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Wireless engineer vs telecom engineer

The differences between wireless engineers and telecom 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 wireless engineer and a telecom engineer. Additionally, a wireless engineer has an average salary of $103,718, which is higher than the $81,384 average annual salary of a telecom engineer.

The top three skills for a wireless engineer include IP, switches and WLAN. The most important skills for a telecom engineer are voip, telephony, and telecommunication.

Wireless engineer vs telecom engineer overview

Wireless EngineerTelecom Engineer
Yearly salary$103,718$81,384
Hourly rate$49.86$39.13
Growth rate3%3%
Number of jobs24,28933,530
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 71%Bachelor's Degree, 67%
Average age4545
Years of experience66

What does a wireless engineer do?

A wireless service engineer is an individual who provides support to Internet and wireless phone subscribers in a specific area. The job of a wireless engineer is to make sure that wireless coverage in a zone remains active, linking all users with their subscription speed and signal strength. The task of a wireless service engineer includes the inspection, monitoring and maintenance of all wireless equipment and facilities in a given area. Wireless networks are an important part of many communities today, particularly as the increase in mobile phone users is at a record level.

What does a telecom engineer do?

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.

Wireless engineer vs telecom engineer salary

Wireless engineers and telecom engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.

Wireless EngineerTelecom Engineer
Average salary$103,718$81,384
Salary rangeBetween $76,000 And $140,000Between $63,000 And $104,000
Highest paying CityFairfield, CAHayward, CA
Highest paying stateCaliforniaRhode Island
Best paying companyMetaPayPal
Best paying industryStart-upTelecommunication

Differences between wireless engineer and telecom engineer education

There are a few differences between a wireless engineer and a telecom engineer in terms of educational background:

Wireless EngineerTelecom Engineer
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 71%Bachelor's Degree, 67%
Most common majorElectrical EngineeringElectrical Engineering
Most common collegeNortheastern UniversityNortheastern University

Wireless engineer vs telecom engineer demographics

Here are the differences between wireless engineers' and telecom engineers' demographics:

Wireless EngineerTelecom Engineer
Average age4545
Gender ratioMale, 93.6% Female, 6.4%Male, 86.2% Female, 13.8%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 4.8% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 11.3% Asian, 14.9% White, 64.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%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%
LGBT Percentage6%6%

Differences between wireless engineer and telecom engineer duties and responsibilities

Wireless engineer example responsibilities.

  • Process improvement efforts and/or other opportunities to automate these processes with computer applications with C++ and/or Java where applicable.
  • Lead safety meetings daily with MW crews.
  • Travel to remote locations to troubleshoot network devices.
  • Circuit simulation and test of amplifiers and mixers.
  • Man the war room accepting MW links and preparing ring audits for commissioning efforts.
  • Act as the government lead for contractor engineers and technicians supporting work on SATCOM programs.
  • Show more

Telecom engineer example responsibilities.

  • Manage global corporate VPN (voice private network).
  • Design and manage numerous PBX installations throughout Europe and Asia.
  • Manage DS3 and switch activity in the central and southern regions.
  • Manage port requests for ethernet, async and sync connectivity for remote network management.
  • Manage, configure and maintain Qfiniti Etalk monitor/recorder, utilizing AES with CTI links.
  • Manage and monitor all voice projects throughout the AOR as the DISA voice SME.
  • Show more

Wireless engineer vs telecom engineer skills

Common wireless engineer skills
  • IP, 8%
  • Switches, 7%
  • WLAN, 7%
  • Wifi, 6%
  • Wireless Network, 6%
  • Troubleshoot, 5%
Common telecom engineer skills
  • VoIP, 9%
  • Telephony, 8%
  • Telecommunication, 6%
  • Unified Communications, 5%
  • LAN, 4%
  • Switches, 4%

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