How To Become A Senior Storage Engineer: What It Is and Career Path

What is a senior storage engineer and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted expert

Andrea Welker Ph.D.

A senior storage engineer is an experienced IT professional who maintains and implements solutions for data storage and maintenance for a company or an organization. They are responsible for upgrading computer software, applying needed software patches, and ensuring that an organization's data is secure and safe from hackers and security breaches. These individuals evaluate system inputs and outputs for database systems, and manage overall database architecture, and work with other staff to maintain data integrity and reliability. The senior storage engineer is also is responsible for the development and design of new database operations and prototypes.

Many senior storage engineers have a bachelor's or a certificate in computer science, IT, database, or storage management. However, an advanced degree is not necessarily needed if the individual has comparable knowledge and experience. These individuals are seen as experts in data management and should possess strong communication, analytical and problem-solving skills.

Depending upon the industry, a senior storage engineer can make up to $103,000 annually, and the career field is expected to grow 5% by 2028. If you enjoy working with databases and storage systems, a position as a senior storage engineer can be a rewarding job.

What general advice would you give to a senior storage engineer?

Andrea Welker Ph.D.

Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, College of Engineering Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Villanova University

Be open to new experiences. Find a good mentor. Become a valued employee. Always remember that you are designing something for someone.

ScoreSenior Storage EngineerUS Average

Salary

7.9

Avg. Salary $112,061

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

5.7

Growth rate 5%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

3.6

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.31%

Asian 13.67%

Black or African American 7.85%

Hispanic or Latino 11.57%

Unknown 5.00%

White 61.60%

Gender

female 7.28%

male 92.72%

Age - 42

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 42

Stress level

5.7

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

6.7

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

7.1

Work life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a senior storage engineer

Explore senior storage engineer education requirements

Most common senior storage engineer degrees

Bachelor's

67.8 %

Master's

15.5 %

Associate

12.5 %

Start to develop specific senior storage engineer skills

Skills	Percentages
Windows	8.90%
Linux	6.68%
Isilon	5.93%
Switches	4.99%
Storage Systems	4.07%

Complete relevant senior storage engineer training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 3-6 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New senior storage engineers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a senior storage engineer based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real senior storage engineer resumes.

Research senior storage engineer duties and responsibilities

Manage T3 storage connect over FC to SunFire systems.
Create various scripts to automate tasks using VBScript and PowerShell.
Code and manage the SMS ACS routines for correct data set allocations.
Project manage a successful million dollar+ Hitachi USPV engagement in a timely and effective manner.

Get senior storage engineer experience

Generally, it takes 1-2 years to become a senior storage engineer. The most common roles before becoming a senior storage engineer include storage administrator, systems administrator team lead and systems engineer.

Prepare your senior storage engineer resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your senior storage engineer resume.

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