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The differences between software development specialists and senior software development 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 software development specialist and a senior software development engineer. Additionally, a senior software development engineer has an average salary of $116,926, which is higher than the $102,196 average annual salary of a software development specialist.
The top three skills for a software development specialist include software development, java and windows. The most important skills for a senior software development engineer are java, software development, and python.
| Software Development Specialist | Senior Software Development Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $102,196 | $116,926 |
| Hourly rate | $49.13 | $56.21 |
| Growth rate | 21% | 21% |
| Number of jobs | 252,367 | 346,833 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 71% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Average age | 39 | 39 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
Software development specialists and senior software development engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Software Development Specialist | Senior Software Development Engineer | |
| Average salary | $102,196 | $116,926 |
| Salary range | Between $78,000 And $132,000 | Between $87,000 And $156,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | Washington |
| Best paying company | Netflix | Roku |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Automotive |
There are a few differences between a software development specialist and a senior software development engineer in terms of educational background:
| Software Development Specialist | Senior Software Development Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 71% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Most common major | Computer Science | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | Harvard University |
Here are the differences between software development specialists' and senior software development engineers' demographics:
| Software Development Specialist | Senior Software Development Engineer | |
| Average age | 39 | 39 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 67.7% Female, 32.3% | Male, 83.9% Female, 16.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.5% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 8.2% Asian, 29.9% White, 52.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 4.3% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 8.0% Asian, 30.6% White, 52.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 8% |