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The differences between senior project engineers and senior project managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a senior project manager has an average salary of $110,947, 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 senior project manager are project management, program management, and portfolio.
| Senior Project Engineer | Senior Project Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $97,803 | $110,947 |
| Hourly rate | $47.02 | $53.34 |
| Growth rate | 2% | 16% |
| Number of jobs | 146,838 | 183,210 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 76% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Average age | 41 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 6 | - |
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.
Senior project managers are experienced employees assigned to oversee a specific project in the organization. They manage the project from conception to execution. They are onboard the project from the ideation phase, providing valuable insights to ensure the success of the project. Senior project managers are also in charge of managing the budget, ensuring that the expected timelines are followed, adjusting strategies when needed, and guiding project team members. It is important for senior project managers to be good leaders and communicators. They should be able to balance the interests of all the stakeholders involved in the project. They should have good interpersonal skills and decision-making skills.
Senior project engineers and senior project managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Project Engineer | Senior Project Manager | |
| Average salary | $97,803 | $110,947 |
| Salary range | Between $77,000 And $124,000 | Between $82,000 And $148,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Maryland | California |
| Best paying company | Amazon | Roku |
| Best paying industry | Automotive | Technology |
There are a few differences between a senior project engineer and a senior project manager in terms of educational background:
| Senior Project Engineer | Senior Project Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 76% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Most common major | Mechanical Engineering | Business |
| Most common college | Michigan Technological University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between senior project engineers' and senior project managers' demographics:
| Senior Project Engineer | Senior Project Manager | |
| Average age | 41 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 84.4% Female, 15.6% | Male, 71.4% Female, 28.6% |
| 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, 7.5% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 12.5% Asian, 8.8% White, 65.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 5% | 10% |