Data systems technician vs senior system administrator

The differences between data systems technicians and senior system administrators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a data systems technician and a senior system administrator. Additionally, a senior system administrator has an average salary of $98,146, which is higher than the $67,860 average annual salary of a data systems technician.

The top three skills for a data systems technician include computer system, user accounts and troubleshoot. The most important skills for a senior system administrator are linux, windows server, and troubleshoot.

Data systems technician vs senior system administrator overview

	Data Systems Technician	Senior System Administrator
Yearly salary	$67,860	$98,146
Hourly rate	$32.62	$47.19
Growth rate	5%	5%
Number of jobs	158,555	100,873
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 45%	Bachelor's Degree, 62%
Average age	43	43
Years of experience	2	2

Data systems technician vs senior system administrator salary

Data systems technicians and senior system administrators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Data Systems Technician	Senior System Administrator
Average salary	$67,860	$98,146
Salary range	Between $46,000 And $98,000	Between $75,000 And $126,000
Highest paying City	-	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	-	California
Best paying company	-	Cambridge Associates
Best paying industry	-	Finance

Differences between data systems technician and senior system administrator education

There are a few differences between a data systems technician and a senior system administrator in terms of educational background:

	Data Systems Technician	Senior System Administrator
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 45%	Bachelor's Degree, 62%
Most common major	Electrical Engineering	Computer Science
Most common college	Stanford University	Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Data systems technician vs senior system administrator demographics

Here are the differences between data systems technicians' and senior system administrators' demographics:

	Data Systems Technician	Senior System Administrator
Average age	43	43
Gender ratio	Male, 87.9% Female, 12.1%	Male, 89.0% Female, 11.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.9% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 12.6% Asian, 8.8% White, 64.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%	Black or African American, 8.9% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 12.6% Asian, 11.8% White, 61.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between data systems technician and senior system administrator duties and responsibilities

Data systems technician example responsibilities.

Manage certificate revocation list, update expired certificates, ensuring DMS availability.
Promote to QC role within several weeks.
Enter client orders into system and run reports of delinquent customers.
Install, maintain and upgrade Pc's on a Novell network.
Enter information into DP3 system, run batch jobs to complete the process.
Support the successful rollout of borough applications and customizations using Novell solutions such as Novell Groupwise and Zenworks.

Senior system administrator example responsibilities.

Manage and optimize the design and delivery of project associate with AIX arena.
Manage all installs and setup of new servers, and server upgrades to server 2008 R2.
Implement IIS servers for both the internal and external web servers and managing security on all web servers.
Design, implement, and manage a network and domain extension in a remote location via a secure VPN link.
Manage Cisco network equipment including firewalls and switches.
Administer and manage daily backups via Symantec NetBackup.

Data systems technician vs senior system administrator skills

Common data systems technician skills

Computer System, 12%
User Accounts, 7%
Troubleshoot, 5%
Preventive Maintenance, 5%
Level Troubleshooting, 5%
SQL, 5%

Common senior system administrator skills

Linux, 7%
Windows Server, 6%
Troubleshoot, 5%
System Administration, 4%
PowerShell, 4%
SAN, 4%

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Data Systems Technician vs Senior System Administrator

Updated January 8, 2025

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