I'm working in American academia. Even for tenured professors, the salaries are quite low compared to people with similar levels of schooling (lawyers, engineers, doctors, psychiatrists, etc), and for non-tenured professors, the pay is significantly lower. Still, the job has "prestige" in that it's considered a relatively respectable and admired profession (at least in urban areas). Is academia like that in your country? What other jobs are considered prestigious but paid mediocrely at best?