What is a Design Engineer?

Do you love technical work and want to pursue your creative side at the same time? Maybe now's the time to take your sketch pads out of your shoebox and see those designs come to life. If you feel excited, guess you're on track to being a design engineer in the future.

A design engineer sounds fun, if you love research and innovation. I mean, who wouldn't want to see their discoveries and projects come alive, right? Recognition is another thing, but self-accomplishment matters the most. Apart from that, design engineers build their careers around traveling (no, not a vacation, though), interacting with people, and more... more technical duties. They are computer-savvy humans who would throw a fit over a system crash and computer virus (Like, who doesn't?). Their schedules are, well, usually messed-up. They work like regular employees during weekdays but could go over weekends and holidays as their job requires. So if you're planning to have a coffee date with a design engineer, just don't expect too much as they may meet a client in that coffee shop, too.

Generally, this job sounds fun, regardless of the pile of work and deadlines that have to be done. If you're someone who's always up for new things and discoveries, this might be the sign you're waiting for.

What Does a Design Engineer Do

There are certain skills that many design engineers have in order to accomplish their responsibilities. By taking a look through resumes, we were able to narrow down the most common skills for a person in this position. We discovered that a lot of resumes listed creativity, listening skills and math skills.

Learn more about what a Design Engineer does

How To Become a Design Engineer

If you're interested in becoming a design engineer, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 72.0% of design engineers have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 11.5% of design engineers have master's degrees. Even though most design engineers have a college degree, it's possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.

Learn More About How To Become a Design Engineer

Design Engineer Job Description

A design engineer is a professional in charge of creating, altering, and studying designs of various products. Their duties include using computer software to create designs, testing designs, and documenting progress.

Learn more about Design Engineer Job Description
Top Design Engineer Jobs Near You

Design Engineer Career Paths

As you move along in your career, you may start taking on more responsibilities or notice that you've taken on a leadership role. Using our career map, a design engineer can determine their career goals through the career progression. For example, they could start out with a role such as mechanical engineer, progress to a title such as manufacturing engineer and then eventually end up with the title manufacturing engineering manager.

Design Engineer

Top Careers Before Design Engineer

Designer(52,433 Jobs)
9.7 %
Project Engineer(176,689 Jobs)
9.2 %
Internship(51,064 Jobs)
8.4 %

Top Careers After Design Engineer

Project Engineer(176,689 Jobs)
14.1 %
Senior Design Engineer(127,035 Jobs)
11.7 %
Mechanical Engineer(105,618 Jobs)
7.8 %

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Average Salary for a Design Engineer

Design Engineers in America make an average salary of $77,134 per year or $37 per hour. The top 10 percent makes over $102,000 per year, while the bottom 10 percent under $57,000 per year.
Average Design Engineer Salary
$77,134 Yearly
$37.08 hourly
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What Am I Worth?

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Roles and Types of Design Engineer

The role of a design engineer includes a wide range of responsibilities. These responsibilities can vary based on an individual's specific job, company, or industry.Here are some general design engineer responsibilities:

  • Performs assignments designed to develop professional working knowledge
  • Provides technical direction for the design of system solutions to effectively meet business needs. Provides leadership for the solution design of projects that address business needs, including the examination of multiple solution options may provide subject matter expertise in the conceptual architecture for large
  • Provide engineered solutions for the development of new products

There are several types of design engineer, including:

Engineer

Role:

Engineers design and develop new products in a variety of different industries. They might be mechanical or software engineers or create electric machinery, design chemical or geotechnical processes, or help to structure civil or management disciplines. Whatever the case may be, engineers are involved in creating the diverse technologies that facilitate the processes of our lives in different areas. Combining creative thinking with the principles of mathematics and science using a wide range of technical skills, engineers work on the design, manufacturing, installation, and maintenance of various products from machines, vehicles, buildings, and roads to software or social processes serving consumers, businesses, and societies.

Engineers are creative thinkers and brilliant problem solvers. They excel at mathematical, scientific, and mechanical analysis. They follow plans and blueprints with a strong focus, yet remain flexible and work well under pressure.

Engineers develop systems for solving various problems as members of a team. They know that a single component is worthless without their counterparts, so they have to be great communicators, as well, to be successful at their job.
  • Average Salary: $92,077
  • Degree: Bachelor's Degree

Project Engineer

Role:

A project engineer is responsible for the planning and implementation of a project. In collaboration with the management of the enterprise, they review proposals and come up with project goals. They break down the process and create a viable schedule, and then coordinate and monitor the work.

The project, as such, sounds vague because it depends on the industry they work for. In any case, they go on regular meetings with clients to make sure the the evolution of the work matches their vision. It is their responsibility to carry out the work within the budget or to propose adjustments to it if they see fit.

The project engineer will analyze the performance of their team and present progress reports to stakeholders to make sure everyone is at the top of their game.
  • Average Salary: $75,050
  • Degree: Bachelor's Degree

Manufacturing Engineer

Role:

Manufacturing engineers are those who design and improve manufacturing systems. They work with industrial or commercial designers to redesign the products to be durable with reduced costs. Therefore, you will troubleshoot and give continuous improvement methods to improve the quality and cost-effectiveness of the product. You will design and install the manufacturing equipment using knowledge of the fabrication processes, tooling, and production equipment, assembly, and quality control.

Furthermore, you will test the methods and finished products to establish standards and validate the process to improve the existing process. You will then communicate the established methods either by training or putting them into writings for other production personnel to facilitate the production process.

Manufacturing engineers work in line with the health and safety standards and environmental regulations. As a manufacturing engineer, you will earn about $70,000 yearly. Some of the required skills include problem-solving and project management skills, and you must be well versed in relevant computer software. A degree in engineering is required to qualify for this role, but a postgraduate degree would be a plus.
  • Average Salary: $78,522
  • Degree: Bachelor's Degree
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States With The Most Design Engineer Jobs

Mouse over a state to see the number of active design engineer jobs in each state. The darker areas on the map show where design engineers earn the highest salaries across all 50 states.

Average Salary: Job Openings:

Number Of Design Engineer Jobs By State

RankStateNumber of JobsAverage Salary
1California7,817$100,682
2Texas2,653$81,288
3Massachusetts1,781$86,990
4Florida1,774$68,732
5New York1,569$73,123
6Virginia1,447$77,691
7Illinois1,423$71,786
8Washington1,320$79,959
9Michigan1,240$70,216
10Georgia1,205$67,906
11Arizona1,120$81,198
12Pennsylvania1,116$67,744
13North Carolina1,108$67,358
14Colorado1,042$75,482
15Ohio1,028$65,175
16Minnesota926$64,223
17Maryland886$74,470
18Oregon805$85,262
19Indiana777$66,630
20New Jersey688$74,743
21Wisconsin680$62,077
22Alabama601$71,826
23Missouri537$65,409
24Connecticut515$77,858
25Utah482$70,582
26Iowa427$64,555
27South Carolina423$65,675
28Tennessee403$70,090
29Kansas341$63,864
30Kentucky288$64,947
31Arkansas221$57,588
32New Hampshire218$81,810
33Nebraska213$63,044
34New Mexico201$85,362
35Idaho200$81,144
36Oklahoma199$66,749
37Delaware194$73,406
38Nevada176$76,541
39Louisiana173$76,131
40Rhode Island137$72,530
41Mississippi130$61,561
42Maine115$71,971
43Montana112$59,754
44Vermont101$65,405
45Alaska95$78,713
46North Dakota94$66,340
47West Virginia92$73,051
48Hawaii84$55,097
49Wyoming77$67,365
50South Dakota76$60,737

Design Engineer Education

Design Engineer Majors

Mechanical Engineering
37.2 %
Electrical Engineering
16.8 %
Civil Engineering
8.1 %

Design Engineer Degrees

Bachelors

72.0 %

Associate

12.3 %

Masters

11.5 %

Top Colleges for Design Engineers

1. Michigan Technological University

Houghton, MI • Private

In-State Tuition

$15,646

Enrollment

5,736

Admissions
Most Popular Majors
Engineering Technology
Mechanical Engineering
Electrical Engineering
Chemical Engineering
Civil Engineering

2. Georgia Institute of Technology

Atlanta, GA • Private

In-State Tuition

$12,424

Enrollment

15,201

Admissions
Most Popular Majors
Engineering Technology
Mechanical Engineering
Business
Electrical Engineering
Industrial Engineering

3. Cornell University

Ithaca, NY • Private

In-State Tuition

$55,188

Enrollment

15,105

Admissions
Most Popular Majors
Engineering Technology
Business
Computer Science
Electrical Engineering
Mechanical Engineering

4. Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Cambridge, MA • Private

In-State Tuition

$51,832

Enrollment

4,550

Admissions
Most Popular Majors
Engineering Technology
Business
Computer Science
Mechanical Engineering
Electrical Engineering

5. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

In-State Tuition

$54,568

Enrollment

8,451

Admissions
Most Popular Majors
Engineering Technology
Business
Computer Science
Mechanical Engineering
Engineering

6. Columbia University in the City of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-State Tuition

$59,430

Enrollment

8,216

Admissions
Most Popular Majors
Engineering Technology
Business
Computer Science
Electrical Engineering
Mechanical Engineering

7. Stanford University

Stanford, CA • Private

In-State Tuition

$51,354

Enrollment

7,083

Admissions
Most Popular Majors
Engineering Technology
Computer Science
Business
Mechanical Engineering
Electrical Engineering

8. Johns Hopkins University

Baltimore, MD • Private

In-State Tuition

$53,740

Enrollment

5,567

Admissions
Most Popular Majors
Engineering Technology
Chemical Engineering
Electrical Engineering
Mechanical Engineering
Business

9. Carnegie Mellon University

Pittsburgh, PA • Private

In-State Tuition

$55,465

Enrollment

6,483

Admissions
Most Popular Majors
Engineering Technology
Electrical Engineering
Business
Mechanical Engineering
Computer Science

10. Harvard University

Cambridge, MA • Private

In-State Tuition

$50,420

Enrollment

7,582

Admissions
Most Popular Majors
Business
Engineering Technology
Computer Science
Computer Engineering
Physics

Top Skills For a Design Engineer

The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 4.5% of design engineers listed c++ on their resume, but soft skills such as creativity and listening skills are important as well.

Choose From 10+ Customizable Design Engineer Resume templates

Zippia allows you to choose from different easy-to-use Design Engineer templates, and provides you with expert advice. Using the templates, you can rest assured that the structure and format of your Design Engineer resume is top notch. Choose a template with the colors, fonts & text sizes that are appropriate for your industry.

Design Engineer Resume
Design Engineer Resume
Design Engineer Resume
Design Engineer Resume
Design Engineer Resume
Design Engineer Resume
Design Engineer Resume
Design Engineer Resume
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Design Engineer Resume

Design Engineer Demographics

Design Engineer Gender Distribution

Male
Male
89%
Female
Female
11%

After extensive research and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:

  • Among design engineers, 11.1% of them are women, while 88.9% are men.

  • The most common race/ethnicity among design engineers is White, which makes up 67.2% of all design engineers.

  • The most common foreign language among design engineers is Spanish at 34.8%.

Online Courses For Design Engineer That You May Like

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1. Modeling and Design for Mechanical Engineers with Autodesk Fusion 360

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There are many considerations that play a part in engineering a new product. Regardless of what that product is, there are fundamentals such as form, fit, and function when it comes to digital modeling. In this course, we lay the foundation to create any design and dive deep into topics about the control of the design. From assembly joints and joint limits to complex shapes using forms, rest assured that your design will be rock solid. After completing this course you'll be able to: - Create...

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2. Mechanical design and Product development process

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Learn the basic ideas and concepts behind developing mechanical products related to mechanical engineering...

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3. Mechanical engineering design: Sheet metal design

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4.2
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Learn Sheet metal design, processes and practical design considerations along with Design projects...

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Best States For a Design Engineer

Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as a design engineer. The best states for people in this position are California, Massachusetts, New Mexico, and Oregon. Design engineers make the most in California with an average salary of $100,682. Whereas in Massachusetts and New Mexico, they would average $86,990 and $85,362, respectively. While design engineers would only make an average of $85,262 in Oregon, you would still make more there than in the rest of the country. We determined these as the best states based on job availability and pay. By finding the median salary, cost of living, and using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Location Quotient, we narrowed down our list of states to these four.

1. California

Total Design Engineer Jobs: 7,817
Highest 10% Earn:
$139,000
Location Quotient:
1.93

$100,682

Avg. Salary

View 7,817 Design Engineer Jobs In CA

2. Oregon

Total Design Engineer Jobs: 805
Highest 10% Earn:
$114,000
Location Quotient:
1.4

$85,262

Avg. Salary

View 805 Design Engineer Jobs In OR

3. Massachusetts

Total Design Engineer Jobs: 1,781
Highest 10% Earn:
$113,000
Location Quotient:
1.4

$86,990

Avg. Salary

View 1,781 Design Engineer Jobs In MA
Full List Of Best States For Design Engineers

How Do Design Engineer Rate Their Jobs?

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Top Design Engineer Employers

We've made finding a great employer to work for easy by doing the hard work for you. We looked into employers that employ design engineers and discovered their number of design engineer opportunities and average salary. Through our research, we concluded that Intel was the best, especially with an average salary of $94,477. Tech Mahindra follows up with an average salary of $73,645, and then comes Boeing with an average of $76,684. In addition, we know most people would rather work from home. So instead of having to change careers, we identified the best employers for remote work as a design engineer. The employers include Ameren, Honeywell, and Honda

Most Common Employers For Design Engineer

RankCompanyAverage SalaryHourly RateJob Openings
1Apple$139,116$66.88351
2Texas Instruments$104,755$50.36218
3Cirrus Logic$103,649$49.83369
4Micron Technology$98,192$47.21360
5Caterpillar$96,723$46.50374
6Intel$94,477$45.421,193
7Analog Devices$94,342$45.36187
8T-Mobile$88,347$42.47423
9Fluor Corporation$83,863$40.32195
10General Electric$82,612$39.72240
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Design Engineer Videos

Career Advice on becoming a Mechanical Engineer by Nicola S (Full Version)
Mechanical Design Engineer - CAREER PROFILE

Becoming a Design Engineer FAQs

How Long Does It Take To Become A Design Engineer?

It takes 4 years of professional experience to become a design engineer. That is the time it takes to learn specific design engineer skills, but does not account for time spent in formal education. If you include the normal education requirements to complete a college degree, then it takes 7 to 9 years years to become a design engineer.

How Do I Start As A Design Engineer?

To start as a design engineer requires a 4-year bachelor's degree in engineering and hands-on experience. Additional options to help you stand out as a candidate include internships, a master's degree, and certifications.

What Do Design Engineers Invent?

Design engineers invent things of all shapes and sizes, from nanotubes on medical devices to Boeing 747 jet engines.

To invent something requires much less inspiration and much more perspiration. Design engineers prepare mechanical or digital drawings, diagrams or blueprints, and models of various products or structures to guide product makers, architects, or construction personnel in manufacturing, implementing, or building processes.

What Qualifications Do You Need To Be A Design Engineer?

The qualifications needed to be a design engineer are a college degree and practical experience using your craft. Becoming a design engineer requires hard work, and the discipline is competitive, so it is valuable to have relevant experience to showcase your ability.

Have more questions? See all answers to common architecture and engineering questions.

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Updated February 6, 2023