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The differences between senior quality assurances and senior test engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a senior quality assurance and a senior test engineer. Additionally, a senior quality assurance has an average salary of $98,182, which is higher than the $82,775 average annual salary of a senior test engineer.
The top three skills for a senior quality assurance include QA, java and test cases. The most important skills for a senior test engineer are test cases, python, and java.
| Senior Quality Assurance | Senior Test Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $98,182 | $82,775 |
| Hourly rate | $47.20 | $39.80 |
| Growth rate | - | - |
| Number of jobs | 79,947 | 245,814 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 64% | Bachelor's Degree, 70% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
The senior quality assurance or QA agent is in charge of ensuring all products and services are up to the company's standards and customer expectations. The role is vital as it helps the company fine-tune its products and services, resolve issues, and satisfy customer experience. Through the quality assurance team headed by its senior leaders, a company grows, expands, and improves. A quality assurance agent needs to have an eye for detail, be highly organized, and provide insights and advice for continual improvement.
A senior test engineer is an individual who is responsible for developing and implementing cost-effective methods of testing and troubleshooting computer systems and equipment. Senior test engineers must assist junior engineers in developing test plans and conducting testing activities on complex systems to meet program requirements. They aid in the areas of predictability, manufacturing processing, and improvement in the equipment and process. Senior test engineers must also develop proposal inputs and reviews documents generated by junior engineers.
Senior quality assurances and senior test engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Quality Assurance | Senior Test Engineer | |
| Average salary | $98,182 | $82,775 |
| Salary range | Between $74,000 And $128,000 | Between $63,000 And $107,000 |
| Highest paying City | Redwood City, CA | Palo Alto, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | ||
| Best paying industry | Retail | Automotive |
There are a few differences between a senior quality assurance and a senior test engineer in terms of educational background:
| Senior Quality Assurance | Senior Test Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 64% | Bachelor's Degree, 70% |
| Most common major | Computer Science | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | California State University - Long Beach |
Here are the differences between senior quality assurances' and senior test engineers' demographics:
| Senior Quality Assurance | Senior Test Engineer | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 57.7% Female, 42.3% | Male, 79.1% Female, 20.9% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 8.8% Asian, 12.0% White, 67.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 8.8% Asian, 12.0% White, 67.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |