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The differences between communications engineers and controls designers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a communications engineer and a controls designer. Additionally, a controls designer has an average salary of $91,944, which is higher than the $83,540 average annual salary of a communications engineer.
The top three skills for a communications engineer include RF, unified communications and unity. The most important skills for a controls designer are PLC, control panels, and IDS.
| Communications Engineer | Controls Designer | |
| Yearly salary | $83,540 | $91,944 |
| Hourly rate | $40.16 | $44.20 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 71,942 | 79,729 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 64% | Bachelor's Degree, 53% |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
The duties of a communications engineer depend on one's line of work or industry of employment. Their responsibilities typically revolve around designing and developing new systems to optimize operations, performing research and assessments to identify company needs, determining the strengths and weaknesses of existing systems, and providing solutions on issues and concerns. Furthermore, as a communications engineer, it is essential to perform regular maintenance checks to ensure a safe and productive work environment, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
Controls designers both design and draft systems of hydraulic, pneumatic, and electrical controls for equipment and machines. The designers make diagrams of the logic system for timing and sequence control. They illustrate and describe details for installation and maintenance, such as bearing lubrication and lubrication types. It is part of their job to review schematics with the representatives of customers to answer questions during robot system installation. Also, they may design energy conversion controls.
Communications engineers and controls designers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Communications Engineer | Controls Designer | |
| Average salary | $83,540 | $91,944 |
| Salary range | Between $62,000 And $111,000 | Between $69,000 And $121,000 |
| Highest paying City | Palo Alto, CA | San Jose, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | Rhode Island |
| Best paying company | Shearman & Sterling | Visteon |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Technology |
There are a few differences between a communications engineer and a controls designer in terms of educational background:
| Communications Engineer | Controls Designer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 64% | Bachelor's Degree, 53% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Carnegie Mellon University |
Here are the differences between communications engineers' and controls designers' demographics:
| Communications Engineer | Controls Designer | |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 88.7% Female, 11.3% | Male, 86.5% Female, 13.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.9% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 11.4% Asian, 14.4% White, 64.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 4.8% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 11.0% Asian, 17.7% White, 61.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |