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The differences between senior information systems engineers and principal systems engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a senior information systems engineer and a principal systems engineer. Additionally, a principal systems engineer has an average salary of $133,208, which is higher than the $113,965 average annual salary of a senior information systems engineer.
The top three skills for a senior information systems engineer include NIST, linux and DOD. The most important skills for a principal systems engineer are systems engineering, DOD, and C++.
| Senior Information Systems Engineer | Principal Systems Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $113,965 | $133,208 |
| Hourly rate | $54.79 | $64.04 |
| Growth rate | 5% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 168,069 | 146,444 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 64% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
A senior information systems engineer deals with technical issues. This position requires excellent interpersonal skills, including organizational abilities and written and verbal communication skills. They are responsible for resolving escalated service issues, maintaining the technology of their assigned accounts, coaching other engineers for resolutions, documenting maintenance for all computer systems and network infrastructure, performing network assessments and security audits and new client consultation, and implementing complex projects.
A Principal Systems Engineer supervises a group of other engineers in technical projects. They develop and lead systems engineering projects and efforts.
Senior information systems engineers and principal systems engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Information Systems Engineer | Principal Systems Engineer | |
| Average salary | $113,965 | $133,208 |
| Salary range | Between $80,000 And $161,000 | Between $97,000 And $181,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Mateo, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati | eBay |
| Best paying industry | Hospitality | Telecommunication |
There are a few differences between a senior information systems engineer and a principal systems engineer in terms of educational background:
| Senior Information Systems Engineer | Principal Systems Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 64% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Most common major | Computer Science | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | Northeastern University |
Here are the differences between senior information systems engineers' and principal systems engineers' demographics:
| Senior Information Systems Engineer | Principal Systems Engineer | |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 87.3% Female, 12.7% | Male, 89.7% Female, 10.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.0% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 12.7% Asian, 10.8% White, 62.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 8.3% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 12.1% Asian, 12.8% White, 61.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% |
| LGBT Percentage | 9% | 9% |