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The differences between quality assurance representatives and senior 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 representative and a senior quality assurance engineer. Additionally, a senior quality assurance engineer has an average salary of $106,802, which is higher than the $43,867 average annual salary of a quality assurance representative.
The top three skills for a quality assurance representative include maintenance procedures, patients and safety procedures. The most important skills for a senior quality assurance engineer are QA, java, and python.
| Quality Assurance Representative | Senior Quality Assurance Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $43,867 | $106,802 |
| Hourly rate | $21.09 | $51.35 |
| Growth rate | 3% | - |
| Number of jobs | 69,120 | 254,258 |
| Job satisfaction | 3 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 48% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
Quality assurance inspectors are responsible for inspecting, testing, and sampling products, materials, or parts for any defects and deviations from company standards. They are tasks to reject any materials, equipment, and products that don't meet specifications. It is their job to discuss inspection results with personnel responsible for the products, and suggest needed corrective actions. To be qualified as a quality assurance inspector, one should have a high school diploma and a college degree, attentive to detail, and have excellent communication skills.
A senior quality assurance engineer oversees the testing procedures conducted in software development, ensuring technical accuracy and efficiency. They are primarily responsible for working alongside software designers and quality engineers, reviewing quality control reports, inspecting specifications, and devising particular test procedures. Moreover, it is also essential to troubleshoot issues and identify any inconsistencies or bugs. As someone with more experience in the team, they must supervise and serve as a mentor to the younger quality assurance engineers in the joint effort to develop efficient software.
Quality assurance representatives and senior quality assurance engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Quality Assurance Representative | Senior Quality Assurance Engineer | |
| Average salary | $43,867 | $106,802 |
| Salary range | Between $24,000 And $79,000 | Between $82,000 And $138,000 |
| Highest paying City | Lompoc, CA | San Mateo, CA |
| Highest paying state | Washington | California |
| Best paying company | Eli Lilly and Company | The Citadel |
| Best paying industry | Government | Telecommunication |
There are a few differences between a quality assurance representative and a senior quality assurance engineer in terms of educational background:
| Quality Assurance Representative | Senior Quality Assurance Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 48% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Most common major | Business | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
Here are the differences between quality assurance representatives' and senior quality assurance engineers' demographics:
| Quality Assurance Representative | Senior Quality Assurance Engineer | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 60.8% Female, 39.2% | Male, 68.0% Female, 32.0% |
| 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% |