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The differences between engineering support specialists and technical support 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 engineering support specialist and a technical support engineer. Additionally, a technical support engineer has an average salary of $85,716, which is higher than the $70,461 average annual salary of an engineering support specialist.
The top three skills for an engineering support specialist include engineering support, CAD and data entry. The most important skills for a technical support engineer are technical support, customer service, and troubleshoot.
| Engineering Support Specialist | Technical Support Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $70,461 | $85,716 |
| Hourly rate | $33.88 | $41.21 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 159,095 | 184,542 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 56% | Bachelor's Degree, 63% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
An engineering support specialist's role is vital, especially as it relates to security and databases. They ensure that all technicalities of the project, be it for the support, maintenance, or machines' operation instructions, function well. They perform troubleshooting and system updating if needed. They can also recommend ways to improve the operation by reviewing existing programs and applying new upgrades as allowed and suitable for the system. They should report any malfunctions to personnel concerned.
A technical support engineer is responsible for responding to customer issues, providing immediate resolutions to their system issues through remote assistance. Technical support engineers must have strong knowledge of software and hardware applications to diagnose system defects and process troubleshooting. They also assist customers with the installation of programs and updates to improve system performance, escalating high-level concerns to appropriate internal technology teams. A technical support engineer must have strong command with technical systems, as well as excellent communication and time-management skills to understand clients' issues while documenting procedures.
Engineering support specialists and technical support engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Engineering Support Specialist | Technical Support Engineer | |
| Average salary | $70,461 | $85,716 |
| Salary range | Between $47,000 And $104,000 | Between $61,000 And $119,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Mateo, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Delaware | Washington |
| Best paying company | Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Inc. | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between an engineering support specialist and a technical support engineer in terms of educational background:
| Engineering Support Specialist | Technical Support Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 56% | Bachelor's Degree, 63% |
| Most common major | Business | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between engineering support specialists' and technical support engineers' demographics:
| Engineering Support Specialist | Technical Support Engineer | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 64.3% Female, 35.7% | Male, 83.3% Female, 16.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.0% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.2% Asian, 11.5% White, 56.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 9.8% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.1% Asian, 15.0% White, 54.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |