High paying medical jobs in Tennessee with no degree

The best paid medical occupations in Tennessee that require no bachelor's degree — a high school diploma, a certificate, or an associate's degree is the typical entry. This is the narrowest cut on the site, so it is also the shortest list: where a field has only two or three such occupations, there is no page at all rather than a page pretending otherwise.

Cost of living: prices in Tennessee run 8.1% below the national average (2024), so a Tennessee salary is worth about 1.09× its face value in national terms. That scales every wage here by the same factor — it changes what the numbers mean, not their order. To see where a job pays a real premium, use jobs that pay more in Tennessee.

Wages: BLS OEWS, May 2025 · Cost of living: BEA regional price parities, 2024

Find medical jobs in Tennessee

OccupationMedian, Tennessee · Employed

1Dental Hygienists$84,640
Associate's degree
$76,190 – $98,3004,570
2Diagnostic Medical Sonographers$80,640
Associate's degree
$62,220 – $101,8301,880
3Magnetic Resonance Imaging Technologists$78,610
Associate's degree
$62,310 – $97,8701,350
4Respiratory Therapists$72,140
Associate's degree
$57,860 – $88,0603,440
5Radiologic Technologists and Technicians$64,630
Associate's degree
$50,540 – $90,7904,660
6Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Workers, All Other$63,400
Postsecondary nondegree award
$35,120 – $108,7201,650
7Surgical Technologists$60,530
Postsecondary nondegree award
$47,620 – $75,9203,310
8Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses$58,870
Postsecondary nondegree award
$41,110 – $67,54020,830
9Paramedics$57,690
Postsecondary nondegree award
$41,410 – $80,1903,710
10Opticians, Dispensing$49,840
High school diploma or equivalent
$34,740 – $74,1601,530
11Health Technologists and Technicians, All Other$49,180
Postsecondary nondegree award
$37,660 – $89,7401,110
12Medical Records Specialists$48,780
Postsecondary nondegree award
$37,320 – $79,9604,440
13Veterinary Technologists and Technicians$42,810
Associate's degree
$31,660 – $57,0401,640
14Pharmacy Technicians$41,920
High school diploma or equivalent
$35,550 – $55,43011,870
15Emergency Medical Technicians$40,330
Postsecondary nondegree award
$29,720 – $59,3703,860
16Psychiatric Technicians$39,800
Postsecondary nondegree award
$31,370 – $53,9403,810
17Ophthalmic Medical Technicians$38,890
Postsecondary nondegree award
$32,870 – $60,1701,760

Bars run from the 10th to the 90th percentile; the middle half is shaded darker, and the tick is the median.

#	Occupation	MedianTennessee	10th–90th percentilemiddle half shaded darker	Employed
1	Dental HygienistsAssociate's degree	$84,640	$76,190 – $98,300	4,570
2	Diagnostic Medical SonographersAssociate's degree	$80,640	$62,220 – $101,830	1,880
3	Magnetic Resonance Imaging TechnologistsAssociate's degree	$78,610	$62,310 – $97,870	1,350
4	Respiratory TherapistsAssociate's degree	$72,140	$57,860 – $88,060	3,440
5	Radiologic Technologists and TechniciansAssociate's degree	$64,630	$50,540 – $90,790	4,660
6	Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Workers, All OtherPostsecondary nondegree award	$63,400	$35,120 – $108,720	1,650
7	Surgical TechnologistsPostsecondary nondegree award	$60,530	$47,620 – $75,920	3,310
8	Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational NursesPostsecondary nondegree award	$58,870	$41,110 – $67,540	20,830
9	ParamedicsPostsecondary nondegree award	$57,690	$41,410 – $80,190	3,710
10	Opticians, DispensingHigh school diploma or equivalent	$49,840	$34,740 – $74,160	1,530
11	Health Technologists and Technicians, All OtherPostsecondary nondegree award	$49,180	$37,660 – $89,740	1,110
12	Medical Records SpecialistsPostsecondary nondegree award	$48,780	$37,320 – $79,960	4,440
13	Veterinary Technologists and TechniciansAssociate's degree	$42,810	$31,660 – $57,040	1,640
14	Pharmacy TechniciansHigh school diploma or equivalent	$41,920	$35,550 – $55,430	11,870
15	Emergency Medical TechniciansPostsecondary nondegree award	$40,330	$29,720 – $59,370	3,860
16	Psychiatric TechniciansPostsecondary nondegree award	$39,800	$31,370 – $53,940	3,810
17	Ophthalmic Medical TechniciansPostsecondary nondegree award	$38,890	$32,870 – $60,170	1,760

Ranked among the occupations common enough to employ roughly one in every three thousand workers in Tennessee. The rarer ones are real jobs — but a 1,190-person occupation at the top of a list answers a different question than the one most readers are asking.

More for Tennessee

Metro areas in Tennessee

Pay varies more between metros than between states — the spread inside one state is often wider than the gap between two.

By field in Tennessee

Without a degree

The same fields, narrowed to what you can enter without one. Fields missing here have too few such occupations in Tennessee to rank honestly.

High paying medical jobs in Tennessee with no degree

More for Tennessee

Metro areas in Tennessee

By field in Tennessee

Without a degree

High paying medical jobs in each state with no degree