Debug technician vs test technician

The differences between debug technicians and test technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a debug technician and a test technician. Additionally, a debug technician has an average salary of $49,375, which is higher than the $43,171 average annual salary of a test technician.

The top three skills for a debug technician include debugging, RF and functional test. The most important skills for a test technician are test procedures, test results, and hand tools.

Debug technician vs test technician overview

	Debug Technician	Test Technician
Yearly salary	$49,375	$43,171
Hourly rate	$23.74	$20.76
Growth rate	-	-
Number of jobs	37,510	71,414
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 62%	Associate Degree, 45%
Average age	50	50
Years of experience	12	12

Debug technician vs test technician salary

Debug technicians and test technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Debug Technician	Test Technician
Average salary	$49,375	$43,171
Salary range	Between $38,000 And $63,000	Between $30,000 And $61,000
Highest paying City	-	Washington, DC
Highest paying state	-	Hawaii
Best paying company	-	Nokia
Best paying industry	-	Technology

Differences between debug technician and test technician education

There are a few differences between a debug technician and a test technician in terms of educational background:

	Debug Technician	Test Technician
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 62%	Associate Degree, 45%
Most common major	Electrical Engineering	Electrical Engineering
Most common college	Northeastern University	Northeastern University

Debug technician vs test technician demographics

Here are the differences between debug technicians' and test technicians' demographics:

	Debug Technician	Test Technician
Average age	50	50
Gender ratio	Male, 89.3% Female, 10.7%	Male, 83.6% Female, 16.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 6.3% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 10.4% Asian, 8.0% White, 70.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%	Black or African American, 6.3% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 10.4% Asian, 8.0% White, 70.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%
LGBT Percentage	8%	8%

Differences between debug technician and test technician duties and responsibilities

Debug technician example responsibilities.

Manage and distribute cad standards to contributing design consultants and assist with any design issues as necessary.
Prepare Linux debug workstations for new staff.
Work with the SMT line, helping to lower build relate defects.
Perform various electronic component replacements and repair (SMT devices include).
Perform PC card upgrades for customers and the manufacturing and technical service areas.
Show technical leadership in investigation and troubleshooting of first articles, PCB's and customer returns.

Test technician example responsibilities.

Install and manage windows applications for the user, maintain servers and manage help desk operations.
Manage and distribute cad standards to contributing design consultants and assist with any design issues as necessary.
Perform in-circuit emulation and boundary scan testing (JTAG).
Perform extensive testing on CVD, PVD, display and solar tooling.
Configure bios to better suit the operating system, motherboard and CPU's needs and requirements.
Use of micrometers, calipers, torque wrenches, rivet and crimping tools, electrical test equipment, drill presses.

Debug technician vs test technician skills

Common debug technician skills

Debugging, 11%
RF, 9%
Functional Test, 7%
Test Procedures, 5%
IPC, 5%
Linux, 5%

Common test technician skills

Test Procedures, 8%
Test Results, 8%
Hand Tools, 7%
Test Data, 5%
RF, 5%
Engineering Drawings, 4%