In the world of Information Technology (IT) there is a secret to doubling your (IT) system administrator salary or your CCNA Salary (Cisco Certified Network Associate salary) that we will share with you below. It’s likely not what you think. But It very well could double your lifetime computer systems administrator career earnings potential. But first we will talk a little about the system administrator salary and it’s job responsibilities.
Information Technology (IT) is here to stay and the system administrator is a good representation that we need people to maintain it. System administrators are in charge of making sure that all is well with the computer system and network that a company uses to operate. Look around and you will find them behind a door marked “IT” or “Communications”. The simple act of calming down an agitated executive who is about to throw the monitor and tower out the 12th story window because he froze the system up can be highly stressful. Perhaps this is part of the reason why the system administrator salary ranges in the low $70,000 to high $120,000 range.
A computer network system administrator will spend many hours review the logs from the system. This is done to proactively put out any fires before they begin. The logs will reveal if the computer system is having issues or if a particular program is causing a problem. This must happen on a daily basis to make sure that nothing slips through the cracks, because a computer glitch can happen in a matter of nanoseconds. System administrators also police the activities of employees who are working on the organizations computer system. This too can be stressful in that they are required to keep track of any “unauthorized” usage and report it. A system administrator salary compensates for the hours he spends double-checking for all problems.
When it is time for new programs or upgrades it is the (IT) system administrator that implements them. Often, it is also this same employee who teaches her peers how to use the new software. She will also troubleshoot any issues that are being found in the new software or the upgrade. The system administrator salary takes into account that she assures that everything continues to run smoothly and is as up-to-date as the organizations administrators allow. The services of the system administrator is invaluable to the company, especially since there is no business today of any size that does not need some form of technology to keep it running smoothly.
As the world becomes more and more advanced through the breakthroughs of the IT age, system administrators will become more necessary. Some people in this profession do not work as an employee for any particular company, but actually freelance for several companies. This type of employment makes the system administrator salary very open and would possibly be much higher than the $120,000 cap above. And in which case it’s a good thing to have a CCNA certificate so all your prospective clients know you are area a Cisco Certified Network Associate, for some of them it’s a really big deal and they wont contract you unless you have that little CCNA in your list of qualifications. However, to start freelancing one would need to have extensive experience in the field already, a good business plan, and an excellent marketing strategy. Once you were in to a few companies, word of mouth and referrals would have one pulling down the computer system administrator salary of his dreams.
Employers like this because they don’t have to pay a full time CCNA salary or salary for system administrator, they only pay for what they need when they need it. For many smaller companies this is the only way to go. As they truly also don’t want to have to pay for all the CCNA classes and continuing education that a computer network administrator needs to complete to stay current and on top of things.
Now For The Secret!
You might think that where you went to school will play the biggest part in your salary for being a system administrator over your lifetime. Or you might think that your grades will do that part. Well, those things do play a part that is for sure but they are small potatoes compared to our income secret.
Are you ready? It’s where you live! Yes, where you live determines more of your income potential than any other single factor we have seen.
As an example: If you live in one of the top paying cities in one of the top paying states you could make as much as $135,000 (for 3 positions we saw available. But with the same exact qualifications you could be only bringing in $55,000 doing the same exact job in the lowest paying states.
So, as your getting ready to go job hunting be sure to search for the highest paying states and see which ones might interest you. Just Google system administrator salary by state and you will do quite well with it.