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The differences between quality assurance interns and quality assurance 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 quality assurance internship and a quality assurance engineer. Additionally, a quality assurance engineer has an average salary of $82,215, which is higher than the $37,029 average annual salary of a quality assurance internship.
The top three skills for a quality assurance internship include QA, java and python. The most important skills for a quality assurance engineer are java, python, and regression.
| Quality Assurance Internship | Quality Assurance Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $37,029 | $82,215 |
| Hourly rate | $17.80 | $39.53 |
| Growth rate | - | - |
| Number of jobs | 121,163 | 243,536 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 75% | Bachelor's Degree, 71% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
A quality assurance internship involves a trainee who gains working experience in the field of quality assurance (QA) by observing QA professionals perform their work and by learning techniques about quality assurance. Quality assurance interns must monitor and test process functions and materials to ensure that products meet the necessary customer requirements. They follow their assigned quality control plans or guidelines as well as evaluate data for any deviations in the manufacturing process. Quality assurance interns must also assist internal and external customers regarding quality-related matters.
A Quality Assurance Engineer's role is to oversee the overall production and ensure that the product is cost-efficient and aligns with the company's standards. The responsibility mainly revolves around conducting activities that examine and scrutinize the condition of a product or service to identify issues and come up with possible solutions to resolve the issue or attain stronger customer satisfaction. Furthermore, the Quality Assurance Engineer must also ensure that the product adheres to the government regulations and market guidelines.
Quality assurance interns and quality assurance engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Quality Assurance Internship | Quality Assurance Engineer | |
| Average salary | $37,029 | $82,215 |
| Salary range | Between $25,000 And $52,000 | Between $61,000 And $109,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Mateo, CA |
| Highest paying state | Massachusetts | California |
| Best paying company | Ernst & Young | The Citadel |
| Best paying industry | Professional | Technology |
There are a few differences between a quality assurance internship and a quality assurance engineer in terms of educational background:
| Quality Assurance Internship | Quality Assurance Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 75% | Bachelor's Degree, 71% |
| Most common major | Accounting | Computer Science |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
Here are the differences between quality assurance interns' and quality assurance engineers' demographics:
| Quality Assurance Internship | Quality Assurance Engineer | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 60.4% Female, 39.6% | Male, 69.5% Female, 30.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 8.8% Asian, 12.0% White, 67.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 8.8% Asian, 12.0% White, 67.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |