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The differences between field sales engineers and sales representatives can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a field sales engineer, becoming a sales representative takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a field sales engineer has an average salary of $90,950, which is higher than the $56,591 average annual salary of a sales representative.
The top three skills for a field sales engineer include HVAC, customer satisfaction and technical support. The most important skills for a sales representative are sales process, product knowledge, and customer service.
| Field Sales Engineer | Sales Representative | |
| Yearly salary | $90,950 | $56,591 |
| Hourly rate | $43.73 | $27.21 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 85,486 | 205,456 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 4.33 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 79% | Bachelor's Degree, 54% |
| Average age | 44 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 4 |
Usually, a field sales engineer prepares and delivers technical representations explaining a company's products or services to clients. Field sales engineers confer with engineers and customers for the assessment of the necessary equipment and in the identification of the required system. They conduct research and report the status of engineering projects. It is the duty of the field engineers to ensure everything in the field works efficiently and smoothly and that the engineering designs are followed.
Sales representatives primarily sell the company's products and services to businesses or organizations. They should be adept at closing out sales, negotiating, and providing customer service. They should be knowledgeable about the products or services of the manufacturer or producer they represent. They must also have strong analytical skills that would help them in coming up with cost-benefit analysis in assessing the current roster of clients and even prospective ones. Sales representatives should also be able to maintain good working relationships with all involved stakeholders, especially clients.
Field sales engineers and sales representatives have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Field Sales Engineer | Sales Representative | |
| Average salary | $90,950 | $56,591 |
| Salary range | Between $65,000 And $125,000 | Between $33,000 And $94,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Boston, MA |
| Highest paying state | New York | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | Vuzix | |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Pharmaceutical |
There are a few differences between a field sales engineer and a sales representative in terms of educational background:
| Field Sales Engineer | Sales Representative | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 79% | Bachelor's Degree, 54% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Business |
| Most common college | Stanford University | SUNY College of Technology at Alfred |
Here are the differences between field sales engineers' and sales representatives' demographics:
| Field Sales Engineer | Sales Representative | |
| Average age | 44 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 90.1% Female, 9.9% | Male, 58.1% Female, 41.9% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 1.7% Unknown, 6.2% Hispanic or Latino, 8.3% Asian, 5.7% White, 77.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 3.9% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 5.2% White, 72.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 6% |