Southern California Job Market : Emergency Medicine : No Train, No Gain
Learning to whip up a tasty Singapore Sling is one of the faster routes to higher earnings, but the top salaries require a more substantial commitment of time and money. It takes just 40 hours to complete most bartending schools and about a week’s work to pay off the cost. However, earning more than $18 an hour requires a time commitment of hundreds of hours and close to $5,000 in tuition money.
Hours needed to recoup tuition cost:
Low Range High Range Accounting Clerk 369 518 Bartender 38 51 Computer Programmer 380 573 Computer Drafting 304 487 Electronics Technician 273 366 Legal Secretary 308 711 Medical Assistant 437 737 Security Guard 286 734 Word Processing Operator 320 450
Classroom Hours* Tuition* Hourly Pay** Accounting Clerk 516 $4,416 $8.53-11.98 Bartender 40 475 9.38-12.50 Computer Programmer 832 8,200 14.20-21.60 Computer Drafting 516 4,472 8.18-14.70 Electronics Technician 691 4,975 13.60-18.20 Legal Secretary 900 6,200 8.72-20.11 Medical Assistant 640 5,900 8.00-13.50 Security Guard 240 4,000 5.45-13.97 Word Processing Operator 546 4.410 9.80-13.80
* Classroom hours and cost of training to obtain a certificate at a private institution not including financial aid.
** Range includes only the middle 50% of salaries at all levels of experience in 1991 “Wage and Salary Study” of Los Angeles County by state Employment Development Department; bartenders pay includes base wage and tips.
Source American Bartenders School, Institute of Computer Technology, Glendale Career College, Los Angeles ORT Technical Institute, Los Angeles Private Industry Council and State Employment Development Department.
