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The differences between telecom engineers and software engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a telecom engineer, becoming a software engineer takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a software engineer has an average salary of $100,260, 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 software engineer are java, python, and software development.
| Telecom Engineer | Software Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $81,384 | $100,260 |
| Hourly rate | $39.13 | $48.20 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 21% |
| Number of jobs | 33,530 | 339,938 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 3.5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| Average age | 45 | 39 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 4 |
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 software engineer is a computer science professional who is responsible for the development of information systems, designing and building computer systems software and applications software. They often prefer to call themselves as a software developer or computer programmer. They have substantial knowledge of programming languages, software development, and computer operating systems, and other technologies. They use these to turn a plan into a final output. They can create a design, test, and develop software based on the needs of their clients.
Telecom engineers and software engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Telecom Engineer | Software Engineer | |
| Average salary | $81,384 | $100,260 |
| Salary range | Between $63,000 And $104,000 | Between $73,000 And $136,000 |
| Highest paying City | Hayward, CA | San Bruno, CA |
| Highest paying state | Rhode Island | California |
| Best paying company | PayPal | The Citadel |
| Best paying industry | Telecommunication | Start-up |
There are a few differences between a telecom engineer and a software engineer in terms of educational background:
| Telecom Engineer | Software Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Northeastern University | Harvard University |
Here are the differences between telecom engineers' and software engineers' demographics:
| Telecom Engineer | Software Engineer | |
| Average age | 45 | 39 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 86.2% Female, 13.8% | Male, 78.0% Female, 22.0% |
| 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, 4.4% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 8.1% Asian, 34.0% White, 48.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 8% |