Development Engineer

Answer 1

A development engineer plays an important role in monitoring and assessing the effectiveness of new designs. When design teams come up with ideas and implement those ideas, a development engineer will make sure that systems are producing effectively and efficiently. They might be used in a lab setting or perhaps in a field setting, where manufacturing is important. With a relatively high barrier to entry in the engineering field, the development engineer enjoys a great deal of autonomy and receives excellent benefits, as well. Job security is high, which makes this position a highly desirable one.

Becoming a development engineer

Not only should one go through an engineering program to land a job as a development engineer, but they should also focus on the mechanical side of things. Mechanical engineering programs provide individuals with the skill set necessary for developing new systems and new mechanic products. Along those same lines, this type of program will prepare a new employee for his duties in assessing the efficiency of such a product. These programs are math and science intensive, including concepts of calculus and physics. Completion of such a program will immediately make a student for competitive for certain jobs, though.

What do they make?

Development engineers are some of the highest paid engineers out there, since they work over other individuals and help to manage the company’s overall efficiency. This means that you can expect to command a nice salary in the $75,000 to $80,000 range coming out. There are some development engineers that will get stuck with a smaller, less successful company, and they will not pull down salaries in that range. High performers can hope to approach $100,000 after a few years in the business.

What do they do?

A development engineer will do what most engineers do. That is look over the design and quality of new developments, making sure that they are properly configured for effectiveness. They will help come up with new systems within the field or the lab, and they will handle the testing of certain systems, as well. A good development engineer will work over a team of skilled professionals, assigning responsibility to each.