Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between systems engineers and project managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a project manager has an average salary of $91,578, which is higher than the $82,834 average annual salary of a systems engineer.
The top three skills for a systems engineer include python, linux and C++. The most important skills for a project manager are project management, project scope, and customer service.
| Systems Engineer | Project Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $82,834 | $91,578 |
| Hourly rate | $39.82 | $44.03 |
| Growth rate | 21% | 8% |
| Number of jobs | 145,936 | 167,116 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 4.17 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 70% | Bachelor's Degree, 68% |
| Average age | 39 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 2 | - |
Systems engineers are responsible for creating and overseeing systems related to the overall operations of the organization. They are in charge of assessing the organization's needs in terms of systems and creating plans to address these needs. These systems are usually related to the production or manufacturing of company products. Systems engineers create end-to-end processes that ensure efficiency and effectiveness. They make sure that the processes they put in place adhere to safety and security policies and guidelines. They also do routine checks and continuously find ways to further improve production and other systems.
Project managers oversee a specific project related to the organization's business. They manage the whole project from inception to evaluation. They initiate planning with involved departments, follow-through on the plans, ensure smooth execution of the plans, and evaluate the project for further improvements should these be needed. In line with this, project managers also ensure that the project is cost-efficient and well within the budget. They also manage the different work teams involved in the project and ensure that things are running smoothly on this aspect as well.
Systems engineers and project managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Systems Engineer | Project Manager | |
| Average salary | $82,834 | $91,578 |
| Salary range | Between $62,000 And $109,000 | Between $64,000 And $129,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | The Citadel | The Citadel |
| Best paying industry | Automotive | Technology |
There are a few differences between a systems engineer and a project manager in terms of educational background:
| Systems Engineer | Project Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 70% | Bachelor's Degree, 68% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Business |
| Most common college | California State University - Long Beach | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between systems engineers' and project managers' demographics:
| Systems Engineer | Project Manager | |
| Average age | 39 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 86.1% Female, 13.9% | Male, 68.9% Female, 31.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.7% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 8.4% Asian, 29.7% White, 52.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 7.7% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 12.9% Asian, 9.0% White, 65.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 10% |