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The differences between solar designers and system 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 a system design engineer. Additionally, a system design engineer has an average salary of $107,704, 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 a system design engineer are system design, architecture, and MATLAB.
| Solar Designer | System Design Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $58,292 | $107,704 |
| Hourly rate | $28.02 | $51.78 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 46,160 | 113,582 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 70% |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
Solar designers and system design engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Solar Designer | System Design Engineer | |
| Average salary | $58,292 | $107,704 |
| Salary range | Between $35,000 And $94,000 | Between $77,000 And $149,000 |
| Highest paying City | Petaluma, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Smith & Associates | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Professional | Automotive |
There are a few differences between a solar designer and a system design engineer in terms of educational background:
| Solar Designer | System Design Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 70% |
| Most common major | Mechanical Engineering | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | Carnegie Mellon University | Michigan Technological University |
Here are the differences between solar designers' and system design engineers' demographics:
| Solar Designer | System Design Engineer | |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 88.1% Female, 11.9% | Male, 91.2% Female, 8.8% |
| Race ratio | Black 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, 11.4% Asian, 15.4% White, 63.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |