12 Cool Jobs That Don’t Require a College Degree

Transmission operator

Ryan O’Grady operates the controls needed to assure safety when electricians call in while completing their work for residential and industrial locations. A former reactor operator for the U.S. Navy, O’Grady currently training to get his National Electric Reliability Corporation Certificate so he can officially be a systems operations supervisor with Eversource Energy.

Once certified, he’ll sit in a control room with an enormous video wall that has a map of an electric grid of for all of Connecticut and most of Western Massachusetts where he’ll be trusted with operating the bulk electric system and the transmission of high voltage electricity from the generation to the distribution level. (Looking to build trust in your workplace? Check out 16 smart ways to you can get your boss to trust you.)O’Grady has been doing control room operations for more than a decade.

He said, ‘I like being in charge. I’m a Type A personality. I was responsible for a nuclear reactor in the Navy, a $20 billion semiconductor plant, and now the bulk electric system, all without a college degree. O’Grady did a semester of college before realizing it wasn’t for him. Once he finishes his training, he’ll earn $120,000 a year before overtime. Some of the senior officers in his company earn approximately $140,000 per year. To be considered for the job, O’Grady had to take an aptitude test and complete a psychological profile through PSP Metrics. Because he works a rotating shift, dealing with the hours can be tough and the days are long—12 hours.

But being in a position of authority and keeping electricians safe keeps him going. ‘You need to question things that may be wrong. There are big fines and issues if you drop the wrong piece of equipment.’Salary: According to PayScale, control room operators can earn between $39,679 and $97,279. Suggested skills: assertiveness, confidence, questioning attitude, leadership,