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The differences between electrical engineering project managers and instrumentation engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both an electrical engineering project manager and an instrumentation engineer. Additionally, an instrumentation engineer has an average salary of $88,783, which is higher than the $87,900 average annual salary of an electrical engineering project manager.
The top three skills for an electrical engineering project manager include electrical engineering, project management and autocad. The most important skills for an instrumentation engineer are PLC, autocad, and analyzers.
| Electrical Engineering Project Manager | Instrumentation Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $87,900 | $88,783 |
| Hourly rate | $42.26 | $42.68 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 131,380 | 45,735 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 74% | Bachelor's Degree, 79% |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
An electrical engineering project manager spearheads and manages engineering projects, ensuring operations adhere to goals and budgets. Part of their job is to participate in identifying and meeting project requirements, set daily objectives and guidelines, manage project teams, and monitor processes, addressing and resolving issues should there be any. They may also liaise and negotiate with external parties, building positive relationships in the process. Moreover, being an electrical engineering project manager, they have the responsibility to lead and encourage the workforce to reach project goals while implementing company policies and standards.
An instrumentation engineer specializes in designing and developing equipment to optimize business processes. Their responsibilities revolve around performing research and analysis to identify the needs of a company, coordinating with different departments to gather data, devising strategies to create new processes, and preparing reports and presentations for the executives. An instrumentation engineer mostly performs installations and repairs; they also conduct regular maintenance to ensure the efficiency of facilities. Furthermore, they must answer inquiries and resolve issues and concerns, all in adherence to the company's policies and regulations.
Electrical engineering project managers and instrumentation engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Electrical Engineering Project Manager | Instrumentation Engineer | |
| Average salary | $87,900 | $88,783 |
| Salary range | Between $67,000 And $114,000 | Between $65,000 And $119,000 |
| Highest paying City | Livermore, CA | Cupertino, CA |
| Highest paying state | Alaska | California |
| Best paying company | Calpine | Apple |
| Best paying industry | Energy | Government |
There are a few differences between an electrical engineering project manager and an instrumentation engineer in terms of educational background:
| Electrical Engineering Project Manager | Instrumentation Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 74% | Bachelor's Degree, 79% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Michigan Technological University |
Here are the differences between electrical engineering project managers' and instrumentation engineers' demographics:
| Electrical Engineering Project Manager | Instrumentation Engineer | |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 88.6% Female, 11.4% | Male, 91.2% Female, 8.8% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.8% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 11.0% Asian, 14.5% White, 64.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 4.9% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 11.5% Asian, 15.5% White, 63.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |