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The differences between electrical research engineers and system design 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 research engineer and a system design engineer. Additionally, a system design engineer has an average salary of $107,704, which is higher than the $85,767 average annual salary of an electrical research engineer.
The top three skills for an electrical research engineer include C++, electrical systems and MATLAB. The most important skills for a system design engineer are system design, architecture, and MATLAB.
| Electrical Research Engineer | System Design Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $85,767 | $107,704 |
| Hourly rate | $41.23 | $51.78 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 76,225 | 113,582 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 68% | Bachelor's Degree, 70% |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
The electrical research engineers are responsible for conducting research, designing and developing new and innovative electrical products or systems, and evaluate them to improve existing technical processes. They have strong analytical and critical thinking skills and professional competency to perform intensive research and collaborate on standards for procedures, and design testing methods to identify problems and solutions. Being an electrical research engineer is essential to a company since the job involves innovation and development processes.
A system design engineer is an individual who participates in system design engineering and resolves manufacturing and service problems. System design engineers are required to collaborate with the system design team to research emerging technologies and develop new capabilities. They create design layouts by utilizing the use of CAD software such as AutoCad as well as supervise a group of CAD technicians. System design engineers must also provide customer service in the field and deliver individualized problem solving and system design support
Electrical research engineers and system design engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Electrical Research Engineer | System Design Engineer | |
| Average salary | $85,767 | $107,704 |
| Salary range | Between $65,000 And $112,000 | Between $77,000 And $149,000 |
| Highest paying City | Redmond, WA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Washington | California |
| Best paying company | Microsoft | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Utilities | Automotive |
There are a few differences between an electrical research engineer and a system design engineer in terms of educational background:
| Electrical Research Engineer | System Design Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 68% | Bachelor's Degree, 70% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | Michigan Technological University | Michigan Technological University |
Here are the differences between electrical research engineers' and system design engineers' demographics:
| Electrical Research Engineer | System Design Engineer | |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 88.8% Female, 11.2% | Male, 91.2% Female, 8.8% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.6% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 10.5% Asian, 21.4% White, 58.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 4.9% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 11.4% Asian, 15.4% White, 63.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |