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Solar engineer vs electrical designer

The differences between solar engineers and electrical designers 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 engineer and an electrical designer. Additionally, a solar engineer has an average salary of $77,229, which is higher than the $64,930 average annual salary of an electrical designer.

The top three skills for a solar engineer include renewable energy, system design and solar pv. The most important skills for an electrical designer are revit, electrical design, and autocad electrical.

Solar engineer vs electrical designer overview

Solar EngineerElectrical Designer
Yearly salary$77,229$64,930
Hourly rate$37.13$31.22
Growth rate3%3%
Number of jobs40,95182,332
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 65%Associate Degree, 47%
Average age4545
Years of experience22

Solar engineer vs electrical designer salary

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

Solar EngineerElectrical Designer
Average salary$77,229$64,930
Salary rangeBetween $53,000 And $111,000Between $47,000 And $89,000
Highest paying CitySan Francisco, CASan Francisco, CA
Highest paying stateWashingtonCalifornia
Best paying companyWEC Energy GroupAmd
Best paying industryUtilitiesManufacturing

Differences between solar engineer and electrical designer education

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

Solar EngineerElectrical Designer
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 65%Associate Degree, 47%
Most common majorElectrical EngineeringElectrical Engineering
Most common collegeCornell UniversityMichigan Technological University

Solar engineer vs electrical designer demographics

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

Solar EngineerElectrical Designer
Average age4545
Gender ratioMale, 89.9% Female, 10.1%Male, 82.9% Female, 17.1%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 4.8% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 11.1% Asian, 15.3% White, 63.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%Black or African American, 4.8% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 11.2% Asian, 14.4% White, 64.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage6%6%

Differences between solar engineer and electrical designer duties and responsibilities

Solar engineer example responsibilities.

  • Install and test PLC in client own equipment on site - solve some logical and hardware issues to accomplish goal
  • Test, debugging and operation.
  • Can draw in any state with many different AHJ requirements.
  • Have extensive knowledge if NEC solar codes along with PGE or utility codes.
  • Utilize Google Sketchup and Solidworks to create 3D model of PV system design.
  • Design, fabricate and debug PC board test fixtures for production PC boards.
  • Show more

Electrical designer example responsibilities.

  • Manage database for PDF drawings and other electronic files.
  • Design control systems to NFPA, UL, and CE specifications to comply with country-specific standards.
  • Work conduct using PDMS, NavisWorks and AutoCAD.
  • Used INTOOLS to input instrument tags into index, customize reports & import data from PDMS into INTOOLS.
  • Integrate electrical & electronic designs into custom automation equipment using 2D & 3D design software (AutoCAD & SolidWorks).
  • Convert various units to DCS for ExxonMobil.
  • Show more

Solar engineer vs electrical designer skills

Common solar engineer skills
  • Renewable Energy, 41%
  • System Design, 9%
  • Solar PV, 8%
  • Solar Projects, 7%
  • Pvsyst, 7%
  • Solar Design, 4%
Common electrical designer skills
  • Revit, 14%
  • Electrical Design, 11%
  • Autocad Electrical, 5%
  • UL, 5%
  • Electrical Systems, 5%
  • Electrical Schematics, 4%

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