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What is a design development engineer and how to become one
The role of a Design Development Engineer is to conduct and orchestrate engineering and design research for and within a company and test new products. They often work in Electronics and IT industries.
These Engineers are often multi-tasking, creating new blueprints and designs, whilst also conducting the necessary research for new and old ideas and projects alike. They conduct this research with software, mathematics, engineering, and through other tools. This research results in a design which results in product testing and then product modification and evolvement, and finally into the reporting of results and demonstrating of the product to consumers, higher management, and investors.
A person hoping to begin working as a Design Development Engineer will generally need to have a college-level diploma in a subject such as engineering product design, industrial design, or materials science. Those hoping to begin as an apprentice could also begin working in this position before completing their university education but whilst still attending the university.
What general advice would you give to a design development engineer?
Marco Schoen Ph.D.
Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Director of the Measurement and Control Engineering Research Center (MCERC), Idaho State University
Avg. Salary $92,179
Avg. Salary $59,228
Growth rate 2%
Growth rate 0.3%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.11%
Asian 17.02%
Black or African American 3.08%
Hispanic or Latino 7.88%
Unknown 4.51%
White 67.40%
Genderfemale 12.55%
male 87.45%
Age - 39American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%
Asian 7.00%
Black or African American 14.00%
Hispanic or Latino 19.00%
White 57.00%
Genderfemale 47.00%
male 53.00%
Age - 39Stress level is high
7.1 - high
Complexity level is advanced
7 - challenging
Work life balance is fair
6.4 - fair
Design development engineer career paths
Key steps to become a design development engineer
Explore design development engineer education requirements
Start to develop specific design development engineer skills
Skills Percentages Solidworks 6.73% FEA 5.65% C++ 4.63% Prototype 4.44% R 4.11% Complete relevant design development engineer training and internships
Accountants spend an average of 1-2 years on post-employment, on-the-job training. New design development engineers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a design development engineer based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real design development engineer resumes.Research design development engineer duties and responsibilities
- Manage automation projects including purchasing, scheduling fabrication and assembly, debugging, and delivery to customer.
- Perform project mechanical design activities such as engineering analysis including structural FEA, prototype fabrication, testing and qualification.
- Review Gerber file and component layout on the PCB, DFM, and equipment evaluation.
- Involve in research, stress analysis, load calculation using ANSYS and MATLAB and failure analysis.
Prepare your design development engineer resume
When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your design development engineer resume.
You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a design development engineer resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.
Choose from 10+ customizable design development engineer resume templates
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Apply for design development engineer jobs
Now it's time to start searching for a design development engineer job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:
- Browse job boards for relevant postings
- Consult your professional network
- Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
- Watch out for job scams
How did you land your first design development engineer job
Are you a design development engineer?
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Average design development engineer salary
The average design development engineer salary in the United States is $92,179 per year or $44 per hour. Design development engineer salaries range between $68,000 and $124,000 per year.
What am I worth?
How do design development engineers rate their job?
Design development engineer reviews
It can gurantee you a good salary and if you are creative you can do many things.
you have to be creative.
Inventing smart ways of mproving human lives.
Investigation. I love to dig and dig to find hidden gems of information that can be pivtol to the project.
There is tons of reading involved, not everything is interesting so it can be a bit much to read and analyze what seems like endless information. But I still love it.
Updated January 8, 2025
