Aerodynamicist vs stress engineer

The differences between aerodynamicists and stress engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both an aerodynamicist and a stress engineer. Additionally, a stress engineer has an average salary of $107,036, which is higher than the $79,081 average annual salary of an aerodynamicist.

The top three skills for an aerodynamicist include CAD, computational fluid dynamics and analysis tools. The most important skills for a stress engineer are finite element analysis, structural analysis, and autocad.

Aerodynamicist vs stress engineer overview

	Aerodynamicist	Stress Engineer
Yearly salary	$79,081	$107,036
Hourly rate	$38.02	$51.46
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	1,320	36,117
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 75%	Bachelor's Degree, 75%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	4	4

Aerodynamicist vs stress engineer salary

Aerodynamicists and stress engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Aerodynamicist	Stress Engineer
Average salary	$79,081	$107,036
Salary range	Between $43,000 And $145,000	Between $73,000 And $156,000
Highest paying City	-	Seattle, WA
Highest paying state	-	Washington
Best paying company	-	CTS
Best paying industry	-	Professional

Differences between aerodynamicist and stress engineer education

There are a few differences between an aerodynamicist and a stress engineer in terms of educational background:

	Aerodynamicist	Stress Engineer
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 75%	Bachelor's Degree, 75%
Most common major	Aerospace Engineering	Mechanical Engineering
Most common college	Georgia Institute of Technology	Georgia Institute of Technology

Aerodynamicist vs stress engineer demographics

Here are the differences between aerodynamicists' and stress engineers' demographics:

	Aerodynamicist	Stress Engineer
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 93.9% Female, 6.1%	Male, 89.7% Female, 10.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 3.6% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 7.6% Asian, 12.1% White, 72.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%	Black or African American, 3.8% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 8.9% Asian, 19.8% White, 63.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	8%	8%

Differences between aerodynamicist and stress engineer duties and responsibilities

Aerodynamicist example responsibilities.

Visualize results via Tecplot, to confirm data with other sub-teams and achieve maximum performance.
Manage hardware and software development, integration, and support of the HIL simulation laboratory.
Fabricate parts for test pod using Haas CNC machines.
Provide design system development and maintenance services for a turbine OEM.
Develop a moisture loss model for use in an OEM's turbine design system.
Conduct simulations and evaluations of complex, multiphase, compressible flows in the design of turbomachinery.

Stress engineer example responsibilities.

Lead CFD analyses on various aircraft types.
Manage the development and design data in PDM to ensure successful completion.
Manage Jenkins security by providing specific access to authorize developers/testers using project base matrix authorization strategy.
Develop Perl, TCL, and Bourne shell tools to improve the CFD process.
Perform FEA static analysis on primary and secondary MLG structural parts using ABAQUS as solver.
Perform mission analysis using PATRAN, ABAQUS, and NASTRAN as well as basic hand calculations.

Aerodynamicist vs stress engineer skills

Common aerodynamicist skills

CAD, 34%
Computational Fluid Dynamics, 21%
Analysis Tools, 12%
Aided Design, 12%
Tecplot, 7%
Ansa, 4%

Common stress engineer skills

Finite Element Analysis, 10%
Structural Analysis, 9%
Autocad, 6%
Fatigue Analysis, 5%
MRB, 5%
Ansys, 4%