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Solar designer vs electrical design engineer

The differences between solar designers and electrical design 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 solar designer and an electrical design engineer. Additionally, an electrical design engineer has an average salary of $83,944, which is higher than the $58,292 average annual salary of a solar designer.

The top three skills for a solar designer include CAD, system design and solar power. The most important skills for an electrical design engineer are electrical design, revit, and electrical systems.

Solar designer vs electrical design engineer overview

Solar DesignerElectrical Design Engineer
Yearly salary$58,292$83,944
Hourly rate$28.02$40.36
Growth rate3%3%
Number of jobs46,16087,121
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 66%Bachelor's Degree, 75%
Average age4545
Years of experience22

Solar designer vs electrical design engineer salary

Solar designers and electrical design engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.

Solar DesignerElectrical Design Engineer
Average salary$58,292$83,944
Salary rangeBetween $35,000 And $94,000Between $63,000 And $110,000
Highest paying CityPetaluma, CASan Francisco, CA
Highest paying stateCaliforniaWashington
Best paying companySmith & AssociatesApple
Best paying industryProfessionalTechnology

Differences between solar designer and electrical design engineer education

There are a few differences between a solar designer and an electrical design engineer in terms of educational background:

Solar DesignerElectrical Design Engineer
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 66%Bachelor's Degree, 75%
Most common majorMechanical EngineeringElectrical Engineering
Most common collegeCarnegie Mellon UniversityMichigan Technological University

Solar designer vs electrical design engineer demographics

Here are the differences between solar designers' and electrical design engineers' demographics:

Solar DesignerElectrical Design Engineer
Average age4545
Gender ratioMale, 88.1% Female, 11.9%Male, 89.9% Female, 10.1%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 4.8% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 11.1% Asian, 14.5% White, 64.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%Black or African American, 4.9% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 11.3% Asian, 14.4% White, 64.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage6%6%

Differences between solar designer and electrical design engineer duties and responsibilities

Solar designer example responsibilities.

  • Modify SRV-1 source code using JavaScript software to attain tracking at any instantaneous time.
  • Use of SalesForce, SketchUp, Pictometry & SunCalc to complete design to local AHJ requirements.
  • Base on previous data, optimize the amount of cushioning material for balancing battery protection and weight.
  • Design electrical and structural plans for permitting and commissioning at multiple AHJ's and utility companies in AZ.
  • Determine roof pitch, azimuth, obstructions, BOM & conduit routing for optimum lifetime performance & cost.
  • Provide AutoCAD drawings and support electrical engineers in construction and renovation of custom homes.
  • Show more

Electrical design engineer example responsibilities.

  • Utilize LabView software package to automate testing.
  • Used Perl and Linux script to help automate the ASIC design and test flow.
  • Work with approval agencies to achieve UL, CSA, CE, FCC and IC certifications.
  • Coordinate with senior electrical engineers and achieve hands-on experience on coal fire plant power generation and power transformers, circuit breakers.
  • Perform RF checkout, aperture field probing and user sign-off of chambers and test equipment for various types of chambers.
  • Analyze and simulate low power circuits, front-end amplifiers and develop analog signal conditioning circuitry interfacing the digital control systems.
  • Show more

Solar designer vs electrical design engineer skills

Common solar designer skills
  • CAD, 36%
  • System Design, 24%
  • Solar Power, 13%
  • Solar PV, 8%
  • Solar Panels, 6%
  • Line Diagrams, 4%
Common electrical design engineer skills
  • Electrical Design, 10%
  • Revit, 5%
  • Electrical Systems, 5%
  • CAD, 4%
  • Analog, 4%
  • Engineering Design, 4%

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