Over the past 5 years, we have been reviewing salaries of various organizations and job titles in order to give a clear picture of best paying careers in Kenya. In the year 2018,you may wish to know the best and worst paying jobs in Kenya.However,this article will focus on the best paying jobs as at 2018.
We have not witnessed much change in terms of pay but one profession that has leapfrogged traditional heavyweights like Electrical engineering is Actuarial Science. At the moment, Actuarial Science ranks among top 5 best paying careers in the country where a qualified actuary pulls in over Ksh250,000 per month. Another job title that may surprise many is Monitoring and Evaluation Manager, this one pays up to Ksh600,000.
Here is the list of top paying careers in the country.
Pilot
The cost of pursuing piloting in Kenya is Ksh5 million. Many of us may not afford, which is why the profession attracts the who is who in Kenya. The good thing is that it pays. Piloting currently leads among the highest paying careers. The current salary of a pilot trainee is Ksh180, 000.On average, an experienced pilot earns Ksh250, 000 to Ksh2.8 million.
Software Engineer
Coming second is Software Engineer profession. An individual with a degree in software Engineering, professional qualification in IT related certification and at least 3 years’ experience earns above Ksh 300,000.The highest paying institution being Google,UN,Safaricom,IBM and Sportpesa.At Google,you will earn in excess of Ksh800,000 as a software engineer while Safaricom pays Ksh350,000 to Ksh 1.2 million.
Financial Analyst/Finance Manager
Business related courses also pay handsomely.However,before you reach a point you can earn above Ksh100,000,you must prove yourself worth.What I like about this industry is that there is no salary ceiling,one can pocket up to Ksh5 million in a month.
If you manage to complete Bachelor of Commerce, proceed to pursue CFA to completion and become a Chartered Financial Analyst, the money you will earn in Kenya won’t be less than Ksh200,000.If you’re lucky to be confirmed as a Finance Manager, hardly will you earn below Ksh300,000.
Medicine & surgery
Medial doctors used to earn the highest figures among the best paying careers in the country, but the institution has been diluted by oversupply of doctors. There used to be a time when doctors could get employed even before they graduated. However, those fortunes have dwindled. Nowadays some doctors earn as little as Ksh70, 000.Even so, most doctors in our private and public hospitals earn above Ksh180,000.
Architecture
Architecture is one course I would advise every Kenyan to pursue. With a degree in architecture, you will easily become your own boss and make millions. There is one experience I got about two years ago when an architect told me to accompany her to the office. While we were chatting, a client came, a sophisticated one. While they were negotiating, I heard the architect quote 5% as the figure she would eat from the work. I later learnt that the client was building a Ksh100 million apartment at Kilimani and my friend was to earn Ksh 5 million from that single job.
Architecture is a lucrative career in Kenya and one you will enjoy doing even when the country is heading the wrong direction.
What you will learn is that an architect working for the government earns Ksh160,000 to Ksh400,000 depending on their seniority. In private institutions, they may earn upwards of Ksh400,000.
Quantity Surveying
Quantity Surveying is another mouth-watering career. Just to remind you, yesterday we posted an article about careers you can earn above Ksh 100,000 even without a degree, here is the article, Quantity Surveying was featured in the article. As a matter of fact, you won’t sleep hungry when you hold a diploma or degree in quantity surveying.
Law
Law keeps on paying even as universities continue churning out graduates. Lawyers fresh from Kenya School of Law earn as little as Ksh 20,000 per month, but after they develop roots in the industry, they end up pocketing up to Ksh50 million in one case.
Recently, renown lawyer Fred Ngatia started building a Ksh250 million office apartment in Upper Hill.At the same time, Ahmedinassir Abdulahi started constructing a Ksh300 million house in Upper Hill. Lawyer Paul Muite also owns Ksh150 million home in Runda.
The examples above show how affluent Kenyan lawyers are.The career pays and it pays amazingly well.
Monitoring&Evaluation
Monitoring& Evaluation is a less known career in Kenya, but it’s one everyone should aim to pursue. Any individual with a degree in statistics and masters in M&E earns above Ksh180,000.The good thing is that it’s not saturated.
For individuals gifted in mathematics,enroll for a course in statistics and later M&E.Then seek employment in NGOs.You won’t believe the salary you will earn as an M&E expert.
Actuarial Science
We all know actuaries as ordinary Kenyans, but one thing we don’t realize is,they are eating life with a big spoon. Any actuary who successfully complete actuarial certification from SOA earns above Ksh250, 000, unless that person does not want money.
We have collected information from various insurance companies and government institutions and realized this:
An Actuary at CIC Insurance earns Ksh 500,000 per month
An Actuary as IRA earns Ksh 250,000
An Actuary at RBA earns Ksh 250,000
An Actuary at Old mutual earns Ksh 600,000
An Actuary at Heritage Insurance earns Ksh600,000
An Actuary at Alexander Forbes earns Ksh700,000
An Actuary at AIG Insurance earns Ksh600,000
Electrical Engineer
Electrical engineering is somehow flooded,but those who have managed to secure employment are eating well.At Kenya Power,the average salary of an electrical engineer is Ksh 180,000.At KenGen it goes beyond Ksh200,000 and those working at GCD earn above Ksh150,000.It’s also worth to note that Bamburi Cement pays electrical engineers over Ksh200,000.
