NSPE provides resources for engineers, employers

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To help both employers and employees better understand how their relative salaries compare across the board, the National Society of Professional Engineers has released its 2003 Income and Salary Survey. |ret||ret||tab|

Determining the appropriate levels of compensation for engineers is a key component in a firm's ability to attract new talent, keep top employees satisfied and improve competitive advantage, according to an NSPE news release. |ret||ret||tab|

The recent survey is the only one for the U.S. engineering profession that combines and compares total income, salary and employer-sponsored benefit information across 35 disciplines including the five licensure-eligible disciplines. The survey, now in its 37th year, analyzes engineers' salaries through several variables, including length of experience, level of education, level of professional responsibility, branch of engineering, industry, supervisory/managerial responsibility, region and gender.|ret||ret||tab|

Mark Anderson, human resources manager for the 140-employee LHB Engineers & Architects in Duluth, Minn., has discovered the wealth of information that the survey provides and calls it a "one-stop shop," crucial to helping him set salary levels at LHB. |ret||ret||tab|

"When I market-priced our engineers, NSPE's 2003 Income and Salary Survey was the exclusive document that I used," Anderson said. "It was statistically valid and reliable, and the sample sizes were large enough that I didn't feel the need to use any other information."|ret||ret||tab|

According to the survey, total annual median income for engineers was down 1 percent to $81,120, while the median annual income for licensed professional engineers rose 1 percent to $84,000. Respondents with masters of business administration or combined degrees were found to have higher median incomes than respondents with masters of science in engineering. |ret||ret||tab|

Additionally, respondents with a bachelor of science in areas outside of engineering yielded higher earnings, with a large percentage employed in executive or administrative positions.|ret||ret||tab|

The survey found that the highest median income by major branch of engineering goes to those respondents working in petroleum engineering ($110,000). This group is followed by engineers in materials ($107,000); biomechanical/biomedical ($104,000); nuclear ($97,500); systems and chemical (both at $95,000). |ret||ret||tab|

On the lower end of the median income spectrum are those respondents employed in geotechnical, agricultural, safety and civil engineering (all between $68,750 and $75,775). |ret||ret||tab|

The highest median income was found in the Mid-Atlantic states of Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and New York. The lowest median income was found in the Upper Mountain states of Idaho, Montana and Wyoming. The survey also found that very few engineers have been victims of a recent company downsizing.|ret||ret||tab|

The 2003 Income and Salary Survey now combines a printed summary report with an easy-to-use, searchable CD allowing users to select and analyze their own variables and perform cross-tabulations among categories in the comprehensive database. The set, which includes the CD and 64-page summary report, has a list price of $300. |ret||ret||tab|

For more information, visit www.nspe.org.|ret||ret||tab|

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