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The differences between field sales engineers and sales specialists 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 specialist takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a field sales engineer has an average salary of $90,950, which is higher than the $53,004 average annual salary of a sales specialist.
The top three skills for a field sales engineer include HVAC, customer satisfaction and technical support. The most important skills for a sales specialist are building relationships, customer complaints, and customer orders.
| Field Sales Engineer | Sales Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $90,950 | $53,004 |
| Hourly rate | $43.73 | $25.48 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 85,486 | 324,069 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 79% | Bachelor's Degree, 62% |
| 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.
A sales specialist is responsible for offering the best goods and services to customers in order to boost the company's sales. Sales specialists also promote strategies and solutions to contribute to the company's growth and profitability. A sales specialist must have extensive knowledge of the current market trends and the best sales skills to perform marketing tasks. Sales specialists should have excellent communication and customer service skills to assist existing and potential clients with their inquiries and concerns.
Field sales engineers and sales specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Field Sales Engineer | Sales Specialist | |
| Average salary | $90,950 | $53,004 |
| Salary range | Between $65,000 And $125,000 | Between $30,000 And $91,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Boston, MA |
| Highest paying state | New York | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | Vuzix | VMware |
| Best paying industry | Technology | - |
There are a few differences between a field sales engineer and a sales specialist in terms of educational background:
| Field Sales Engineer | Sales Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 79% | Bachelor's Degree, 62% |
| 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 specialists' demographics:
| Field Sales Engineer | Sales Specialist | |
| Average age | 44 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 90.1% Female, 9.9% | Male, 55.1% Female, 44.9% |
| 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, 3.8% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.2% Asian, 5.1% White, 72.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 6% |