Modeled career paths · Data engineering

Where does a Senior Data Engineer go next?

What employers are asking a Senior Data Engineer for, what they pay, and where people go next. From live postings and Startline’s modeled career map: what the ads say, never estimated.

Management path
Staff Data Engineer+28% typical comp change · ~3.0y typical
64% of modeled moves out of Senior Data Engineer go here
leadership branch100% of modeled exits move upward from there
Data Engineering Lead+72% typical comp change · ~3.0y typical
21% of modeled moves out of Senior Data Engineer go here
leadership branch0% of modeled exits move upward from there
Principal Research Scientist+137% typical comp change · ~7.0y typical
reachable via Data Engineering Lead. 6% joint modeled share
leadership branch84% of modeled exits move upward from there
Career pivot
Senior Cloud Engineer+4% typical comp change · ~4.0y typical
7% of modeled moves out of Senior Data Engineer go here
pivot86% of modeled exits move upward from there
Senior ML Engineer+16% typical comp change · ~4.0y typical
7% of modeled moves out of Senior Data Engineer go here
pivot86% of modeled exits move upward from there

What this page cannot know is which of these fit you. That is what the free list is for.