A Contrubuted Post: How Much Does an Engineer Earn?
Meta-description: How much can you earn as an engineer? How much does a fresh engineer earn? Would you make more money as an engineering consultant? Find out answers to all this and more – we have the latest numbers here for you.
Engineering is a very lucrative profession. It’s also one of those professions that offer a wide range of opportunities and fields to pursue, with each field paying either more or less than the next. In other words, while this a lucrative career, you can expect to be paid different amounts depending on the field you pursue as well as the number of years of experience you possess.
The average annual salary of an engineer in the United States as of September 2019 is $85,378. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) places the median annual salary of engineers at $91,010. As per ZipRecruiter, the average annual salary of an engineer across the United States is $72,477, and the average monthly salary is $6,040, while the average weekly salary is $1,394.
Engineering salary based on field
There are several fields of engineering, and some are more lucrative than others. Here is a list of the mean annual salary one can expect in some engineering fields.
A biomedical engineer can expect a mean annual salary of $95,090, while a chemical engineer can earn a mean annual salary of $114,470. Computer engineers make the most with a mean annual salary of $117,840, while a mechanical engineer can make a mean annual salary of around $58,240. The highest-paying engineers besides the computer and chemical engineers are construction management engineers who make a mean annual salary of $101,000 and electrical engineers who make a mean annual salary of $101,600.
Why are engineers paid so high? Is it because they require higher education? Engineering salaries are commensurate with the job’s required technical skills that are extremely high in demand. With several industries becoming more technical, there is a need for engineers who possess these technical skills as well as soft skills. These skills also make them susceptible to claims against them if something goes wrong. That is why engineers should consider to invest in insurance for engineers. Known commonly as professional liability insurance for engineers, this insurance can provide engineers with financial protection in the event of lawsuits filed against the professional mistakes they made.
Entry-level salary of engineers
The entry-level salary of engineers will again depend on the area of specialty. According to MTU, the median entry-level salary of a medical engineer is $62,630, while the median entry-level salary of a software developer or systems developer is as high as $71,551. Geological and mining engineers make $61,033. An entry-level materials science engineer can make a median salary of $69,292.
Hourly salary of engineers
According to ZipRecruiter, the national average salary of an engineer is $35 per hour. However, it also reports that in certain instances, engineers have been paid as high as $64.42 per hour and as low as 8.89 per hour. Across the United States, the majority of engineer hourly salaries fall between the 25th and 75th percentile – that is $25 to $40.
No matter which way you look at it, the verdict is quite clear – engineering is a very lucrative profession, and if you are studying engineering, it is very likely that your education is going to pay off in the long run.
Sources:
Indeed. 2019. Engineer salaries. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.indeed.com/salaries/Engineer-Salaries. [Accessed 18 September 2019].
Michigan Tech. 2019. salary. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.mtu.edu/engineering/outreach/welcome/salary/. [Accessed 18 September 2019].
Bureau of Labor Statistics. 2019. Occupational employment statistics. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.bls.gov/oes/. [Accessed 18 September 2019].
ZipRecruiter. 2019. How much does an engineer make in an hour?. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.ziprecruiter.com/Salaries/How-Much-Does-an-Engineer-Make-an-Hour. [Accessed 18 September 2019].
