Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
Job outlook for data center specialists in the United States
Data center specialist job growth summary. After extensive research, interviews, and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:
The projected data center specialist job growth rate is 10% from 2018-2028.
About 83,100 new jobs for data center specialists are projected over the next decade.
Data center specialist salaries have increased 9% for data center specialists in the last 5 years.
There are over 4,652 data center specialists currently employed in the United States.
There are 162,770 active data center specialist job openings in the US.
The average data center specialist salary is $80,754.
Are data center specialist jobs in demand?
Data center specialist job and salary trends over time
Data center specialist jobs over time
Data center specialist job growth rate over time
| Year | # of jobs | % of population |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 4,652 | 0.00% |
| 2020 | 4,385 | 0.00% |
| 2019 | 4,161 | 0.00% |
| 2018 | 5,858 | 0.00% |
| 2017 | 6,035 | 0.00% |
Average data center specialist salary over time
Data center specialist salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $80,754 | $38.82 | +3.4% |
| 2024 | $78,094 | $37.54 | +2.3% |
| 2023 | $76,325 | $36.69 | +1.5% |
| 2022 | $75,173 | $36.14 | +1.7% |
| 2021 | $73,945 | $35.55 | +1.6% |
Data center specialist jobs by state
Most common states for data center specialists
| Rank | State | Population | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | District of Columbia | 693,972 | 521 | 75% |
| 2 | Montana | 1,050,493 | 545 | 52% |
| 3 | Nebraska | 1,920,076 | 966 | 50% |
| 4 | Massachusetts | 6,859,819 | 2,532 | 37% |
| 5 | Minnesota | 5,576,606 | 2,078 | 37% |
| 6 | Kansas | 2,913,123 | 1,041 | 36% |
| 7 | Wyoming | 579,315 | 201 | 35% |
| 8 | Maryland | 6,052,177 | 2,060 | 34% |
| 9 | Utah | 3,101,833 | 1,026 | 33% |
| 10 | Alaska | 739,795 | 247 | 33% |
| 11 | Idaho | 1,716,943 | 552 | 32% |
| 12 | New Hampshire | 1,342,795 | 424 | 32% |
| 13 | North Dakota | 755,393 | 244 | 32% |
| 14 | Missouri | 6,113,532 | 1,823 | 30% |
| 15 | New Mexico | 2,088,070 | 618 | 30% |
| 16 | Illinois | 12,802,023 | 3,735 | 29% |
| 17 | Pennsylvania | 12,805,537 | 3,620 | 28% |
| 18 | North Carolina | 10,273,419 | 2,761 | 27% |
| 19 | Virginia | 8,470,020 | 2,317 | 27% |
| 20 | Kentucky | 4,454,189 | 1,219 | 27% |
Most common cities for data center specialists
| Rank | City | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl | Avg. salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Boston | 2 | 0% | $92,519 |
| 2 | New York | 1 | 0% | $99,824 |
Data Center Specialist job outlook: Expert opinions
Our panel of data center specialist experts
University of Colorado at Colorado Springs
University of New Hampshire
Northeastern University
Kennesaw State University
Pennsylvania State University - Great Valley
New York Institute of Technology
Dr. T.S. Kalkur
Department ChairUniversity of Colorado at Colorado Springs
Electrical and Computer Engineering Department
Will there be an enduring impact of the coronavirus pandemic on Data Center Specialists?
Dr. T.S. Kalkur: Yes, students complained that, while they are earning an online degree, they aren't learning as much.
Marc Lessard
ProfessorUniversity of New Hampshire
Physics and Astronomy Department and Space Science Center
What experience really stands out on Data Center Specialist resumes?
Marc Lessard: Students who have been significantly involved in research projects have a distinct advantage over those who haven't. Those who began such work (which is typically paid) as sophomores or juniors often will have played a significant role in these real-world research efforts, which can be very different than what might be tackled as part of a capstone project.
Written and oral presentation skills are also essential!
What Data Center Specialist skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Laura A. Meyer M. Ed.: Students should really be working on honing the skills in their areas of focus and interest. With that said, they should also work toward becoming more well-rounded in all areas. A few of my students have realized through job postings, they have found that although they may want to work in data, knowing the basics of programming will be useful as well.
What experience really stands out on Data Center Specialist resumes?
Adeel Khalid Ph.D.: It is the age of diversity. A graduate can stand out when their resume shows a broad portfolio of experiences. In addition to a solid academic record, students who demonstrate that they can take on challenging tasks and work beyond a degree's basic requirements are more likely to be successful. I advise students to get involved in various activities, including undergraduate research projects, student design competitions, student organizations, internships, co-ops, etc. All of these should be highlighted on the resume. When a recruiter sees an overview of a student that shows relevant work experience in the form of work-study, internships, or co-op or research, their resume automatically comes to the top of the pile.
How do you envision technology impacting Data Center Specialists in the next 5 years?
Nil Ergin Ph.D.: Advances in sensors, networking, communication, and computing are shaping the systems and services that are designed and deployed. Systems are becoming increasingly complex and interconnected; thus, more challenging to manage. Systems engineering discipline is becoming an essential element of managing and designing these systems. The field is evolving to address the challenges emerging from these advances in technology, including but not limited to, methods and tools to improve system resiliency, flexibility, agility, security, privacy, along with new ways to manage, design, and evaluate complexity.
What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for Data Center Specialists in the next 3-5 years?
Babak Beheshti Ph.D.: -The enormous growth of IoT and wearables. The number of connected devices is expected to be more than 26 billion in 2020. That includes things like household appliances, controllable lighting, and much more. This trend is likely to continue as it is expected to see the industry grow to 661 billion dollars by 2021.
-We will be witnessing a more widespread commercial deployment of 5G in 2020. With the implementation of the Standalone 5G devices based on the 3gpp release 16, we should be seeing the more robust mobile broadband deployment of 5G, wider availability of 5G smartphones, and a push towards an all 5G Network in select urban areas around the world.
-Significant growth in AI-based technologies, from face recognition and voice recognition to business intelligence and market predictions. As machines and deep learning algorithms get integrated into many applications, many industries will undergo substantial changes. AI systems will continue to interact with our phones; cars will interpret and analyze their surroundings and intelligently drive themselves. Online vendors will monitor our browsing habits, and Google decides what kind of search results to give us, based on who it thinks we are.