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The differences between senior civil engineers and civil 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 senior civil engineer and a civil engineer. Additionally, a senior civil engineer has an average salary of $83,749, which is higher than the $70,950 average annual salary of a civil engineer.
The top three skills for a senior civil engineer include civil 3d, project management and CAD. The most important skills for a civil engineer are civil 3d, engineering design, and cost estimates.
| Senior Civil Engineer | Civil Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $83,749 | $70,950 |
| Hourly rate | $40.26 | $34.11 |
| Growth rate | 7% | 7% |
| Number of jobs | 38,162 | 26,803 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 75% | Bachelor's Degree, 77% |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
A senior civil engineer is primarily in charge of overseeing the development of public structures such as buildings, bridges, pipelines, and roads. They are responsible for spearheading the design and planning stages, setting goals and objectives, managing budgets and timelines, performing due diligence, inspecting construction sites, and documenting the procedures. Above all, as a senior civil engineer, it is essential to lead and serve as a role model to fellow engineers and contractors, all while implementing the construction site's safety policies and regulations.
A civil engineer designs and supervises the construction of large-scale public works projects such as buildings, roads, tunnels, highways, airports, bridges, dams, and other substantial infrastructure. Most civil engineers work in the private industry, but some work for a government organization. Their output is almost everywhere. Many of them specialize in a specific project or practice a target profession such as in transportation, structural engineering, or geotechnical engineering. They oftentimes work at project sites, as they monitor the ongoing construction.
Senior civil engineers and civil engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Civil Engineer | Civil Engineer | |
| Average salary | $83,749 | $70,950 |
| Salary range | Between $60,000 And $115,000 | Between $51,000 And $97,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Rafael, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Microsoft | The Citadel |
| Best paying industry | Retail | Construction |
There are a few differences between a senior civil engineer and a civil engineer in terms of educational background:
| Senior Civil Engineer | Civil Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 75% | Bachelor's Degree, 77% |
| Most common major | Civil Engineering | Civil Engineering |
| Most common college | University of Michigan - Ann Arbor | University of Michigan - Ann Arbor |
Here are the differences between senior civil engineers' and civil engineers' demographics:
| Senior Civil Engineer | Civil Engineer | |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 88.9% Female, 11.1% | Male, 83.6% Female, 16.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.7% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 11.0% Asian, 16.6% White, 63.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 3.8% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 11.2% Asian, 15.6% White, 64.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% |
| LGBT Percentage | 5% | 5% |