James stellerThe financial aspect of a job is a vital factor to consider when choosing a career. A good career should enable you to live comfortably and decently. Knowing the highest-paying jobs in South Africa will help you to make informed decisions on choosing a job.
In this article, we’ll explore the highest-paying jobs in South Africa.
Top 12 Highest paying jobs in South Africa 2023
Here are some of the 12 highest-paying jobs in South Africa that you can consider pursuing.
- Specialist Doctors
Mean Annual Salary: 1,600,000.00 ZAR
Specialist doctors are the highest-paid professionals in South Africa. Specialist doctors are skilled doctors that are specializing in an aspect of medicine. It could be urology, cardiology, and neurology.
Qualifying as a specialist doctor in South Africa demands effort and time, and it is rigorous. Most specialist doctors are always on-call; they work for long hours. Their job is highly demanding and stressful, hence the good compensation.
To qualify as a specialist doctor, you must have an undergraduate degree in medicine, and a postgraduate degree in an area of specialty. Also, you must be licensed by a professional body.
- Chartered Accountant
Mean Annual Salary: 1,200,000.00 ZAR
Chartered accountancy is one of the highest-paying jobs in South Africa. To be a chartered accountant, you must be an efficient and highly disciplined person.
A chartered accountant might specialize or combine several aspects of business finances, such as corporate finance, business recovery taxation, forensic accounting, and bankruptcy.
To qualify as a chartered accountant, you must write and pass a qualifying examination after completing your undergraduate degree at a SAICA-accredited university. Although the process is painstaking, it is a highly rewarding profession.
The Chartered Accounting designation offers more benefits than other areas of accounting, and it is internationally recognized.
- Actuarial Scientists
Average Annual Salary: 1,100,000.00 ZAR
Actuarial scientists are scientists that specialize in the measurements and management of risk and weakness in a company. They use advanced mathematical and analytical skills to solve business and financial problems.
The shortage of actuaries in South Africa has made it one of the most demanding professions. It takes up to 9 years to qualify as an actuarial scientist.
To be an actuarial scientist, you must have an actuarial science degree and a graduate degree. Also, you must write the qualifying exams given by professional actuarial bodies.
- Pilots
Mean Annual Salary: 950,000.00 ZAR
The pilot profession is one of the highest-paying jobs in South Africa. To become a
pilot, you must undergo different stages of training and earn the right certificates, hence the good remuneration.
To be a qualified pilot in South Africa, you must have spent at least 200 hours in air flight and be licensed by CPL.
However, the pilot remuneration differs depending on the company you work for, the kind of aircraft you ply, and your degree of qualification. The more experienced you are, the greater your remuneration. Pilots who fly highly technical and complicated aircraft get better pay.
- Lawyers
Mean Annual Salary: 8500,000.00 ZAR
Although highly critical, the law profession still maintains as one of the highest-paying jobs in South Africa.
The law profession is one of the professions that has stood the test of time. Individuals and businesses need legal experts to navigate successfully through the legal system, hence the importance of lawyers.
The remuneration of a lawyer is dependent on the specialty of the lawyer and years of experience. Attorneys are the best-earning lawyers in South Africa.
- Biomedical Engineers
Mean Annual Salary: 730,000.00 ZAR
Biomedical engineers are one of the best-paid professionals that have created advanced medical machinery to aid medical personnel.
They are in charge of producing advanced medical tools and machines that help to ease the process of carrying out complicated surgeries. Also, they help in diagnosing diseases. It even simplifies the process of treating an injury.
Additionally, this job is highly sustainable and highly rewarding. To be a biomedical engineer, you have an undergraduate degree in a relevant field and an MSc in biomedical engineering.
- Sales Manager
Mean Annual Salary: 727,000.00 ZAR
If you are passionate about sales and leading a sales team, you can become a sales manager. No business can survive without an efficient sales manager.
Sales managers train and lead sales teams in generating sales for the company. To be a sales manager, you must have an undergraduate degree in relevant fields such as statistics, business administration, or mathematics. For higher roles, you may be required to have a master’s degree in business administration.
Your degree of qualification and years of experience will influence your remuneration.
- Architect
Mean Annual Salary: 715,000.00 ZAR
Architecture is a global skill-based profession and one of the highest-paying jobs in South Africa. As an architect, you are relevant anywhere in the world, as long as you know what you are doing.
An architect designs and supervises building constructions. This is a critical profession because a mistake from the architects affects public safety. To be an architect in South Africa, you must study architecture at any accredited university. For instance, the University of Cape Town offers architecture in the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment.
- Pharmacist
Average Annual Salary: 487,000.00 ZAR
Pharmacists are one of the notable professions that does not require too much physical labor. Pharmacy isn’t only one of the highest-paying jobs in South Africa, it is a high-demand skill in the global marketplace.
To qualify as a pharmacist in South Africa, you must have an undergraduate or a master’s degree in pharmacy from a university duly accredited by the South African Pharmacy Council (SAPC). After this, you will have to undertake internship training for 1 to 2 years in a hospital, community, or private pharmacy, coupled with a compulsory service in a public hospital.
- Software Engineer
Mean Annual Salary: 509,000.00 ZAR
Although this is a new profession, it is fast growing and currently in high demand.
This is one of the most sustainable professions with global relevance. This profession will continue to be in demand as the world revolves into a global village.
To be a software engineer, you must have a degree in Computer Science and programming. An additional professional course in software engineering will give you a greater hedge in the market.
- Cybersecurity Engineer
Average Annual Salary: 503,000.00 ZAR
Many South African countries are migrating to the digital space, hence the need for cybersecurity engineers. Also, there has been an increase in hacking in recent times, hence the high demand for cybersecurity engineers to provide optimum cyber security.
The cybersecurity profession is one of the highest paying jobs in South Africa that is responsible for creating and executing secure network solutions that protect your company’s cyberspace against hackers and cyber-attacks, hackers.
You need an undergraduate degree in computer science and a postgraduate degree in cybersecurity engineering.
- Fashion Designer
Average Annual Salary: R503,000.00 ZAR
South Africa is known for their love of fashion and diversity. The fashion industry is a multi-billion-dollar industry that has experienced significant growth over the years.
Fashion designing is one of the highest paying jobs in South Africa that doesn’t emphasize formal certification. Some fashion designers do not have any certification; only pure talent. Others have diplomas or degrees in fashion design from universities or fashion schools.
The amount of money you earn as a fashion designer depends on your level of expertise and exposure in the fashion industry. You can earn as much as six figures annually if you know what you are doing.
Conclusion
Although money is good, it should be the sole reason for choosing a career. In addition to the financial aspects, examine the employee’s social packages and benefits before going or choosing any of the above-listed jobs.
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