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The differences between failure analysis engineers and quality engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a failure analysis engineer and a quality engineer. Additionally, a failure analysis engineer has an average salary of $91,071, which is higher than the $79,672 average annual salary of a quality engineer.
The top three skills for a failure analysis engineer include corrective action, failure analysis and data analysis. The most important skills for a quality engineer are corrective action, continuous improvement, and ISO.
| Failure Analysis Engineer | Quality Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $91,071 | $79,672 |
| Hourly rate | $43.78 | $38.30 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 43,275 | 96,838 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 65% | Bachelor's Degree, 70% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
A failure analysis engineer is responsible for conducting quality control checks on operational business processes, identifying inconsistencies and errors, and writing recommendations to address failures and increase efficiency. Failure analysis engineers analyze incident reports of operational issues, assisting the technology team in designing high-performing software applications and network systems to support business functions and requirements. They also support the end-users in resolving issues, writing resolution, and creating instructional manuals for reference. A failure analysis engineer should have excellent technical skills, as well as intensive knowledge of engineering products and services.
A quality engineer's responsibilities include ensuring that the manufacturing processes are efficient and accurate, documenting findings that would raise concerns, conducting quality tests while observing parameters, and implementing changes as necessary to meet the highest quality standards. Quality engineers need to have excellent problem-solving and observation skills to detect any irregularities and possible malfunctions. They also must be able to communicate effectively with the clients for feedbacks and corrective adjustments, address complaints, and immediately resolve any inconsistencies made.
Failure analysis engineers and quality engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Failure Analysis Engineer | Quality Engineer | |
| Average salary | $91,071 | $79,672 |
| Salary range | Between $66,000 And $124,000 | Between $61,000 And $103,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | Washington |
| Best paying company | Meta | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between a failure analysis engineer and a quality engineer in terms of educational background:
| Failure Analysis Engineer | Quality Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 65% | Bachelor's Degree, 70% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Mechanical Engineering |
| Most common college | California State Polytechnic University, Pomona | Northwestern University |
Here are the differences between failure analysis engineers' and quality engineers' demographics:
| Failure Analysis Engineer | Quality Engineer | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 83.7% Female, 16.3% | Male, 78.2% Female, 21.8% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.3% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 10.5% Asian, 15.5% White, 65.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 4.7% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 11.5% Asian, 13.9% White, 65.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 4% | 4% |