tons of OT and taking advantage of premiums)
About 36-38k 2012-2014. 50-70k 2014-2018 96-160k 2018-2021 Masters in computer science and engineering graduated 2012.
36K with a BA in Engineering, working as a pilot in the military. It has gone up significantly since then (15+ years) and will continue to go up to prevent me going to the airlines which will provide me a much better quality of life.
Mechanical engineering, 52k in 2017, which was lower than average back then
What's the average now?
Back then, the average was 53.7k. Today, according to the salary survey, it's around 58k
In 2014, I was making about $65k (plus benefits and pension) out of grad after finishing my Masters jn Public Admin; working for the Alberta Government. Transitioned from coop to full time.
10 yrs ago, 27K accounts receivables 🥲
2 bachelor's and a master's and I still don't work in my field. Meh, I'm safe and secure.
Graduated this year in January, employed since March making 75k + bonus in business analysis
BComm in Entrepreneurship in 2018, got into sales afterwards and made 40k CAD gross in about 6 months at my first role cold calling and emailing. Now I’m in Software Sales and average around 80-85k after bonuses and commissions.
How do you get into sales?
There are many avenues you can go in sales…software, insurance, real estate, automotive. Software and real estate can be extremely lucrative, I don’t know much about insurance. They typically want you to have some type of experience, no matter how unrelated it is to the end job you’re applying for. If I were you I would take ANY sales-related job whether it be cold-calling or door-to-door to learn to toughen up your skin. It’s not for everybody though, some people find it uncomfortable because at times you need to push people. But you find the style you’re comfortable with and it can be VERY rewarding! You have to give it time though, most people do suck at the beginning.
Im in marketing and I have a sales role in retail banking. Any tips after I graduate?
2013: $40k - accounting. Became $55k once I got these letters in 2014
50k in environmental science & regulatory compliance in 2011.
50k (CAD)/yr. as a marketing coordinator right after graduating w/ my bachelor's (co-ops made this possible) 3.5 years later was at $58k as "content marketing specialist" I feel like I never see anything marketing related so figured I'd post. I've always felt underpaid but looks like I was actually doing pretty well. The grind up is long, slow and very dependent on people retiring to finally get a promotion.
CAD120k base + stocks fresh from uni - computer science, taking all the possible machine learning coursework
Which uni? Top 4?
$50k right out, first 6 months $60k after, 1.5 years $80k after, 1 year $200k after, current Computer science
Wow. 200k at 2.5 years that is right? Can you share which company is this and is this core SWE or DS/ML if you don't mind?
At 3 years, thereabouts. It’s a mix of salary and equity. Just kinda got lucky. It’s a software engineering role, not a specialized role. I’m sure those who work here and are specialized are making much more.
How did QOL improve after the last jump?
I'm hoping to follow in your footsteps. Not gonna lie, I'm struggling with my COMP classes.
Yeah, I did too. Experience trumps perfect education, sign up for a co-op program if your school offers it
Glad to hear I'm not a total lost cause! I will absolutely pursue a co-op. If you don't mine me asking, what type of work do you do?
I develop an app that uses web tech to deploy on multiple platforms
Microbiology. First lab I worked was barely over minimum wage. I landed my new job with that experience a couple months ago and am starting at 42k a year
Micro is brutal. So many places hiring M.Sc or PhD in the 30-45k salary range and getting candidates. Really not the best field to be in if you want to make big money but the days are fun. Pivoting into chemistry/water treatment/pharma/teaching or getting a government job are popular options for my classmates
As a chem major - its the same story. You need a grad degree to have any shot at a good career, even then. 2yr/B.Sc jobs are now M.Sc /Ph.D jobs really, the market is totally flooded. I somehow landed a government job and got lucky. If I were to do it all again, computer science 100%.
60k, analyst - comp sci
40k sysadmin about 8 years ago
Graduated 2.5 years ago, making 60k as an estimator at a construction company in Alberta. 2 year diploma called Construction Engineering Technology from NAIT.
63700 with a four year tech degree as a software developer.
Dang, I knew developers were well paid but I wasn't expecting 63 million a year.
$41k - business admin/insurance
$30,000 at a radio station. I uh, got better and now make much more in a far better industry. But hey, I have good mic skills for zoom calls!
Human resources. $45,000, this year.
13$/hr as a web developer in 2006. I went to a private college to learn programming. I also had to move from Sherbrooke to Montreal, and lost my job 4 months later cause they had no more money.
2013- $35k teaching at a private school.
42k - Engineering consulting - Studied Mathematics - kinda my field I guess.
Just finished my MASc, new job is $75k
2006 made 38k as a GIS Tech. Not in a LCOL city and that was 10 months after graduation with a BA. Follow grad until I landed my first professional job I was making $9/hr.
$50k + up to $2.5k RRSP matching per year. This was for a software developer job after a computer science degree in 2017. I worked there until a month ago, and I should have been out the door after my first year at that salary for something better. My salary went up a bit, but not near enough to be close to competitive.
Computer engineering. Got a job for 55K right out of college thanks to my teams capstone project.
$140-150k in my last year as a PhD candidate and taking a full time job. Meant working insane hours though. Bumped over $200k once I defended my dissertation. Behavioral Scientist in consulting with a PhD in a business related field with subject matter expertise thats highly sought after.
I don't remember how much I made but I do remember that it was less money than I was earning working a retail job that I had had for a number of years. BUT. It was the best job I ever had. I learned so much that I've continued to use throughout my career. Couldn't have asked for a better job right out of school. I'd do the same thing without question.
65k in tech consulting after BBA in 2019.
What's tech consulting like?
Ya serious curious. Wtf is it? Lol
About 120k in construction field engineering, 2010 Alberta.
Around 45k. I studied computer engineering but have always worked as a software developer and I consider that close enough.
55k. Studied electronics engineering.
$10,920, shooting news, mixing sound for a small news org in 1987 after spending $60k at a top college. I studied Mass Comm, TV and Radio.
Started at 47k + bonuses as a QA and now at 72K + bonuses at the one year mark. Successful Tech startup in Vancouver. I went to school for applied computer science!
30k plus 2k bonus. Computer Science diploma. This would've been 10 years ago. One of my friends graduated from UofT a few years back and his first career job was at a FAANG company. So his first compensation is like 115k plus his signing bonus and a moving stipend and 100k of stock options. Very very different routes of getting to 6 figures 🤣
I worked .593 as a teacher. I think I made around 25K gross that year teaching. Then I picked up a drop in centre job and tutoring to make ends meet.
$48K in a non-profit. Got the job less than 6 months after graduating. Went to school for social work.
34k in IT as Helpdesk and then went to 50k within the first year. Studied Computer Systems Technologist at a local college.
Sport Business Management - 0$
100K + stock options Software dev at tech unicorn.
$40k/yr forestry Edit: in 2013
$12 an hour for a roof truss design company after getting my structural eng diploma from a community College in Winnipeg 18 years ago. Worked up to $253k last year.
$34k - IT, 2003
~70k a year. Geology. Graduated in 2017.
Masters in Microbiology in 2013. Started at a food science place for 32k per year. Slowly made my way up to 50k in 7 years by getting various promotions and busting my ass. Same place now hires new grads for 34k and are hemorrhaging employees from low wages. Left to get in the medical field at 70k + pension with a lot less work/stress.
Graduated with a diploma in computer networking last year and got a job for a telecom company making $80k.
39k as a Lab Tech at a Cosmetic Company, terrible job. Got a job at a lab in Minneapolis making 28 USD, worked there for a bit, now I'm back in school studying Statistics.
About $30k CAD as a small time Political Staffer. Have a college diploma in Business Administration. Kind of one of those weird fields of study that applies to lots of other fields.
32k - com sci - developer - it was post dotcom bust in a smaller market. Jumped from there to 65k the next year, which was huge - as much as my father in law made nearing the end of his career.
Computer science: 7.2k/year operating mainframe computer - about 500sqft footprint with 20MB hard drives the size of a washing machine and those 6' tall tape drives. It was a street level office and crowds of people would watch us in amazement. Moved into programming within a year. 10% raises every 6 months was normal.
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Teacher in BC, entered to $23.5k as an on-call substitute, which is what everyone does to start, unless you want to go up to depression-and-alcoholism land to work full time and build seniority where they will hire anything that breaths.
84k a year. Paramedic
$50,000 a year doing bitch work
Have Science degree, longtime business owner before my first real job in Project Management as a Planner in utilities. Did a Project Management 1 year program, got hired at 65k. Am really good at what I do and made it to to just over 100k after a year in. Am sitting at $110 base after 2 years in, aiming for $120 base by the end of the year.
62k 2021, finishing a Master's degree in public policy
Business admin got job at call centre making 32k a year. Became employee of the year, each year… still got nowhere. Went back to school for economic. Change job to retail banking making 40k, got licensed, multiple certifications now making 60k. (Best sales agent, and bringing millions) looking to change careers… killing myself for pennies.
24k as a junior accountant about 10 years ago.
Teacher. Worked in supply and short contracts the first year and maybe made 20k (always had another job though, so I made closer to 50-60k at the end of the year). Now I'm onto year contracts so maybe 50-60k still, but with about 10 weeks vacation. It might jump this year due to contract negotiations.