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The differences between instrumentation engineers and control systems engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become an instrumentation engineer, becoming a control systems engineer takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a control systems engineer has an average salary of $92,727, which is higher than the $88,783 average annual salary of an instrumentation engineer.
The top three skills for an instrumentation engineer include PLC, autocad and analyzers. The most important skills for a control systems engineer are PLC, HMI, and C++.
| Instrumentation Engineer | Control Systems Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $88,783 | $92,727 |
| Hourly rate | $42.68 | $44.58 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 45,735 | 133,220 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 79% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 6 |
An instrumentation engineer specializes in designing and developing equipment to optimize business processes. Their responsibilities revolve around performing research and analysis to identify the needs of a company, coordinating with different departments to gather data, devising strategies to create new processes, and preparing reports and presentations for the executives. An instrumentation engineer mostly performs installations and repairs; they also conduct regular maintenance to ensure the efficiency of facilities. Furthermore, they must answer inquiries and resolve issues and concerns, all in adherence to the company's policies and regulations.
Control systems engineers are interdisciplinary engineers managing the company's control systems. They are expected to be familiar with different engineering disciplines such as mechanical, industrial, and computer science, among others. They are responsible for designing systems based on the company's requirements. Control systems engineers must conduct feasibility studies to ensure that the company's requirements can be met. They are also responsible for developing the systems, creating prototypes, and testing. They test whether the control systems produce desired results. After testing, control systems engineers implement the system and conduct routine maintenance checks.
Instrumentation engineers and control systems engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Instrumentation Engineer | Control Systems Engineer | |
| Average salary | $88,783 | $92,727 |
| Salary range | Between $65,000 And $119,000 | Between $72,000 And $118,000 |
| Highest paying City | Cupertino, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Apple | Apple |
| Best paying industry | Government | Automotive |
There are a few differences between an instrumentation engineer and a control systems engineer in terms of educational background:
| Instrumentation Engineer | Control Systems Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 79% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | Michigan Technological University | Georgia Institute of Technology |
Here are the differences between instrumentation engineers' and control systems engineers' demographics:
| Instrumentation Engineer | Control Systems Engineer | |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 91.2% Female, 8.8% | Male, 90.5% Female, 9.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.9% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 11.5% Asian, 15.5% White, 63.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 5.0% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 11.6% Asian, 15.4% White, 63.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |