Sales Engineer

Introduction
As a Sales Engineer, you will be combining your technical engineering
knowledge, together with your excellent sales skills. It will be your job to sell
complex technical products or services to other businesses, using your
technical expertise to support the sales process.

Also known as
Technical Sales Manager

Work Activities
As a Sales Engineer, you will be combining your technical engineering knowledge, together with your excellent sales
skills. It will be your job to sell complex technical products or services to other businesses, using your technical
expertise to support the sales process.

You will work closely with your sales team, as a Technical Adviser, linking customers to your products, removing any
possible technical barriers. You will need to listen carefully to the needs of your customers, and propose ways of
meeting these requests, explaining technical issues to them in ways they will understand.

Your duties could also include:

searching out new customers - people who could benefit from your products or services
making contact with new customers and maintaining a good relationship with them
calculating quotations for customers - how much will it cost them?
providing new customers with technical advice and training, so that they can get the most from your product or
service
providing an effective after-sales support service
meeting your agreed sales targets
preparing reports for management
making technical presentations to potential customers at sales or industry events
use technical drawings to produce product proposals based on customer requests

Personal Qualities and Skills

To become a Sales Engineer, you need:

experience within a relevant engineering environment - you must know all about the product or service you are
selling
to be customer focussed - the customer always comes first!
sales experience - experience, such as working in a shop will be a great help
IT skills
to be willing to keep up to date with advances in technology in this fast-changing area

Pay and Opportunities

Pay

The pay rates given below are approximate.

Starting: £21,500 - £24,500

With experience: £27,500 - £34,000
Senior Sales Engineers earn £38,500 - £44,000

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 Hours of work

Sales Engineers usually work around 35-40 hours a week, Monday to Friday. However, early starts, late finishes,
standby rotas and some weekend work may be required.

Where could I work?

Opportunities for Sales Engineers occur with employers throughout the UK.

Where are vacancies advertised?

Vacancies are advertised in local/national newspapers, on internet job boards, on websites of gas service
organisations, at Jobcentre Plus and on the Find a Job website.

GreenJobs is a job board aimed at people interested in green careers:

www.greenjobs.co.uk/browse-jobs/engineering/

Entry Routes and Training

Entry routes

Normally, employers will expect you to have a degree in order to enter this career. However, if you are thinking about
leaving school after finishing your A levels, you could get a lower level job in one of the following fields and train
on-the-job:

mechanical engineering
structural engineering
manufacturing engineering
civil engineering

After completing your A levels, you might be able to get onto a Higher Level or Degree Apprenticeship in a relevant
area. Take a look at our information article 'Apprenticeships – How do I apply', for more details about applying for
apprenticeship positions.

Then, once you have gained relevant industry skills and experience, you might be able to apply for Sales Engineer
positions.

Progression

Depending on your qualifications, Sales Engineers can progress by taking on more responsibility for the management
of sales projects and sales teams.

Work Experience

Previous experience working in an engineering position would be really useful for this career.

Qualifications
To enter a relevant degree course, the usual requirements are:

2/3 A levels
GCSEs in your A level subjects at grade C/4 or above
a further 2/3 GCSEs at grade C/4 or above
English, maths and a science subject are usually required at GCSE at grade C/4 or above

To get onto an Advanced Level Apprenticeship, you'll usually need 5 GCSEs at grade C/4 or above, including English
and maths, or to have completed an Intermediate Level Apprenticeship.

To get onto a Degree Apprenticeship, you will usually need at least 2 A levels.

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 Some universities accept the Welsh Baccalaureate as equivalent to 1 A level.

Adult Opportunities
Age limits

It is illegal for any organisation to set age limits for entry to employment, education or training, unless they can show
there is a real need to have these limits.

Courses

If you don't have the qualifications needed to enter your chosen degree or HND course, a college or university Access
course (eg, Access to Engineering) could be the way in.

These courses are designed for people who have not followed the usual routes into higher education. No formal
qualifications are usually needed, but you should check this with individual colleges.

Skills/experience

Most people enter this career after gaining relevant skills, and perhaps qualifications, in a related area such as:

mechanical engineeeing
manufacturing
civil engineering
structural engineering

Industry experience is very highly valued by employers

Training

Information on pathways to registration as a Chartered (CEng) or Incorporated (IEng) Engineer can be found on the
Engineering Council's website.

Funding

Funding for postgraduate courses is available through universities from the Engineering and Physical Sciences
Research Council (EPSRC).

Further Information
Contacts

Semta
Skills for science, engineering and manufacturing technologies
Address: 14 Upton Road, Watford, Hertfordshire WD18 0JT
Tel: 0845 6439001
Email: customerservices@semta.org.uk
Website: www.semta.org.uk

Tomorrow's Engineers
Publisher: EngineeringUK and Royal Academy of Engineering
Email: contactus@tomorrowsengineers.org.uk
Website: www.tomorrowsengineers.org.uk

Construction Industry Training Board (CITB)

Address: Blue Court, Church Lane, Kings Langley, Hertfordshire WD4 8JP
Tel: 01923 260000
Email: ecitb@ecitb.org.uk
Website: careers.ecitb.org.uk

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 Scottish Engineering
Scottish enquiries
Address: 105 West George Street, Glasgow G2 1QL
Tel: 0141 2213181
Email: consult@scottishengineering.org.uk
Website: www.scottishengineering.org.uk

Engineering Council
Address: 246 High Holborn, London WC1V 7EX
Tel: 020 3206 0500
Website: www.engc.org.uk

Engineering Training Council Northern Ireland (ETC NI)

Northern Ireland Enquiries
Address: Sketrick House, Ards Business Park, Jubilee Road, Newtownards BT23 4YH
Tel: 028 9182 2377
Email: info@etcni.org.uk
Website: www.etcni.org.uk

Institute of Sales Management (ISM)

Address: Harrier Court, Lower Woodside, Bedfordshire LU1 4DQ
Tel: 01582 840001
Website: www.ismm.co.uk

Careers Wales - Welsh Apprenticeships

Tel: 0800 028 4844
Website: ams.careerswales.com/

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