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The differences between senior environmental engineers and environmental specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 6-12 months to become a senior environmental engineer, becoming an environmental specialist takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a senior environmental engineer has an average salary of $84,515, which is higher than the $54,482 average annual salary of an environmental specialist.
The top three skills for a senior environmental engineer include environmental engineering, environmental compliance and OSHA. The most important skills for an environmental specialist are hazardous waste, environmental compliance, and hazardous materials.
| Senior Environmental Engineer | Environmental Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $84,515 | $54,482 |
| Hourly rate | $40.63 | $26.19 |
| Growth rate | 4% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 30,813 | 18,074 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 64% |
| Average age | 43 | 39 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 6 |
Senior Environmental Engineers are responsible for the supervision and implementation of processes that protect the environment intending to reduce contamination, control pollution, and optimize resource usage. They are responsible for identifying contaminant sources, managing sites assessments, carrying out technical audits, making waste-management recommendations, creating environmental impacts forecast using computer modeling and mathematical techniques as well as design technical solution to reduce an organization's negative environmental impact. They also ensure the site achieves environmental regulation compliance, keeps updated with environmental law changes, and assist in managing permits.
Environmental specialists are experts in natural science who are responsible for monitoring the environmental impact of a population, identifying environmental problems, and recommending measures to solve these issues. These scientists perform various duties and responsibilities that include overseeing field examinations and reporting hazard materials and locations, evaluating environmental health concerns, and investigating preparing reports related to environmental issues. Environmental specialists are also responsible for consulting with agencies or clients about an issue or situation and working with other companies to reduce pollution and waste.
Senior environmental engineers and environmental specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Environmental Engineer | Environmental Specialist | |
| Average salary | $84,515 | $54,482 |
| Salary range | Between $65,000 And $109,000 | Between $36,000 And $80,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | West Virginia | California |
| Best paying company | Microsoft | Texas Instruments |
| Best paying industry | Energy | Manufacturing |
There are a few differences between a senior environmental engineer and an environmental specialist in terms of educational background:
| Senior Environmental Engineer | Environmental Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 64% |
| Most common major | Chemical Engineering | Environmental Science |
| Most common college | University of California, Berkeley | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill |
Here are the differences between senior environmental engineers' and environmental specialists' demographics:
| Senior Environmental Engineer | Environmental Specialist | |
| Average age | 43 | 39 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 74.9% Female, 25.1% | Male, 62.6% Female, 37.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.6% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 10.4% Asian, 13.0% White, 68.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 3.1% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 6.2% Asian, 5.0% White, 81.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% |
| LGBT Percentage | 13% | 16% |