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The differences between senior member technical staff and principal software 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 member technical staff, becoming a principal software engineer takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a principal software engineer has an average salary of $134,230, which is higher than the $130,432 average annual salary of a senior member technical staff.
The top three skills for a senior member technical staff include java, python and cloud. The most important skills for a principal software engineer are java, python, and software development.
| Senior Member Technical Staff | Principal Software Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $130,432 | $134,230 |
| Hourly rate | $62.71 | $64.53 |
| Growth rate | 5% | 21% |
| Number of jobs | 188,462 | 345,893 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 64% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Average age | 43 | 39 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 4 |
A Senior Member Technical Staff is a title synonymous with software engineering given by technology companies to reduce discrepancies from different overlapping job backgrounds. Companies use this title so that they can make employee remuneration and provision of staff benefits less complicated and efficient. Moreover, a Senior Member of Technical Staff can also apply in the circumstance of them possessing highly valued multi-disciplinary knowledge that cannot be subjected to a singular job category.
A Principal Software Engineer is responsible for the technical aspects of an organization's projects. They diagnose, document, and troubleshoot systems to resolve problems identified through testing, as well as implement strategies to improve integration and efficiency.
Senior member technical staff and principal software engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Member Technical Staff | Principal Software Engineer | |
| Average salary | $130,432 | $134,230 |
| Salary range | Between $99,000 And $171,000 | Between $98,000 And $182,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Seattle, WA |
| Highest paying state | California | Hawaii |
| Best paying company | Pure Storage | |
| Best paying industry | Telecommunication | Retail |
There are a few differences between a senior member technical staff and a principal software engineer in terms of educational background:
| Senior Member Technical Staff | Principal Software Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 64% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Computer Science |
| Most common college | California State University - Long Beach | California State University - Long Beach |
Here are the differences between senior member technical staff' and principal software engineers' demographics:
| Senior Member Technical Staff | Principal Software Engineer | |
| Average age | 43 | 39 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 80.6% Female, 19.4% | Male, 87.5% Female, 12.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 8.0% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 11.7% Asian, 13.9% White, 61.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 4.4% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 8.2% Asian, 29.9% White, 52.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 9% | 8% |