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The differences between application systems administrators and systems administrator leads can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both an application systems administrator and a systems administrator lead. Additionally, a systems administrator lead has an average salary of $99,956, which is higher than the $85,636 average annual salary of an application systems administrator.
The top three skills for an application systems administrator include troubleshoot, linux and problem resolution. The most important skills for a systems administrator lead are linux, project management, and windows server.
| Application Systems Administrator | Systems Administrator Lead | |
| Yearly salary | $85,636 | $99,956 |
| Hourly rate | $41.17 | $48.06 |
| Growth rate | 5% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 141,894 | 132,285 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 65% | Bachelor's Degree, 58% |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
An application systems administrator manages and maintains any system, network, or application in a company. It is the primary job of a systems administrator to inspect all systems, software, and applications, determine problem areas and apply troubleshooting measures, upgrades and repairs. It is also the task of a systems administrator to regularly update programs, pinpoint bugs and problematic codes, and relay them to a programmer to have them resolved. The systems administrator is part of a company's back-end staff and focuses on the operation and maintenance of all software-based processes.
A systems administrator lead is responsible for planning, designing, and implementing procedures for critical enterprise systems. Typical duties of systems administrators include managing the day-to-day operations of a company's computer and network systems, developing new application and system implementation plans, and establishing guidelines for installing and managing the organization's computer operating systems. In addition, you are expected to ensure the security of computer systems by preventing unauthorized use, user abuse, and acts of nature.
Application systems administrators and systems administrator leads have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Application Systems Administrator | Systems Administrator Lead | |
| Average salary | $85,636 | $99,956 |
| Salary range | Between $65,000 And $112,000 | Between $77,000 And $129,000 |
| Highest paying City | Santa Clara, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Oregon | California |
| Best paying company | American Tower | Kabam |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Telecommunication |
There are a few differences between an application systems administrator and a systems administrator lead in terms of educational background:
| Application Systems Administrator | Systems Administrator Lead | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 65% | Bachelor's Degree, 58% |
| Most common major | Computer Science | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between application systems administrators' and systems administrator leads' demographics:
| Application Systems Administrator | Systems Administrator Lead | |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 76.3% Female, 23.7% | Male, 84.6% Female, 15.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 8.6% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 12.3% Asian, 12.5% White, 61.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 8.9% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 12.6% Asian, 9.7% White, 63.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% |
| LGBT Percentage | 9% | 9% |