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The differences between senior industrial designers and senior designers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a senior industrial designer, becoming a senior designer takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a senior designer has an average salary of $102,058, which is higher than the $74,758 average annual salary of a senior industrial designer.
The top three skills for a senior industrial designer include industrial design, solidworks and CAD. The most important skills for a senior designer are sketch, graphic design, and human centered design.
| Senior Industrial Designer | Senior Designer | |
| Yearly salary | $74,758 | $102,058 |
| Hourly rate | $35.94 | $49.07 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 52,343 | 47,503 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 1 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 79% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Average age | 40 | 38 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 12 |
A senior industrial designer specializes in designing and developing ideas into manufactured products. Most of their responsibilities revolve around conducting extensive research and analysis to identify what the product will be and who will use it, conceptualize plans and designs, create sketches and blueprints, utilize software and other tools to come up with virtual models, and present prototypes to clients. They must also develop guidelines and specifications according to the project's requirements. Moreover, as a senior industrial engineer, they must lead and serve as a role model to junior designers, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
Senior designers are typically in charge of realizing design solutions that adhere to the business goals and marketing strategies of an organization. They should be comfortable managing graphics designers and making decisions. They must have extensive knowledge of styles, layout techniques, and graphic design while also managing projects and people effectively. Senior designers have a variety of duties, which include delegating tasks to junior designers, maintaining high-quality standards, and collaborating to improve digital creativity standards.
Senior industrial designers and senior designers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Industrial Designer | Senior Designer | |
| Average salary | $74,758 | $102,058 |
| Salary range | Between $46,000 And $121,000 | Between $72,000 And $143,000 |
| Highest paying City | Berkeley, CA | Seattle, WA |
| Highest paying state | California | Washington |
| Best paying company | Lyft | |
| Best paying industry | Manufacturing | Media |
There are a few differences between a senior industrial designer and a senior designer in terms of educational background:
| Senior Industrial Designer | Senior Designer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 79% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Most common major | Graphic Design | Graphic Design |
| Most common college | Stanford University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between senior industrial designers' and senior designers' demographics:
| Senior Industrial Designer | Senior Designer | |
| Average age | 40 | 38 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 91.5% Female, 8.5% | Male, 71.0% Female, 29.0% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 1.1% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.3% Asian, 10.1% White, 76.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 3.4% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 10.6% Asian, 10.4% White, 70.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 13% |