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The differences between marine engineers and mechanical design engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes More than 10 years to become a marine engineer, becoming a mechanical design engineer takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a marine engineer has an average salary of $101,152, which is higher than the $75,821 average annual salary of a mechanical design engineer.
The top three skills for a marine engineer include marine engineering, autocad and HVAC. The most important skills for a mechanical design engineer are CAD, mechanical design, and GD.
| Marine Engineer | Mechanical Design Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $101,152 | $75,821 |
| Hourly rate | $48.63 | $36.45 |
| Growth rate | 4% | 2% |
| Number of jobs | 11,675 | 120,258 |
| Job satisfaction | 3.33 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 65% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Years of experience | - | 6 |
Marine engineers are licensed engineers who specialize in designing marine infrastructure. These marine infrastructure or vessels are usually naval ships, sailboats, cruise ships, tankers, or even submarines. Marine engineers draft plans for these vessels. They take into consideration the various sciences involved in building these ships. Marine engineers need to have a good grasp of physics, statistics, and other sciences that they need to craft a vessel. Marine engineers also create designs for controls and other mechanisms. They oversee the building process and ensure that the vessels are working properly.
A mechanical design engineer specializes in designing various mechanical devices that will be vital in developing machinery or large structures. One of their primary responsibilities revolves around conducting thorough research and analysis, establishing layouts and prototypes, producing progress reports, and working alongside fellow engineers and skilled professionals. Typically assigned in an office setting, a mechanical design engineer must visit construction sites or factories to test and observe equipment qualities. Furthermore, during production, there are instances when a mechanical engineer must coordinate with suppliers, contractors, and clients.
Marine engineers and mechanical design engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Marine Engineer | Mechanical Design Engineer | |
| Average salary | $101,152 | $75,821 |
| Salary range | Between $69,000 And $147,000 | Between $59,000 And $96,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Rafael, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Texas | California |
| Best paying company | Chevron | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Automotive |
There are a few differences between a marine engineer and a mechanical design engineer in terms of educational background:
| Marine Engineer | Mechanical Design Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 65% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| Most common major | Marine Engineering | Mechanical Engineering |
| Most common college | University of Michigan - Ann Arbor | Michigan Technological University |
Here are the differences between marine engineers' and mechanical design engineers' demographics:
| Marine Engineer | Mechanical Design Engineer | |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 91.5% Female, 8.5% | Male, 91.9% Female, 8.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 8.4% Unknown, 3.6% Hispanic or Latino, 7.5% Asian, 7.1% White, 72.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1% | Black or African American, 3.2% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 8.2% Asian, 16.4% White, 67.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 5% |