Medicine is the best paying career in Mexico with an average monthly salary of 17,449 pesos (US $920), according to the Mexican Competitivity Institute (IMCO).

The sum is twice that of the worst paying career, music and performing arts, whose average monthly salary is 8,385 pesos (US $442).

The institute’s “Compare Careers” index, which lists the average salaries of careers requiring university and technical school education, says the national average monthly salary is 6,687 pesos (US $352), but career professionals with higher education earn an average of 12,076 pesos (US $637).

According to the list, the 10 best paid careers in Mexico are:

1. Medicine 17449 pesos;
2. Electronics and automatization 15,109 pesos;
3. Environmental science 14,320 pesos;
4. Publicity and marketing 13,765 pesos;
5. Business and management 13,750 pesos;
6. Accounting 13,357 pesos;
7. Mathematics 13,232 pesos;
8. Construction and civil engineering 12,858 pesos;
9. Mechanical engineering 12,843 pesos;
10. Industrial, electrical and technical engineering 12,581 pesos.

And the 10 worst careers are:

1. Music and performing arts 8,385 pesos;
2. Alternative education services 8,484 pesos;
3. Social work 8,575 pesos;
4. Therapy and rehabilitation 8,639 pesos;
5. Preschool education 8,724 pesos;
6. Audio and video production 8,973 pesos;
7. Multidisciplinary and general studies 9,040 pesos;
8. Dentistry 9,230 pesos;
9. Education assessment and orientation 9,645 pesos;
10. Economics 9,692 pesos.

IMCO noted there has been a 2% increase in the percentage of the Mexican labor force with a university degree. In 2018, 21% had completed some level of higher education, compared to 19% in 2008.

The institute also revealed that 57% of those with university degrees held professional level jobs compared to just 13% of those with only a high school education.

Although IMCO noted that salaries for university graduates have decreased in recent years, it highlighted that the advantages over a high school diploma are significant: university graduates earned an average of 72% more last year than those with only a high school diploma.

University graduates are also 50% less likely to be employed in the informal economy than those with only a high school education.

Source: Excélsior (sp)