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The differences between senior field engineers and service engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a senior field engineer, becoming a service engineer takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a senior field engineer has an average salary of $97,104, which is higher than the $87,151 average annual salary of a service engineer.
The top three skills for a senior field engineer include RF, technical support and excellent interpersonal. The most important skills for a service engineer are customer service, infrastructure, and cloud.
| Senior Field Engineer | Service Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $97,104 | $87,151 |
| Hourly rate | $46.68 | $41.90 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 2% |
| Number of jobs | 86,767 | 143,806 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 53% | Bachelor's Degree, 57% |
| Average age | 45 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 6 |
A senior field engineer is in charge of overseeing and providing technical support on-site, helping operations run smoothly and efficiently. Among their responsibilities include performing installations and upgrades, performing research and analysis, managing staff, producing progress reports, and conducting inspections, ensuring compliance with state laws and regulations. They must also perform regular maintenance checks on equipment, performing corrective repairs and adjustments when necessary. Furthermore, as a senior field engineer, it is essential to lead and serve as a mentor to junior engineers while implementing the site's safety policies and regulations.
A service engineer is responsible for assisting the customers' concerns regarding the products and services offered by the company through technical support solutions. Service engineers conduct preventive maintenance, upgrade systems to boost optimal performance, create product manuals, record the occurring issues, perform adjustments on the systems infrastructure, identify business opportunities to generate more revenues, and analyze current market trends to meet client demands. A service engineer must have excellent communication skills, including extensive knowledge of the technology industry and network systems.
Senior field engineers and service engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Field Engineer | Service Engineer | |
| Average salary | $97,104 | $87,151 |
| Salary range | Between $67,000 And $139,000 | Between $62,000 And $122,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Apple | The Citadel |
| Best paying industry | Energy | Technology |
There are a few differences between a senior field engineer and a service engineer in terms of educational background:
| Senior Field Engineer | Service Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 53% | Bachelor's Degree, 57% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | Michigan Technological University | Michigan Technological University |
Here are the differences between senior field engineers' and service engineers' demographics:
| Senior Field Engineer | Service Engineer | |
| Average age | 45 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 95.1% Female, 4.9% | Male, 91.8% Female, 8.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.9% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 11.5% Asian, 14.3% White, 64.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 3.3% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 8.9% Asian, 13.2% White, 69.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 5% |