Data communications technician vs network technician

The differences between data communications technicians and network technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 6-12 months to become a data communications technician, becoming a network technician takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a network technician has an average salary of $68,938, which is higher than the $51,843 average annual salary of a data communications technician.

The top three skills for a data communications technician include POS, computer screens and RF. The most important skills for a network technician are customer service, switches, and troubleshoot.

Data communications technician vs network technician overview

	Data Communications Technician	Network Technician
Yearly salary	$51,843	$68,938
Hourly rate	$24.92	$33.14
Growth rate	7%	5%
Number of jobs	111,703	79,712
Job satisfaction	-	5
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 41%	Bachelor's Degree, 50%
Average age	38	43
Years of experience	12	2

Data communications technician vs network technician salary

Data communications technicians and network technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Data Communications Technician	Network Technician
Average salary	$51,843	$68,938
Salary range	Between $32,000 And $82,000	Between $51,000 And $92,000
Highest paying City	-	Urban Honolulu, HI
Highest paying state	-	Hawaii
Best paying company	-	Apple
Best paying industry	-	Finance

Differences between data communications technician and network technician education

There are a few differences between a data communications technician and a network technician in terms of educational background:

	Data Communications Technician	Network Technician
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 41%	Bachelor's Degree, 50%
Most common major	Electrical Engineering	Computer Science
Most common college	Northeastern University	University of Pennsylvania

Data communications technician vs network technician demographics

Here are the differences between data communications technicians' and network technicians' demographics:

	Data Communications Technician	Network Technician
Average age	38	43
Gender ratio	Male, 90.9% Female, 9.1%	Male, 87.3% Female, 12.7%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.7% Unknown, 5.8% Hispanic or Latino, 17.1% Asian, 10.4% White, 56.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%	Black or African American, 8.9% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 12.6% Asian, 9.4% White, 63.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	8%	9%

Differences between data communications technician and network technician duties and responsibilities

Data communications technician example responsibilities.

Manage DSL service to remote users through NAS.
Manage the day-to-day operations of telecommunication services utilize by DuPont.
Run cable, terminate cat5, cat6 and voice cable.
Install and label network cabling from cat5e, Cat6, fiber cable, and coaxial cabling (DS3).
Introduce BGP for connectivity to the corporate network.
Wire pots lines and T1 lines to main distribution frame.

Network technician example responsibilities.

Install and manage DHCP servers including setting up DHCP scopes, enabling DHCP clients, viewing and managing active leases.
Manage city wide IIS deployment.
Manage Virtualization system, using ESX server/client.
Install, configure and manage Symantec Antivirus on all network computers
Use Symantec BackupExec to manage and maintain all server backups and file restorations.
Manage company Cisco series routers, switches, and ASA firewall integrate into MPLS network.

Data communications technician vs network technician skills

Common data communications technician skills

POS, 12%
Computer Screens, 12%
RF, 11%
Test Equipment, 10%
Phone System, 10%
Technical Manuals, 9%

Common network technician skills

Customer Service, 9%
Switches, 6%
Troubleshoot, 6%
Routers, 4%
Lan Wan, 3%
Lan, 3%

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Data Communications Technician
Data Communications Technician vs Network Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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