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The differences between engineering specialist technicians and engineering technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 6-12 months to become an engineering specialist technician, becoming an engineering technician takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, an engineering specialist technician has an average salary of $89,631, which is higher than the $60,273 average annual salary of an engineering technician.
The top three skills for an engineering specialist technician include troubleshoot, project management and powerpoint. The most important skills for an engineering technician are technical support, data collection, and test equipment.
| Engineering Specialist Technician | Engineering Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $89,631 | $60,273 |
| Hourly rate | $43.09 | $28.98 |
| Growth rate | - | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 74,148 | 111,343 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 55% | Bachelor's Degree, 46% |
| Average age | 50 | 45 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 4 |
Engineering specialist technicians draw up equipment and product blueprints and plans. They design and build planned equipment/product prototypes and analyze product/system performance. Besides creating daily laboratory activity reports and ordering and replacing equipment parts, engineering specialist technicians also help software design and write computer programs. These professionals address and resolve product glitches and problems and conduct regular product/equipment maintenance. Moreover, engineering specialist technicians inspect product designs for issues/problems and suggest the right ways to enhance products/equipment.
An Engineering Technician's duties vary according to the industry or company, whether mechanical, industrial, civil, agricultural, or more. However, most of the time, the responsibilities often revolve around resolving technical issues, working with and assisting Engineers in building, assembling, designing, gathering and testing data, and conducting more manual activities. Furthermore, Engineering Technicians can specialize and work in various fields after a certain training period, closely mentored or monitored by an engineer or someone with extensive expertise.
Engineering specialist technicians and engineering technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Engineering Specialist Technician | Engineering Technician | |
| Average salary | $89,631 | $60,273 |
| Salary range | Between $64,000 And $124,000 | Between $37,000 And $96,000 |
| Highest paying City | Newark, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | Washington |
| Best paying company | Finnegan Henderson Farabow Garrett & Dunner | Western Digital |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between an engineering specialist technician and an engineering technician in terms of educational background:
| Engineering Specialist Technician | Engineering Technician | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 55% | Bachelor's Degree, 46% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Purdue University |
Here are the differences between engineering specialist technicians' and engineering technicians' demographics:
| Engineering Specialist Technician | Engineering Technician | |
| Average age | 50 | 45 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 83.7% Female, 16.3% | Male, 85.9% Female, 14.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.3% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 10.4% Asian, 8.0% White, 70.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% | Black or African American, 9.5% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.7% Asian, 9.2% White, 59.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 6% |