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The differences between principal quality engineers and certified medical technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a principal quality engineer, becoming a certified medical technician takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a principal quality engineer has an average salary of $103,677, which is higher than the $38,859 average annual salary of a certified medical technician.
The top three skills for a principal quality engineer include sigma, corrective action and ISO. The most important skills for a certified medical technician are patients, vital signs, and CPR.
| Principal Quality Engineer | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $103,677 | $38,859 |
| Hourly rate | $49.84 | $18.68 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 120,965 | 164,424 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 71% | Bachelor's Degree, 28% |
| Average age | 42 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 12 |
Principal quality engineers are engineering professionals who are responsible for providing quality engineering support and technical guidance to help the quality activities of a project. They are required to supervise the quality management system to monitor the progress of projects and ensure their timely deliveries. They must provide quality assurance (QA) solutions while evaluating the efficiency of their existing QA processes. Principal quality engineers must also identify technical risks and challenges by suggesting corrective actions and QA process improvements.
Certified Medical Technicians are specialists in medical diagnoses by performing laboratory testing and analysis for hospitals and physicians. Their duties include lab sanitization to prepare for testing and collection, recording medical samples for testing, specimen preparation, blood drawing for donation and testing, and assisting physicians with sample collection as well as equipment handling in surgical rooms. They must also understand how to use complex and sensitive testing equipment such as cell counters, analyzers, microscopes, and centrifuges.
Principal quality engineers and certified medical technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Principal Quality Engineer | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Average salary | $103,677 | $38,859 |
| Salary range | Between $80,000 And $133,000 | Between $28,000 And $53,000 |
| Highest paying City | Redwood City, CA | Denton, TX |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | Alaska |
| Best paying company | Palo Alto Networks | Favorite Healthcare Staffing |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Health Care |
There are a few differences between a principal quality engineer and a certified medical technician in terms of educational background:
| Principal Quality Engineer | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 71% | Bachelor's Degree, 28% |
| Most common major | Mechanical Engineering | Nursing |
| Most common college | New York University | University of Connecticut |
Here are the differences between principal quality engineers' and certified medical technicians' demographics:
| Principal Quality Engineer | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Average age | 42 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 81.0% Female, 19.0% | Male, 20.4% Female, 79.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.3% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 10.5% Asian, 15.4% White, 65.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 15.9% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.6% Asian, 10.0% White, 53.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% |
| LGBT Percentage | 4% | 8% |