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The differences between clinical engineers and product development engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a clinical engineer, becoming a product development engineer takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a product development engineer has an average salary of $86,075, which is higher than the $75,883 average annual salary of a clinical engineer.
The top three skills for a clinical engineer include patient care, medical devices and patients. The most important skills for a product development engineer are CAD, solidworks, and product development.
| Clinical Engineer | Product Development Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $75,883 | $86,075 |
| Hourly rate | $36.48 | $41.38 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 2% |
| Number of jobs | 80,770 | 202,155 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 51% | Bachelor's Degree, 75% |
| Average age | 38 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 6 |
A clinical engineer is responsible for designing and creating medical equipment and technology for medical procedures and examinations. Clinical engineers maintain and inspect the performance of machinery regularly to ensure the accuracy of results and prevent potential hazards. They also conduct quality control tests to locate system failures and perform immediate troubleshooting as necessary. A clinical engineer must have excellent communication and technical skills, especially in identifying the most needed equipment for treating and diagnosing patients.
A Product Development Engineer is responsible for creating and testing new product designs. They collaborate with market researchers to evaluate market needs, existing competition, and potential costs.
Clinical engineers and product development engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Clinical Engineer | Product Development Engineer | |
| Average salary | $75,883 | $86,075 |
| Salary range | Between $55,000 And $102,000 | Between $64,000 And $113,000 |
| Highest paying City | Redwood City, CA | Sunnyvale, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Regeneron | Amazon |
| Best paying industry | Manufacturing | Technology |
There are a few differences between a clinical engineer and a product development engineer in terms of educational background:
| Clinical Engineer | Product Development Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 51% | Bachelor's Degree, 75% |
| Most common major | Biomedical Engineering | Mechanical Engineering |
| Most common college | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | Michigan Technological University |
Here are the differences between clinical engineers' and product development engineers' demographics:
| Clinical Engineer | Product Development Engineer | |
| Average age | 38 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 77.3% Female, 22.7% | Male, 86.8% Female, 13.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 7.0% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 10.0% Asian, 14.1% White, 63.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9% | Black or African American, 3.1% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 16.7% White, 67.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 13% | 5% |