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The differences between drainage engineers and structures engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a drainage engineer and a structures engineer. Additionally, a drainage engineer has an average salary of $80,313, which is higher than the $73,391 average annual salary of a structures engineer.
The top three skills for a drainage engineer include hec ras, HEC-RAS and autocad. The most important skills for a structures engineer are structural analysis, revit, and RISA.
| Drainage Engineer | Structures Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $80,313 | $73,391 |
| Hourly rate | $38.61 | $35.28 |
| Growth rate | 7% | 7% |
| Number of jobs | 16,044 | 20,778 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 76% | Bachelor's Degree, 71% |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
A drainage engineer is primarily responsible for the construction of drainage systems and sewage. They are involved in the planning and designing of drainage systems, allocating the budget for its creation, and, together with the construction team, build the design on the location specified. They oversee the construction, making sure all instructions are followed. They are also responsible for maintaining the system, repairing if there is damage. They also check for any improvements in the market and apply them to the constructed drainage system.
A structures engineer works in designing, planning, and overseeing the development of the latest buildings and bridges or modifications and extensions to an existing property or other structures. They are mainly concerned with the safety and capability of the structure to withstand the elements to which they will be exposed--also improving the existing building structural integrity. Part of the task is inspecting properties regarding the conditions/foundation and checking work undertaken by contractors. The job is very similarly related to a civil engineer.
Drainage engineers and structures engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Drainage Engineer | Structures Engineer | |
| Average salary | $80,313 | $73,391 |
| Salary range | Between $60,000 And $106,000 | Between $54,000 And $98,000 |
| Highest paying City | Englewood, CO | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Alaska | California |
| Best paying company | Parsons | Apple |
| Best paying industry | - | Manufacturing |
There are a few differences between a drainage engineer and a structures engineer in terms of educational background:
| Drainage Engineer | Structures Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 76% | Bachelor's Degree, 71% |
| Most common major | Civil Engineering | Civil Engineering |
| Most common college | University of Michigan - Ann Arbor | Carnegie Mellon University |
Here are the differences between drainage engineers' and structures engineers' demographics:
| Drainage Engineer | Structures Engineer | |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 87.5% Female, 12.5% | Male, 84.9% Female, 15.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.0% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 11.7% Asian, 12.8% White, 66.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 3.5% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 10.3% Asian, 17.3% White, 64.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% |
| LGBT Percentage | 5% | 5% |