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The differences between topographical engineers and professional 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 topographical engineer and a professional engineer. Additionally, a professional engineer has an average salary of $86,348, which is higher than the $73,756 average annual salary of a topographical engineer.
The top three skills for a topographical engineer include GPS, and . The most important skills for a professional engineer are civil engineering, project management, and PE.
| Topographical Engineer | Professional Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $73,756 | $86,348 |
| Hourly rate | $35.46 | $41.51 |
| Growth rate | 7% | 7% |
| Number of jobs | 8,235 | 74,009 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 56% | Bachelor's Degree, 77% |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
Topographical engineers and professional engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Topographical Engineer | Professional Engineer | |
| Average salary | $73,756 | $86,348 |
| Salary range | Between $49,000 And $110,000 | Between $63,000 And $118,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | - | Alaska |
| Best paying company | - | Bayer |
| Best paying industry | - | Health Care |
There are a few differences between a topographical engineer and a professional engineer in terms of educational background:
| Topographical Engineer | Professional Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 56% | Bachelor's Degree, 77% |
| Most common major | Business | Civil Engineering |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
Here are the differences between topographical engineers' and professional engineers' demographics:
| Topographical Engineer | Professional Engineer | |
| Average age | 41 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 75.6% Female, 24.4% | Male, 87.5% Female, 12.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 2.9% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 8.7% Asian, 12.1% White, 71.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 4.0% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 11.7% Asian, 12.6% White, 66.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% |
| LGBT Percentage | 5% | 5% |