College isn’t for everyone, and there are high paying jobs that don’t require a college degree

Seattle is a forest of construction cranes, and employers are clamoring for skilled ironworkers. Morgan, who is 20, is already working on a job site when he isn’t at the Pacific Northwest Ironworkers shop. He gets benefits, including a pension, from employers at the job sites where he is training. And he is earning $28.36 an hour, or more than $50,000 a year, which is almost certain to steadily increase.

As for his friends from high school, “they’re still in college,” he said with a wry grin. “Someday maybe they’ll make as much as me.”

Source: High-Paying Trade Jobs Sit Empty, While High School Grads Line Up For University : NPR Ed : NPR

College isn’t the end all for high school graduates, along with trade jobs, there are also options for the military.