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The differences between product applications engineers and senior sales engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a product applications engineer and a senior sales engineer. Additionally, a senior sales engineer has an average salary of $116,026, which is higher than the $101,877 average annual salary of a product applications engineer.
The top three skills for a product applications engineer include technical support, product line and RF. The most important skills for a senior sales engineer are pre sales, cloud, and product demonstrations.
| Product Applications Engineer | Senior Sales Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $101,877 | $116,026 |
| Hourly rate | $48.98 | $55.78 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 101,218 | 81,179 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
A product applications engineer's job is to determine business needs and develop solutions with product managers and address customer queries and issues promptly. They typically address customer questions and issues in a timely manner. They communicate feedback from customers to the design team and provide post-sales support to make suitable modifications in product design. Moreover, it is part of their responsibility to evaluate new software products, check defects, conduct internal application trials for verification, and maintain accurate documentation of problems related to applications, including solutions.
A senior sales engineer is responsible for assisting the marketing and sales team on the technical aspect of operations. Senior sales engineers help the team to structure efficient deliverables and high-quality outputs using their technical expertise for requirements. They identify business opportunities by analyzing sales movements and conducting statistical data management that would generate more revenue resources and attract business partnerships. A senior sales engineer recommends process improvement techniques to meet client requirements and specifications within budget limitations and deadlines.
Product applications engineers and senior sales engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Product Applications Engineer | Senior Sales Engineer | |
| Average salary | $101,877 | $116,026 |
| Salary range | Between $75,000 And $138,000 | Between $86,000 And $154,000 |
| Highest paying City | Mountain View, CA | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | California | Virginia |
| Best paying company | Tesla | |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Professional |
There are a few differences between a product applications engineer and a senior sales engineer in terms of educational background:
| Product Applications Engineer | Senior Sales Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Business |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between product applications engineers' and senior sales engineers' demographics:
| Product Applications Engineer | Senior Sales Engineer | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 89.4% Female, 10.6% | Male, 91.5% Female, 8.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 1.4% Unknown, 6.1% Hispanic or Latino, 6.6% Asian, 11.1% White, 74.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 1.6% Unknown, 6.2% Hispanic or Latino, 7.6% Asian, 7.1% White, 77.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |