An Electrical Controls Engineer designs, develops, and supervises all electrical control systems, equipment, and machinery. They may be responsible for the installation and technical support of hardware and software.
An electrical controls engineer must have essential skills including troubleshooting, communication skills, problem-solving, teamwork and collaboration, and basic computer knowledge. They also require a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering or a related discipline. Two years' worth of proven work experience in the field is also essential. They usually work under immediate supervision, and they report to a supervisor or manager.
The average hourly salary for an electrical controls engineer is $37.11, which amounts to an annual salary of $77,190. Furthermore, the career is in demand and is expected to grow another 2% in the following years, resulting in various jobs being created across the United States. Feel free to browse our job openings and find the perfect fit for you.
Electrical Controls Engineer Overview
Working as an Electrical Controls Engineer
There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being an electrical controls engineer. For example, did you know that they make an average of $37.11 an hour? That's $77,190 a year!
Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 2% and produce 8,000 job opportunities across the U.S.
What Does an Electrical Controls Engineer Do
There are certain skills that many electrical controls 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 concentration, initiative and speaking skills.
When it comes to the most important skills required to be an electrical controls engineer, we found that a lot of resumes listed 11.4% of electrical controls engineers included hmi, while 11.2% of resumes included plc, and 6.2% of resumes included allen-bradley. Hard skills like these are helpful to have when it comes to performing essential job responsibilities.
When it comes to searching for a job, many search for a key term or phrase. Instead, it might be more helpful to search by industry, as you might be missing jobs that you never thought about in industries that you didn't even think offered positions related to the electrical controls engineer job title. But what industry to start with? Most electrical controls engineers actually find jobs in the manufacturing and technology industries.
How To Become an Electrical Controls Engineer
If you're interested in becoming an electrical controls engineer, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 58.7% of electrical controls engineers have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 23.6% of electrical controls engineers have master's degrees. Even though most electrical controls engineers have a college degree, it's possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.
Choosing the right major is always an important step when researching how to become an electrical controls engineer. When we researched the most common majors for an electrical controls engineer, we found that they most commonly earn bachelor's degree degrees or master's degree degrees. Other degrees that we often see on electrical controls engineer resumes include associate degree degrees or high school diploma degrees.
You may find that experience in other jobs will help you become an electrical controls engineer. In fact, many electrical controls engineer jobs require experience in a role such as electrical engineer. Meanwhile, many electrical controls engineers also have previous career experience in roles such as controls engineer or field service technician.
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Electrical Controls Engineer Career Paths
In addition to switching up your job search, it might prove helpful to look at a career path for your specific job. Now, what's a career path you ask? Well, it's practically a map that shows how you might advance from one job title to another. Our career paths are especially detailed with salary changes. So, for example, if you started out with the role of senior electrical engineer you might progress to a role such as project manager eventually. Later on in your career, you could end up with the title engineering director.
What is the right job for my career path?
Tell us your goals and we'll match you with the rights job to get there.
Average Salary for an Electrical Controls Engineer
Best Paying Cities
Recently Added Salaries
Job TitleCompany  | Company | Start Date | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|
Selectek Electrical Controls Engineer Electrical Controls Engineer | Selectek Selectek | 01/29/2021 01/29/2021 | $77,21901/29/2021 $77,219 |
Randstad SR. Electrical and Controls Engineer SR. Electrical and Controls Engineer | Randstad Randstad | 01/26/2021 01/26/2021 | $146,09001/26/2021 $146,090 |
Johns Manville Corp Electrical/Controls Engineer Electrical/Controls Engineer | Johns Manville Corp Johns Manville Corp | 01/25/2021 01/25/2021 | $66,00001/25/2021 $66,000 |
PNM Resources Systems Control Electrical Engineer I, II, III or IV-(2 Positions) Systems Control Electrical Engineer I, II, III or IV-(2 Positions) | PNM Resources PNM Resources | 01/13/2021 01/13/2021 | $78,19601/13/2021 $78,196 |
Randstad Electrical Controls Engineer Electrical Controls Engineer | Randstad Randstad | 01/05/2021 01/05/2021 | $105,00001/05/2021 $105,000 |
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Top Colleges for Electrical Controls Engineers
1. Michigan Technological University
Houghton, MI • Public
2. Wentworth Institute of Technology
Boston, MA • Private
3. Northeastern University
Boston, MA • Private
4. California State University - Long Beach
Long Beach, CA • Public
5. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Cambridge, MA • Private
6. Stanford University
Stanford, CA • Private
7. Purdue University
West Lafayette, IN • Public
8. Harvard University
Cambridge, MA • Private
9. Duke University
Durham, NC • Private
10. California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
Pomona, CA • Public
Top Skills For an Electrical Controls 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, 11.4% of electrical controls engineers listed hmi on their resume, but soft skills such as concentration and initiative are important as well.
- HMI, 11.4%
- PLC, 11.2%
- Allen-Bradley, 6.2%
- Hardware, 5.3%
- UL, 5.0%
- Other Skills, 60.9% See All Electrical Controls Engineer Skills
Best States For an Electrical Controls Engineer
Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as an electrical controls engineer. The best states for people in this position are Hawaii, Maryland, Alaska, and New Mexico. Electrical controls engineers make the most in Hawaii with an average salary of $99,779. Whereas in Maryland and Alaska, they would average $96,339 and $93,629, respectively. While electrical controls engineers would only make an average of $91,248 in New Mexico, 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. New Mexico
$91,248
Avg. Salary
2. Maryland
$96,339
Avg. Salary
3. Texas
$90,028
Avg. Salary
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