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Things that raise your pay

• CAD (computer-aided design) mastery

  SolidWorks certification, Rhino, Fusion. The person who can model it for manufacturing gets hired.

• Interaction design

  Most products have a screen now. Designers who do both hardware and software are rare.

• Manufacturing knowledge

  Injection moulding, sheet metal, cost. Knowing what a factory can actually make.

• Rendering and visualization

  Keyshot and Blender. Clients buy what they can see.

• A master's

  For research, teaching or design lead roles at big companies.