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The differences between instrumentation engineers and field 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 instrumentation engineer and a field engineer. Additionally, an instrumentation engineer has an average salary of $88,783, which is higher than the $71,874 average annual salary of a field engineer.
The top three skills for an instrumentation engineer include PLC, autocad and analyzers. The most important skills for a field engineer are customer service, customer satisfaction, and project management.
| Instrumentation Engineer | Field Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $88,783 | $71,874 |
| Hourly rate | $42.68 | $34.55 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 45,735 | 86,015 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 3 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 79% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
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.
A field engineer's role will vary on the industry or line of work involved. However, the primary responsibility will mostly revolve around handling equipment and machinery, ensuring that they function effectively and safely. It is also the task of a field engineer to oversee the workflow and workforce, giving directions and recommendations when necessary. Furthermore, a field engineer must develop strategies and plans to improve the site's efficiency, produce progress reports, and coordinate with other workers.
Instrumentation engineers and field engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Instrumentation Engineer | Field Engineer | |
| Average salary | $88,783 | $71,874 |
| Salary range | Between $65,000 And $119,000 | Between $51,000 And $99,000 |
| Highest paying City | Cupertino, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | Washington |
| Best paying company | Apple | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Government | Energy |
There are a few differences between an instrumentation engineer and a field engineer in terms of educational background:
| Instrumentation Engineer | Field Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 79% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | Michigan Technological University | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
Here are the differences between instrumentation engineers' and field engineers' demographics:
| Instrumentation Engineer | Field Engineer | |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 91.2% Female, 8.8% | Male, 92.7% Female, 7.3% |
| 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, 4.9% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 11.5% Asian, 14.3% White, 64.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |