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What is a principal firmware engineer and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025
3 min read
There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a principal firmware engineer. For example, did you know that they make an average of $64.48 an hour? That's $134,114 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 21% and produce 284,100 job opportunities across the U.S.
ScorePrincipal Firmware EngineerUS Average
Salary
8.5

Avg. Salary $134,114

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level
4.7

Growth rate 21%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity
4.0
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.17%

Asian 29.99%

Black or African American 4.37%

Hispanic or Latino 8.10%

Unknown 4.78%

White 52.59%

Gender

female 6.25%

male 93.75%

Age - 38
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 38
Stress level
4.7

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level
6.8

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance
6.2

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a principal firmware engineer

  1. Explore principal firmware engineer education requirements

    Most common principal firmware engineer degrees

    Bachelor's

    68.9 %

    Master's

    20.8 %

    Doctorate

    5.7 %
  2. Start to develop specific principal firmware engineer skills

    SkillsPercentages
    Python11.04%
    Debugging5.84%
    SSD4.89%
    Linux4.75%
    Software Development4.41%
  3. Complete relevant principal firmware engineer training and internships

    Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New principal firmware engineers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a principal firmware engineer based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real principal firmware engineer resumes.
  4. Research principal firmware engineer duties and responsibilities

    • Provide consultation to the ISO team in achieving certification, and enable company to win many more deals as a result.
    • Add DMA functionality to UART driver on THREADX RTOS.
    • Develop I2C bus data driver (write/read) for FPGA through parallel port (LPT1).
    • Optimize cache management on the base of ThreadX RTOS and ARMCC.
  5. Prepare your principal firmware engineer resume

    When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your principal firmware engineer resume.

    You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a principal firmware engineer resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

    Choose from 10+ customizable principal firmware engineer resume templates

    Build a professional principal firmware engineer resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your principal firmware engineer resume.
    Principal Firmware Engineer Resume
    Principal Firmware Engineer Resume
    Principal Firmware Engineer Resume
    Principal Firmware Engineer Resume
    Principal Firmware Engineer Resume
    Principal Firmware Engineer Resume
    Principal Firmware Engineer Resume
    Principal Firmware Engineer Resume
    Principal Firmware Engineer Resume
  6. Apply for principal firmware engineer jobs

    Now it's time to start searching for a principal firmware engineer job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

    1. Browse job boards for relevant postings
    2. Consult your professional network
    3. Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
    4. Watch out for job scams

How did you land your first principal firmware engineer job

Zippi

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Average principal firmware engineer salary

The average principal firmware engineer salary in the United States is $134,114 per year or $64 per hour. Principal firmware engineer salaries range between $103,000 and $174,000 per year.

Average principal firmware engineer salary
$134,114 Yearly
$64.48 hourly

What am I worth?

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How do principal firmware engineers rate their job?

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Principal firmware engineer reviews

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A zippia user wrote a review on Jul 2023
Pros

Developing new technologies and working with both hardware and software

Cons

Unrealistic demands from management and the job markets ups and downs


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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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