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The differences between advanced engineers and senior principal engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become an advanced engineer, becoming a senior principal engineer takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a senior principal engineer has an average salary of $130,642, which is higher than the $85,139 average annual salary of an advanced engineer.
The top three skills for an advanced engineer include C++, python and MATLAB. The most important skills for a senior principal engineer are python, architecture, and java.
| Advanced Engineer | Senior Principal Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $85,139 | $130,642 |
| Hourly rate | $40.93 | $62.81 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 2% |
| Number of jobs | 63,830 | 272,459 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Average age | 42 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 6 |
The duties of an advanced engineer primarily depend on their place or industry of employment. Typically, their responsibilities include performing research and analysis to identify project requirements, conceptualizing plans, designing and developing systems, establishing guidelines and goals, and creating strategies to optimize operations. They may also assess existing systems to identify their strengths and weaknesses, implementing solutions against problem areas. Moreover, an advanced engineer typically oversees staff performance and progress, all while enforcing the company's safety standards and regulations.
A senior principal engineer is responsible for leading engineering tasks within an organization and reports project updates to senior management. Senior principal engineers develop strategic methods and principles to improve the technical stability and efficiency of the company's systems, creating business proposals according to clients' specifications, and negotiating contracts with suppliers and other service providers. They also train new staff and identify innovations and business opportunities that would generate more revenue resources for the company.
Advanced engineers and senior principal engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Advanced Engineer | Senior Principal Engineer | |
| Average salary | $85,139 | $130,642 |
| Salary range | Between $69,000 And $104,000 | Between $93,000 And $182,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | California |
| Best paying company | Amazon | Airbnb |
| Best paying industry | Health Care | Professional |
There are a few differences between an advanced engineer and a senior principal engineer in terms of educational background:
| Advanced Engineer | Senior Principal Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Most common major | Mechanical Engineering | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | Michigan Technological University |
Here are the differences between advanced engineers' and senior principal engineers' demographics:
| Advanced Engineer | Senior Principal Engineer | |
| Average age | 42 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 88.8% Female, 11.2% | Male, 88.2% Female, 11.8% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.6% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 11.3% Asian, 14.2% White, 65.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 3.1% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.9% Asian, 17.2% White, 67.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 4% | 5% |