Switch engineer vs software engineer

The differences between switch engineers and software engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a switch engineer, becoming a software engineer takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a switch engineer has an average salary of $103,588, which is higher than the $100,260 average annual salary of a software engineer.

The top three skills for a switch engineer include switches, MSC and software upgrades. The most important skills for a software engineer are java, python, and software development.

Switch engineer vs software engineer overview

	Switch Engineer	Software Engineer
Yearly salary	$103,588	$100,260
Hourly rate	$49.80	$48.20
Growth rate	5%	21%
Number of jobs	33,099	339,938
Job satisfaction	-	3.5
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 59%	Bachelor's Degree, 73%
Average age	43	39
Years of experience	2	4

Switch engineer vs software engineer salary

Switch engineers and software engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Switch Engineer	Software Engineer
Average salary	$103,588	$100,260
Salary range	Between $76,000 And $139,000	Between $73,000 And $136,000
Highest paying City	Concord, CA	San Bruno, CA
Highest paying state	California	California
Best paying company	NetApp	The Citadel
Best paying industry	Telecommunication	Start-up

Differences between switch engineer and software engineer education

There are a few differences between a switch engineer and a software engineer in terms of educational background:

	Switch Engineer	Software Engineer
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 59%	Bachelor's Degree, 73%
Most common major	Electrical Engineering	Computer Science
Most common college	Northeastern University	Harvard University

Switch engineer vs software engineer demographics

Here are the differences between switch engineers' and software engineers' demographics:

	Switch Engineer	Software Engineer
Average age	43	39
Gender ratio	Male, 89.0% Female, 11.0%	Male, 78.0% Female, 22.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.0% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 12.7% Asian, 11.0% White, 61.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%	Black or African American, 4.4% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 8.1% Asian, 34.0% White, 48.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	9%	8%

Differences between switch engineer and software engineer duties and responsibilities

Switch engineer example responsibilities.

Manage Alcatel and Telecom Egypt technical teams.
Manage all aspects of DS3 and DS1 connectivity between various equipment and vendors.
Implement the latest Avaya VoIP technology that lead to cost reduction and improve VoIP features.
Manage mobile switch for 20-cell CDMA test overlie of Sprint/APC commercial GSM network in Washington D.C.
Manage, solve and coordinate daily operational support issues for 600 banks and 2400 workstations worldwide.
Assist RF engineers to ensure the best possible network performance.

Software engineer example responsibilities.

Manage product releases, solve software bugs in a client/server environment, write UNIX shell scripts to manage development environments.
Manage responsive UI design, implementing complex, dynamic functionality.
Define continuous integration process and configure Jenkins build server to manage it.
Develop a python serial communication program to automate test procedures and verify proper operation.
Manage website/software/mobile applications by generating full scope requirements base upon PMI / SDLC guidance.
Contribute to implementing microservices used to manage entities and maintain a synchronize state between supplier and distributor.

Switch engineer vs software engineer skills

Common switch engineer skills

Switches, 14%
MSC, 5%
Software Upgrades, 4%
VoIP, 4%
Trouble Tickets, 3%
T1, 3%

Common software engineer skills

Java, 15%
Python, 9%
Software Development, 6%
Database, 3%
GIT, 3%
Object Oriented Programming, 3%