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The differences between process development engineers and quality engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a process development engineer and a quality engineer. Additionally, a process development engineer has an average salary of $89,754, which is higher than the $79,672 average annual salary of a quality engineer.
The top three skills for a process development engineer include data analysis, DOE and R. The most important skills for a quality engineer are corrective action, continuous improvement, and ISO.
| Process Development Engineer | Quality Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $89,754 | $79,672 |
| Hourly rate | $43.15 | $38.30 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 118,616 | 96,838 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 70% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
A Process Development Engineer creates and implements process technology for product manufacturing to optimize workflow, improve operating capabilities, and help ensure workers' safety. They help enhance the speed and quality of processing from a variety of industries, such as mining or manufacturing.
A quality engineer's responsibilities include ensuring that the manufacturing processes are efficient and accurate, documenting findings that would raise concerns, conducting quality tests while observing parameters, and implementing changes as necessary to meet the highest quality standards. Quality engineers need to have excellent problem-solving and observation skills to detect any irregularities and possible malfunctions. They also must be able to communicate effectively with the clients for feedbacks and corrective adjustments, address complaints, and immediately resolve any inconsistencies made.
Process development engineers and quality engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Process Development Engineer | Quality Engineer | |
| Average salary | $89,754 | $79,672 |
| Salary range | Between $70,000 And $114,000 | Between $61,000 And $103,000 |
| Highest paying City | Santa Rosa, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Washington | Washington |
| Best paying company | Apple | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Manufacturing | Technology |
There are a few differences between a process development engineer and a quality engineer in terms of educational background:
| Process Development Engineer | Quality Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 70% |
| Most common major | Chemical Engineering | Mechanical Engineering |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | Northwestern University |
Here are the differences between process development engineers' and quality engineers' demographics:
| Process Development Engineer | Quality Engineer | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 81.2% Female, 18.8% | Male, 78.2% Female, 21.8% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.3% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 10.5% Asian, 15.3% White, 65.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 4.7% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 11.5% Asian, 13.9% White, 65.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 4% | 4% |