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The differences between civil engineering designers and structures engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a civil engineering designer and a structures engineer. Additionally, a structures engineer has an average salary of $73,391, which is higher than the $57,842 average annual salary of a civil engineering designer.
The top three skills for a civil engineering designer include civil 3d, site design and erosion control. The most important skills for a structures engineer are structural analysis, revit, and RISA.
| Civil Engineering Designer | Structures Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $57,842 | $73,391 |
| Hourly rate | $27.81 | $35.28 |
| Growth rate | 7% | 7% |
| Number of jobs | 102,791 | 20,778 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 71% | Bachelor's Degree, 71% |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
A civil engineering designer is responsible for creating designs for industrial systems and residential constructions through statistical analysis and data surveys. Civil engineering designers draft comprehensive design plans as part of project proposals, following the clients' specifications and business requirements. They analyze blueprints and schematics to identify resources and materials that would be highly efficient and optimal to support operational functions. A civil engineering designer must have excellent critical-thinking and technical skills, especially in utilizing computer applications and software systems to generate high-quality design deliverables.
A structures engineer works in designing, planning, and overseeing the development of the latest buildings and bridges or modifications and extensions to an existing property or other structures. They are mainly concerned with the safety and capability of the structure to withstand the elements to which they will be exposed--also improving the existing building structural integrity. Part of the task is inspecting properties regarding the conditions/foundation and checking work undertaken by contractors. The job is very similarly related to a civil engineer.
Civil engineering designers and structures engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Civil Engineering Designer | Structures Engineer | |
| Average salary | $57,842 | $73,391 |
| Salary range | Between $40,000 And $82,000 | Between $54,000 And $98,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Meta | Apple |
| Best paying industry | - | Manufacturing |
There are a few differences between a civil engineering designer and a structures engineer in terms of educational background:
| Civil Engineering Designer | Structures Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 71% | Bachelor's Degree, 71% |
| Most common major | Civil Engineering | Civil Engineering |
| Most common college | University of Michigan - Ann Arbor | Carnegie Mellon University |
Here are the differences between civil engineering designers' and structures engineers' demographics:
| Civil Engineering Designer | Structures Engineer | |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 80.7% Female, 19.3% | Male, 84.9% Female, 15.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.0% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 11.6% Asian, 13.4% White, 66.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 3.5% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 10.3% Asian, 17.3% White, 64.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% |
| LGBT Percentage | 5% | 5% |