Core network engineer vs senior network engineer

The differences between core network engineers and senior network engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a core network engineer and a senior network engineer. Additionally, a senior network engineer has an average salary of $111,707, which is higher than the $103,964 average annual salary of a core network engineer.

The top three skills for a core network engineer include IP, java and troubleshoot. The most important skills for a senior network engineer are switches, BGP, and OSPF.

Core network engineer vs senior network engineer overview

	Core Network Engineer	Senior Network Engineer
Yearly salary	$103,964	$111,707
Hourly rate	$49.98	$53.71
Growth rate	5%	5%
Number of jobs	34,068	35,428
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 74%	Bachelor's Degree, 65%
Average age	43	43
Years of experience	2	2

What does a core network engineer do?

A Core Network Engineer designs and develops the backbone of an establishment's computer network, facilitating connections from one system to another. They conduct research and assessments to identify project requirements, install and maintain networks, establish guidelines and protocols, develop test structures to identify bugs, troubleshoot errors, and provide technical support as needed. It is also their responsibility to implement security systems and policies, all while maintaining records. A Core Engineer often works together with other engineers to strengthen the workflow and quality of networks.

What does a senior network engineer do?

A senior network engineer is responsible for managing the organization's network infrastructure, handling advanced network issues, upgrading the system's design for optimization, configuring network features, and ensuring the network's highest security measures to avoid unauthorized access and suspicious activities. Senior network engineers work with network architects to implement network designs, run diagnostic tests, and create network solution reports for review and recovery reference. A senior network engineer must have excellent communication and organization skills and broad knowledge of the technology industry, programming languages, and system codes.

Core network engineer vs senior network engineer salary

Core network engineers and senior network engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Core Network Engineer	Senior Network Engineer
Average salary	$103,964	$111,707
Salary range	Between $78,000 And $137,000	Between $85,000 And $145,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	California	Washington
Best paying company	Flipboard	The Citadel
Best paying industry	Automotive	Finance

Differences between core network engineer and senior network engineer education

There are a few differences between a core network engineer and a senior network engineer in terms of educational background:

	Core Network Engineer	Senior Network Engineer
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 74%	Bachelor's Degree, 65%
Most common major	Electrical Engineering	Electrical Engineering
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	-

Core network engineer vs senior network engineer demographics

Here are the differences between core network engineers' and senior network engineers' demographics:

	Core Network Engineer	Senior Network Engineer
Average age	43	43
Gender ratio	Male, 85.7% Female, 14.3%	Male, 93.2% Female, 6.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.0% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 11.7% Asian, 13.9% White, 61.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%	Black or African American, 8.2% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 11.9% Asian, 13.5% White, 61.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between core network engineer and senior network engineer duties and responsibilities

Core network engineer example responsibilities.

Design and manage printer repair and installation for the corporate Nortel campus.
Manage Cisco NAS, QNAP NAS encrypt storage device configurations, perform IOS upgrades.
Provide technical support with managing data from the Verizon LTE network to pass through WiFi access points.
Manage deployment and testing updates for wireless systems, such as WCS, WiSM, and WLC.
Manage marketing and exec team's ad-hoc inquiries via PERL, PL/SQL, SQL and Unix script processes.
Utilize advanced encryption devices to secure communications between all locations manage by the department.

Senior network engineer example responsibilities.

Manage check point firewall logs using check point tracker and splunk.
Manage network / systems security, implement policies, processes PCI, HIPAA compliance.
Manage the SAN base storage environment consisting of EMC CX3-80's and CX700's.
Design and build Cisco Meraki cloud manage firewall, switch, and wireless access points for new facility of marketing firm.
Manage network security processes using ASA firewalls.
Manage, operate and analyze results from Sourcefire detection systems.

Core network engineer vs senior network engineer skills

Common core network engineer skills

IP, 10%
Java, 9%
Troubleshoot, 6%
Linux, 5%
Network Design, 5%
Ethernet, 4%

Common senior network engineer skills

Switches, 7%
BGP, 5%
OSPF, 5%
Troubleshoot, 5%
Network Infrastructure, 4%
Lan Wan, 4%

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Core Network Engineer vs Senior Network Engineer

Updated January 8, 2025

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