Career
Network and computer systems administrators
Keep an organization's computers and networks running.
Here's what you actually need to know.
The work
What people in this job do
- Plan, coordinate, and implement network security measures to protect data, software, and hardware.
- Perform data backups and disaster recovery operations.
- Diagnose, troubleshoot, and resolve hardware, software, or other network and system problems, and replace defective components when necessary.
- Maintain and administer computer networks and related computing environments, including computer hardware, systems software, applications software, and all configurations.
- Configure, monitor, and maintain email applications or virus protection software.
The outlook
How the forecast changed this year
AI
BLS now cites artificial intelligence in this occupation's outlook: “share decreases as job duties are increasingly performed by DevOps engineers and similar roles, including software developers, and as workers increasingly use third-party automation tools or artificial intelligence (AI) to automate routine tasks.”
The deeper question
What kind of person does this path ask you to become?
What this work centers on
O*NET interest profile, scored 1–7.
The work
Do you want most of your days spent on information & systems, then objects & tools?
Responsibility
Are you willing to be the one responsible for this?
“Plan, coordinate, and implement network security measures to protect data, software, and hardware.”
Development
What would you need to build over the next 5–10 years?
Active Listening, Systems Analysis, Judgment and Decision Making, Systems Evaluation.
Trade-offs
What does it ask of you in exchange?
4 years of education after high school (bachelor's degree), for a median of $99,130 a year and 13,400 openings nationally each year.
Paths in
Degrees that lead here
- Computer and Information SciencesSee the degree →
- Information Technology ManagementSee the degree →
- Computer and Information Sciences, GeneralCIP 11.0101
- Network and System Administration/AdministratorCIP 11.1001
- Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information AssuranceCIP 11.1003
Paths across
Careers that use similar skills
- Computer Network Support Specialists$76,220 · +1.2%
- Database Administrators$104,620 · -0.1%
- Computer Network Architects$134,050 · +7.7%
- Computer Systems Engineers/Architects
- Computer Systems Analysts$105,850 · +7.9%
Ask anything about this career.
“Would this make sense if I don't want to sit at a desk all day?” Answers will come from the sources on this page, with citations. Coming soon.
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Sources
- BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- BLS Employment Projections, 2024–34 (archived), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- O*NET 31.0 Database (August 2026), National Center for O*NET Development / U.S. Department of Labor. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 Crosswalk, NCES and BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-01.