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The differences between engineers technical staff and principal engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become an engineer technical staff, becoming a principal engineer takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a principal engineer has an average salary of $130,213, which is higher than the $102,286 average annual salary of an engineer technical staff.
The top three skills for an engineer technical staff include RF, java and technical support. The most important skills for a principal engineer are java, architecture, and python.
| Engineer Technical Staff | Principal Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $102,286 | $130,213 |
| Hourly rate | $49.18 | $62.60 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 2% |
| Number of jobs | 174,870 | 312,683 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 64% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Average age | 42 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 6 |
Engineers technical staff and principal engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Engineer Technical Staff | Principal Engineer | |
| Average salary | $102,286 | $130,213 |
| Salary range | Between $76,000 And $136,000 | Between $95,000 And $177,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Mateo, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Cruise Automation | Grubhub |
| Best paying industry | Telecommunication | Telecommunication |
There are a few differences between an engineer technical staff and a principal engineer in terms of educational background:
| Engineer Technical Staff | Principal Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 64% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | University of Michigan - Ann Arbor | Michigan Technological University |
Here are the differences between engineers technical staff' and principal engineers' demographics:
| Engineer Technical Staff | Principal Engineer | |
| Average age | 42 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 88.5% Female, 11.5% | Male, 92.6% Female, 7.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.2% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 10.4% Asian, 15.2% White, 66.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 3.1% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 16.6% White, 67.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 4% | 5% |