Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between data communications specialists and desktop support specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a data communications specialist has an average salary of $71,632, which is higher than the $44,962 average annual salary of a desktop support specialist.
The top three skills for a data communications specialist include switches, routers and troubleshoot. The most important skills for a desktop support specialist are customer service, desktop support, and troubleshoot.
| Data Communications Specialist | Desktop Support Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $71,632 | $44,962 |
| Hourly rate | $34.44 | $21.62 |
| Growth rate | 5% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 120,034 | 102,191 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 48% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Average age | 45 | 42 |
| Years of experience | - | 2 |
Data communications specialists and desktop support specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Data Communications Specialist | Desktop Support Specialist | |
| Average salary | $71,632 | $44,962 |
| Salary range | Between $52,000 And $97,000 | Between $33,000 And $59,000 |
| Highest paying City | Richmond, VA | Boston, MA |
| Highest paying state | Virginia | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | Citi | Cornerstone Research |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Finance |
There are a few differences between a data communications specialist and a desktop support specialist in terms of educational background:
| Data Communications Specialist | Desktop Support Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 48% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Most common major | Computer Science | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Stanford University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between data communications specialists' and desktop support specialists' demographics:
| Data Communications Specialist | Desktop Support Specialist | |
| Average age | 45 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 75.4% Female, 24.6% | Male, 87.6% Female, 12.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.0% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 14.0% Asian, 10.3% White, 60.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 11.2% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 15.9% Asian, 12.3% White, 54.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 11% |