Rocket engine tester vs quality inspector

The differences between rocket engine testers and quality inspectors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a rocket engine tester has an average salary of $55,241, which is higher than the $33,197 average annual salary of a quality inspector.

The top three skills for a rocket engine tester include mechanical design, CAD and . The most important skills for a quality inspector are calipers, micrometers, and quality standards.

Rocket engine tester vs quality inspector overview

	Rocket Engine Tester	Quality Inspector
Yearly salary	$55,241	$33,197
Hourly rate	$26.56	$15.96
Growth rate	-3%	-3%
Number of jobs	8,659	70,978
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 77%	High School Diploma, 37%
Average age	45	45
Years of experience	-	-

Rocket engine tester vs quality inspector salary

Rocket engine testers and quality inspectors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Rocket Engine Tester	Quality Inspector
Average salary	$55,241	$33,197
Salary range	Between $26,000 And $113,000	Between $25,000 And $42,000
Highest paying City	-	Minneapolis, MN
Highest paying state	-	Washington
Best paying company	-	Nabors Industries
Best paying industry	-	Health Care

Differences between rocket engine tester and quality inspector education

There are a few differences between a rocket engine tester and a quality inspector in terms of educational background:

	Rocket Engine Tester	Quality Inspector
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 77%	High School Diploma, 37%
Most common major	Mechanical Engineering	Business
Most common college	-	-

Rocket engine tester vs quality inspector demographics

Here are the differences between rocket engine testers' and quality inspectors' demographics:

	Rocket Engine Tester	Quality Inspector
Average age	45	45
Gender ratio	Male, 86.7% Female, 13.3%	Male, 53.5% Female, 46.5%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.6% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 16.6% Asian, 7.5% White, 61.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 11.6% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.2% Asian, 8.5% White, 57.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%
LGBT Percentage	4%	4%

Differences between rocket engine tester and quality inspector duties and responsibilities

Rocket engine tester example responsibilities.

Work with the inter-departments with DOD, OHSA, and EPA to submit proposal for a new heavy lift vehicle.
Work closely with NASA customers and ATK personnel to recommend solutions to difficult issues in redesign.
Ensure compliance with environmental regulations.

Quality inspector example responsibilities.

Task involve use of calipers, optical comparators, volt/ohm meters and curve tracer.
Utilize measuring instruments like calipers, gauges, and micrometers to assure product conformance to customers specifications.
Recycle ESD products as required.
Maintain logs of products as required per AS9100.
Document and inspect for ESD requirements and for proper handling of MSD moisture sensitive devices.
Perform surface plate set-ups, utilizing gage blocks, angle blocks, sine plates and bars.

Rocket engine tester vs quality inspector skills

Common rocket engine tester skills

Mechanical Design, 62%
CAD, 38%

Common quality inspector skills

Calipers, 9%
Micrometers, 7%
Quality Standards, 6%
Quality Inspection, 6%
Inspection Results, 4%
CMM, 4%

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Rocket Engine Tester vs Quality Inspector

Updated January 8, 2025

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