Solar Energy Systems Engineers
Perform site-specific engineering analysis or evaluation of energy efficiency and solar projects involving residential, commercial, or industrial customers. Design solar domestic hot water and space heating systems for new and existing structures, applying knowledge of structural energy requirements, local climates, solar technology, and thermodynamics.
Also Known As:
Consulting Engineer
Engineer
Photovoltaic System Designer (PV System Designer)
Power Systems Engineer
Project Engineer
Research Engineer
Solar Design Engineer
Solar Designer
Solar Energy Engineer
Solar Engineer
Wages
Annual wages for Solar Energy Systems Engineers in United States
Job Outlook
Average
New job opportunities are likely in the future
United States
2033 Projected Employment
169,200
5% Change From 2023
Explore Energy Engineers, Except Wind and Solar video
Tasks you might complete in a day.
- Design or develop vacuum tube collector systems for solar applications.
- Develop standard operation procedures and quality or safety standards for solar installation work.
- Perform thermal, stress, or cost reduction analyses for solar systems.
- Review specifications and recommend engineering or manufacturing changes to achieve solar design objectives.
- Create plans for solar energy system development, monitoring, and evaluation activities.
- Perform thermal, stress, or cost reduction analyses for solar systems.
- Provide technical direction or support to installation teams during installation, start-up, testing, system commissioning, or performance monitoring.
- Test or evaluate photovoltaic (PV) cells or modules.
- Review specifications and recommend engineering or manufacturing changes to achieve solar design objectives.
- Create electrical single-line diagrams, panel schedules, or connection diagrams for solar electric systems, using computer-aided design (CAD) software.
- Create checklists for review or inspection of completed solar installation projects.
- Design or coordinate design of photovoltaic (PV) or solar thermal systems, including system components, for residential and commercial buildings.
- Perform computer simulation of solar photovoltaic (PV) generation system performance or energy production to optimize efficiency.
- Conduct engineering site audits to collect structural, electrical, and related site information for use in the design of residential or commercial solar power systems.
- Develop design specifications and functional requirements for residential, commercial, or industrial solar energy systems or components.
Subject areas you may need to master.
- Sales and Marketing - Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
- Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
- Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
- Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
- Philosophy and Theology - Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
- Transportation - Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
- Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
- Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
- Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
- Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
- Food Production - Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
- Building and Construction - Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
- Geography - Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
- Personnel and Human Resources - Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
- Physics - Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
- Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
- Telecommunications - Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
- Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
- Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
- Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
- Economics and Accounting - Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
- Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
- Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
- Fine Arts - Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
- Foreign Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
- Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
- English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
- Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
- Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- History and Archeology - Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
- Administrative - Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
- Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
- Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
Strengths you may need in this role.
- Systems Analysis - Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
- Systems Evaluation - Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
- Judgment and Decision Making - Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
- Speaking - Talking to others.
- Persuasion - Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
- Service Orientation - Looking for ways to help people.
- Reading Comprehension - Reading work-related information.
- Technology Design - Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
- Instructing - Teaching people how to do something.
- Coordination - Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
- Learning Strategies - Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
- Troubleshooting - Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
- Critical Thinking - Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
- Social Perceptiveness - Understanding people's reactions.
- Complex Problem Solving - Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
- Operations Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
- Quality Control Analysis - Testing how well a product or service works.
- Operation and Control - Using equipment or systems.
- Science - Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
- Writing - Writing things for co-workers or customers.
- Negotiation - Bringing people together to solve differences.
- Installation - Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
- Monitoring - Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
- Equipment Maintenance - Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
- Management of Personnel Resources - Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
- Active Learning - Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
- Operations Analysis - Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
- Management of Financial Resources - Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
- Programming - Writing computer programs.
- Equipment Selection - Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
- Management of Material Resources - Managing equipment and materials.
- Active Listening - Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
- Mathematics - Using math to solve problems.
- Repairing - Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
- Time Management - Managing your time and the time of other people.
- Reaction Time - Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
- Wrist-Finger Speed - Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
- Far Vision - Seeing details that are far away.
- Selective Attention - Paying attention to something without being distracted.
- Category Flexibility - Grouping things in different ways.
- Gross Body Coordination - Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
- Oral Comprehension - Listening and understanding what people say.
- Speed of Closure - Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
- Depth Perception - Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
- Flexibility of Closure - Seeing hidden patterns.
- Arm-Hand Steadiness - Keeping your arm or hand steady.
- Fluency of Ideas - Coming up with lots of ideas.
- Static Strength - Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
- Dynamic Strength - Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
- Spatial Orientation - Knowing where things are around you.
- Response Orientation - Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
- Near Vision - Seeing details up close.
- Time Sharing - Doing two or more things at the same time.
- Visualization - Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
- Glare Sensitivity - Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
- Hearing Sensitivity - Telling the difference between sounds.
- Dynamic Flexibility - Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Number Facility - Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
- Originality - Creating new and original ideas.
- Speech Recognition - Recognizing spoken words.
- Manual Dexterity - Holding or moving items with your hands.
- Deductive Reasoning - Using rules to solve problems.
- Auditory Attention - Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
- Control Precision - Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
- Oral Expression - Communicating by speaking.
- Finger Dexterity - Putting together small parts with your fingers.
- Inductive Reasoning - Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
- Information Ordering - Ordering or arranging things.
- Speech Clarity - Speaking clearly.
- Visual Color Discrimination - Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
- Sound Localization - Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
- Gross Body Equilibrium - Keeping your balance or staying upright.
- Perceptual Speed - Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
- Memorization - Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
- Mathematical Reasoning - Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
- Peripheral Vision - Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
- Multilimb Coordination - Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
- Stamina - Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
- Rate Control - Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
- Written Expression - Communicating by writing.
- Extent Flexibility - Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Explosive Strength - Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
- Night Vision - Seeing at night or under low light.
- Problem Sensitivity - Noticing when problems happen.
- Written Comprehension - Reading and understanding what is written.
- Speed of Limb Movement - Quickly moving your arms and legs.
- Trunk Strength - Using your lower back and stomach.
Average Education Attained
Highest level of education earned by people in this career.
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Content sourced from United States Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration ("DOLETA") and the Minnesota Department of Employment & Economic Development ("DEED")