There's a difference between wealthy and rich. Bill Gates is wealthy. You're educated professional may be rich.

So how do you get rich?

1. Make a plan. What type of career do you want to have? Despite what you think, STEM fields aren't necessarily the gateway to a high salary. You need to be enrolled in the best University or school that you possibly can. Even if it's expensive, the future earnings will offset the initial financial burden. Think about what you want to do. Many professions have much higher salaries than STEM fields but require professional or graduate degrees: Law, Business, Finance. Also, try to add international to any of these; that's where the money is going.

So, if you choose Law, for example, it is a little bit more difficult. You can do extremely well, however, one must follow the correct path. You MUST go to a top law school. That is non-negotiable. Intern, Intern, Intern whilst there. Consider getting anything International and sitting for the bar exam of England and Wales if you're American. If you're qualified you will get a job at BigLaw for somewhere in the $200 000 K range as a first-year associate. Now, it's not easy. However, that's one path.

Additionally, one can get an MBA and/or work in Finance, which I'm not as familiar with. A lot of people on Reddit think earning six figures is rich. But, you can easily earn that if you have a professional degree from a decent school.

As well, there are the many savings advice given in the rest of the thread.

TL;DR: Go into law or finance with a degree from a top-rated school. You'll be making more out of school than your "MUh STEM" engineering buddies.