highest-paying jobs in engineering
The engineering profession rewards its top practitioners handsomely, both in terms of job satisfaction and in terms of financial compensation. The rewards are excellent for those who are able to excel in the kind of exacting work conditions in the highest-paying jobs in engineering. It is no surprise that among all jobs in the US, across all disciplines and industries, the job of the engineering manager ranks third among the highest-paid, with salaries at the US 140,000 dollars range or more, only slightly lower than the salary of the Chief Executive Officer, and exceeded only by the compensation of US surgeons, at US 181,000 dollars per annum. The high compensation that Engineering Managers command is a testament to the high regard placed on the work of the engineer, and the high stakes involved in getting engineering project management done right. That said, the Engineering Manager is a rare and tough breed, having gone through specialized academic training in one or more of the engineering disciplines, often with post-graduate degrees in their discipline, plus an MBA. The seasoning and the work training itself spans at least a decade, before an Engineering Manager is deemed worthy to handle the largest projects, and to command the kinds of salaries that are the envy of the rest of the field.
The Engineering Manager, is a staple in virtually all kinds of engineering projects, and can have any number of core engineering expertise areas. Going by expertise rather than function, on the other hand, the top five highest paid engineering specializations by median salary are the following: petroleum engineering (median salary: US 98,300 dollars per year); nuclear engineering (median salary US 90,220 dollars per year); computer hardware engineering (median salary US 88,470 dollars per year); aerospace engineering (median salary US 87,610 dollars per year); and electronics engineering (median salary US 81,050 dollars per year). A table summarizing the distribution of salaries for various engineering specializations is given below (US Bureau of Labor Statistics):
Specialty
|
Lowest 10%
|
Lowest 25%
|
Median
|
Highest 25%
|
Highest 10%
|
Aerospace engineers
|
59,610
|
71,360
|
87,610
|
106,450
|
124,550
|
Agricultural engineers
|
42,390
|
53,040
|
66,030
|
80,370
|
96,270
|
Biomedical engineers
|
44,930
|
56,420
|
73,930
|
93,420
|
116,330
|
Chemical engineers
|
50,060
|
62,410
|
78,860
|
98,100
|
118,670
|
Civil engineers
|
44,810
|
54,520
|
68,600
|
86,260
|
104,420
|
Computer hardware engineers
|
53,910
|
69,500
|
88,470
|
111,030
|
135,260
|
Electrical engineers
|
49,120
|
60,640
|
75,930
|
94,050
|
115,240
|
Electronics engineers, except computer
|
52,050
|
64,440
|
81,050
|
99,630
|
119,900
|
Environmental engineers
|
43,180
|
54,150
|
69,940
|
88,480
|
106,230
|
Health and safety engineers, except mining safety engineers and inspectors
|
41,050
|
51,630
|
66,290
|
83,240
|
100,160
|
Industrial engineers
|
44,790
|
55,060
|
68,620
|
84,850
|
100,980
|
Marine engineers and naval architects
|
45,200
|
56,280
|
72,990
|
90,790
|
113,320
|
Materials engineers
|
46,120
|
57,850
|
73,990
|
92,210
|
112,140
|
Mechanical engineers
|
45,170
|
55,420
|
69,850
|
87,550
|
104,900
|
Mining and geological engineers, including mining safety engineers
|
42,040
|
54,390
|
72,160
|
94,110
|
128,410
|
Nuclear engineers
|
65,220
|
77,920
|
90,220
|
105,710
|
124,510
|
Petroleum engineers
|
57,960
|
75,880
|
98,380
|
123,130
|
Over 145,600
|
All other engineers
|
46,080
|
62,710
|
81,660
|
100,320
|
120,610
|
Meanwhile, by specialization and type of degree obtained for new graduates, there is little difference in the compensations of the different engineering disciplines among bachelor's degree holders and among master's degree holders. For newly-graduated bachelor's degree holders, the highest paying specializations are petroleum engineering, chemical engineering, nuclear engineering, materials engineering, and computer engineering. For newly-graduated master's degree holders, the highest-paying specializations are chemical engineering, electronic engineering, industrial engineering, mechanical engineering, and aerospace engineering. For newly-graduated Ph.D. degree holders, the highest-paying specializations by yearly median incomes are computer engineering, industrial engineering, electronics engineering, aerospace engineering, and chemical engineering. The table below summarizes the distribution of incomes for new graduates in the different engineering specializations (US Bureau of Labor Statistics):
Curriculum
|
Bachelor's
|
Master's
|
Ph.D.
|
Aerospace/aeronautical/astronautical
|
$53,408
|
$62,459
|
$73,814
|
Agricultural
|
49,764
| ||
Architectural
|
48,664
| ||
Bioengineering and biomedical
|
51,356
|
59,240
| |
Chemical
|
59,361
|
68,561
|
73,667
|
Civil
|
48,509
|
48,280
|
62,275
|
Computer
|
56,201
|
60,000
|
92,500
|
Electrical/electronics and communications
|
55,292
|
66,309
|
75,982
|
Environmental/environmental health
|
47,960
| ||
Industrial/manufacturing
|
55,067
|
64,759
|
77,364
|
Materials
|
56,233
| ||
Mechanical
|
54,128
|
62,798
|
72,763
|
Mining and mineral
|
54,381
| ||
Nuclear
|
56,587
|
59,167
| |
Petroleum
|
60,718
|
57,000
|
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