How To Become A Port Engineer: What It Is and Career Path

What is a port engineer and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

2 min read

Quoted Expert

Alexander Parker PhD

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a port engineer. For example, did you know that they make an average of $48.64 an hour? That's $101,179 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 4% and produce 300 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to a Port Engineer?

Alexander Parker PhD

Dean, School of Letters and Sciences, San Francisco State University

Marine scientists may work for a variety of employers including work with state and federal natural resource agencies, municipalities and ports, education, including higher education, the military and others. Some marine scientists work in the field, on small boats and ships, in wetlands and other coastal ecosystems or underwater using SCUBA or remotely operated vehicles. Other marine scientists primarily work in the laboratory or using computers to analyze remotely sensed data or to develop and run numerical simulations (modeling). Some marine scientists work to communicate science to different stakeholders from students to elected officials.

ScorePort EngineerUS Average

Salary

7.6

Avg. Salary $101,179

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level

6.6

Growth Rate 4%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity

7.9

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 1.11%

Asian 7.12%

Black or African American 8.41%

Hispanic or Latino 7.52%

Unknown 3.60%

White 72.25%

Gender

female 6.58%

male 93.42%

Age - 39

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 39

Stress Level

6.6

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity Level

7.4

Complexity Level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance

4.4

Work Life balance is poor

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a port engineer

Explore port engineer education requirements

Most common port engineer degrees

Bachelor's

63.6 %

High School Diploma

12.5 %

Associate

11.4 %

Start to develop specific port engineer skills

Skills	Percentages
USCG	18.16%
Marine Engineering	10.13%
Emergency Repairs	7.80%
Dry Docking	7.18%
Regulatory Compliance	6.87%

Complete relevant port engineer training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-2 years on post-employment, on-the-job training. New port engineers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a port engineer based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real port engineer resumes.

Research port engineer duties and responsibilities

Manage projects, resources and assets within deadlines to deliver an error free boat to customers within schedule and under budget.
Manage Jenkins security by providing specific access to authorize developers/testers using project base matrix authorization strategy.
Perform miscellaneous welding fabrication and repairs for boats and cannery production lines.
Conduct geotechnical and environmental subsurface investigations.

Prepare your port engineer resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your port engineer resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a port engineer resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose From 10+ Customizable Port Engineer Resume templates

Build a professional Port Engineer resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Port Engineer resume.

Apply for port engineer jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a port engineer job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do port engineers rate their job?

-/5

5 Stars

4 Stars

3 Stars

2 Stars

1 Star

Port Engineer reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on Nov 2019

Cons

Isolated from family.in rough weather its very hard to stay and do maintenance on board ship

A zippia user wrote a review on Oct 2019

Cons

The fact I don't have the Job

A zippia user wrote a review on Mar 2019

Pros

Solving practical problem and getting the solution instantly.

Cons

Dirtiness, due to spliage of waste liquid.

What is a port engineer and how to become one

What general advice would you give to a Port Engineer?

Port Engineer career paths

Key steps to become a port engineer

Explore port engineer education requirements

Most common port engineer degrees

Start to develop specific port engineer skills

Complete relevant port engineer training and internships

Research port engineer duties and responsibilities

Prepare your port engineer resume

Choose From 10+ Customizable Port Engineer Resume templates

Apply for port engineer jobs

How Did You Land Your First Port Engineer Job

Average port engineer salary

How do port engineers rate their job?

Port Engineer reviews