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The differences between telecom engineers and controls engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a telecom engineer and a controls engineer. Additionally, a controls engineer has an average salary of $84,532, which is higher than the $81,384 average annual salary of a telecom engineer.
The top three skills for a telecom engineer include voip, telephony and telecommunication. The most important skills for a controls engineer are C++, troubleshoot, and UL.
| Telecom Engineer | Controls Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $81,384 | $84,532 |
| Hourly rate | $39.13 | $40.64 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 33,530 | 50,203 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 4 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
Telecom engineers are engineering experts who design and install telecommunication equipment to ensure the transmission of high-quality data over wired or wireless communication. Due to their in-depth understanding of emerging technologies, these engineers are required to create solution designs such as drawings and design documents as well as offer guidance to reduce complexity and costs. They must identify and resolve any issues related to fiber optics and copper cables while setting up system monitoring to reduce equipment failure and incident response time. Telecom engineers are also required to operate and improve the telephony systems.
A Controls Engineer is responsible for designing, developing, and supervising electrical control systems, machinery, and equipment. They oversee projects from initial concept to installation and commissioning.
Telecom engineers and controls engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Telecom Engineer | Controls Engineer | |
| Average salary | $81,384 | $84,532 |
| Salary range | Between $63,000 And $104,000 | Between $64,000 And $111,000 |
| Highest paying City | Hayward, CA | Palo Alto, CA |
| Highest paying state | Rhode Island | California |
| Best paying company | PayPal | Apple |
| Best paying industry | Telecommunication | Automotive |
There are a few differences between a telecom engineer and a controls engineer in terms of educational background:
| Telecom Engineer | Controls Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | Northeastern University | Georgia Institute of Technology |
Here are the differences between telecom engineers' and controls engineers' demographics:
| Telecom Engineer | Controls Engineer | |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 86.2% Female, 13.8% | Male, 90.8% Female, 9.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.8% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 11.3% Asian, 14.6% White, 64.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | 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% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |