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The differences between senior staff 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 staff systems engineer and a principal systems engineer. Additionally, a senior staff systems engineer has an average salary of $139,932, which is higher than the $133,208 average annual salary of a principal systems engineer.
The top three skills for a senior staff systems engineer include java, systems engineering and C++. The most important skills for a principal systems engineer are systems engineering, DOD, and C++.
| Senior Staff Systems Engineer | Principal Systems Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $139,932 | $133,208 |
| Hourly rate | $67.28 | $64.04 |
| Growth rate | 21% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 237,501 | 146,444 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 62% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Average age | 39 | 43 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
Senior staff systems engineers and principal systems engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Staff Systems Engineer | Principal Systems Engineer | |
| Average salary | $139,932 | $133,208 |
| Salary range | Between $108,000 And $181,000 | Between $97,000 And $181,000 |
| Highest paying City | Seattle, WA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Alaska | California |
| Best paying company | Cheniere Energy | eBay |
| Best paying industry | Telecommunication | Telecommunication |
There are a few differences between a senior staff systems engineer and a principal systems engineer in terms of educational background:
| Senior Staff Systems Engineer | Principal Systems Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 62% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | California State University - Long Beach | Northeastern University |
Here are the differences between senior staff systems engineers' and principal systems engineers' demographics:
| Senior Staff Systems Engineer | Principal Systems Engineer | |
| Average age | 39 | 43 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 87.9% Female, 12.1% | Male, 89.7% Female, 10.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.3% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 8.0% Asian, 30.0% White, 52.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | 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 | 8% | 9% |