Bec Oakes
Lexi Abreu is an electrician who rakes in $200,000 a year. But it's not her employer that's paying her the big bucks.
When Lexi Abreu graduated from college with a pre-med degree in 2019, people expected her to get a job in science or healthcare.
However, while the now-27-year-old had originally wanted to become a surgeon, after working in a hospital while at school, she decided it wasn't a good fit for her.
Speaking to Business Insider, she said: "I hated it. I thought... 'I'm not a people person. I'm not meant to be here'."
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So Lexi - who'd done an apprenticeship with an electrician company in 2015 and kept up electrician jobs while studying - became a full-time electrician.
"It's extremely rewarding. At the end of a job, you can turn the electricity on and see the whole system work right in front of you," she explained.
"Unlike in an office job where you go to the same building daily, I work somewhere different every day. I experience different things and see different people every day.
"When a job is finished, I feel a sense of accomplishment and closure. I finish it and move on to another. It doesn't feel like one long job forever."
And, the solitary nature of the job suited her. Under COVID-19 restrictions, Lexi would frequently go on solo jobs.
"Once the pandemic was over, I realized I wanted to keep doing it."
Now, she makes big money by highlighting her work on social media.
Lexi started posting herself lugging around heavy gear and fixing masses of wires on in 2022 and has since gained more than 2.2 million followers across TikTok, Instagram and YouTube.
She now rakes in a whopping $200,000 a year through social media, including from brand deals with companies, as told to the Wall Street Journal.
Despite making far more online than she does from her day job - the average electrician in New York earns about $70,000 a year - Lexi doesn't plan on cutting her hours.
She told the Journal that wants her company to know she's a reliable employee. And, working fewer hours would mean less content.
Lexi is just one of many Gen Z Americans opting for trade jobs over a traditional college degree.
With the high cost of attending university and degrees no longer guaranteeing lucrative jobs, more and more young people are ditching degrees for a more vocational-based education.
The National Student Clearinghouse reported that enrolment in vocational courses rose about 16 percent last year - the highest increase since 2018.