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The differences between senior project engineers and project lead engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a senior project engineer, becoming a project lead engineer takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a project lead engineer has an average salary of $106,946, which is higher than the $97,803 average annual salary of a senior project engineer.
The top three skills for a senior project engineer include project management, construction management and CAD. The most important skills for a project lead engineer are project management, renewable energy, and project execution.
| Senior Project Engineer | Project Lead Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $97,803 | $106,946 |
| Hourly rate | $47.02 | $51.42 |
| Growth rate | 2% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 146,838 | 98,018 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 76% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| Average age | 41 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 4 |
A senior project engineer is responsible for monitoring the project team's overall process and operations from conceptualization until completion, ensuring the adherence to the clients' specifications, within the budget's goals, and the required deadline. Senior project engineers regularly communicate with the client regarding updates or necessary adjustments. They develop strategic procedures to finish the project efficiently by running diagnostic tests and troubleshooting discrepancies. A senior project engineer must have excellent communication and leadership skills to handle the team's performance and provide assistance when necessary.
Project lead engineers are engineering professionals who are responsible for leading other professionals in completing a particular project. These engineers must develop a project management framework to be implemented throughout the organization based on the inputs from internal stakeholders and team members. They are required to train junior team members so that they can provide proper technical support functions. Project lead engineers must also prepare and review cost estimates for a variety of projects during bidding, construction, and post-construction phases.
Senior project engineers and project lead engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Project Engineer | Project Lead Engineer | |
| Average salary | $97,803 | $106,946 |
| Salary range | Between $77,000 And $124,000 | Between $78,000 And $146,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Cupertino, CA |
| Highest paying state | Maryland | California |
| Best paying company | Amazon | Apple |
| Best paying industry | Automotive | Automotive |
There are a few differences between a senior project engineer and a project lead engineer in terms of educational background:
| Senior Project Engineer | Project Lead Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 76% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| Most common major | Mechanical Engineering | Mechanical Engineering |
| Most common college | Michigan Technological University | Northwestern University |
Here are the differences between senior project engineers' and project lead engineers' demographics:
| Senior Project Engineer | Project Lead Engineer | |
| Average age | 41 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 84.4% Female, 15.6% | Male, 86.8% Female, 13.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.2% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 8.4% Asian, 14.8% White, 69.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% | Black or African American, 4.3% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 10.4% Asian, 15.2% White, 66.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 5% | 4% |