How To Become A Desktop Support Consultant: What It Is and Career Path

What is a desktop support consultant and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted expert

Kate Marek Ph.D.

The role of a Desktop Support Consultant is to provide excellent technical support in a way that makes it simple for the user to understand. They are generally tasked with troubleshooting various user troubles, testing and examining the software for security and system issues, occasionally training new employees, doing maintenance and implementing various updates as necessary, doing paperwork and other administrative tasks, and furthering their learning and understanding of various techniques, software, and other products, as well as user support and sales skills.

The education requirements vary from one employer to the next, but it is generally preferred or necessary that a candidate for this position has a Bachelor's degree in a field relevant to the position, such as Information Technology or Computer Science, as well as some experience in a related field. Due to the nature of the job, the Support Consultant must have good written and oral communication skills, alongside analytical and problem-solving skills.

What general advice would you give to a desktop support consultant?

Kate Marek Ph.D.

Director and Professor, Dominican University

Choose an organization in tune with one's values. Look for a job in growth areas, such as data asset management, data analysis, etc.

ScoreDesktop Support ConsultantUS Average

Salary

3.7

Avg. Salary $46,733

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

6.7

Growth rate 10%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

6.1

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.41%

Asian 13.46%

Black or African American 11.12%

Hispanic or Latino 15.25%

Unknown 5.31%

White 54.45%

Gender

female 14.96%

male 85.04%

Age - 41

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 41

Stress level

6.7

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

6.5

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

7.4

Work life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a desktop support consultant

Explore desktop support consultant education requirements

Most common desktop support consultant degrees

Bachelor's

51.6 %

Associate

30.1 %

Master's

6.6 %

Start to develop specific desktop support consultant skills

Skills	Percentages
Desktop Support	11.78%
Customer Service	11.44%
Troubleshoot	7.54%
PC	6.36%
Technical Support	5.98%

Complete relevant desktop support consultant training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 3-6 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New desktop support consultants learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a desktop support consultant based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real desktop support consultant resumes.

Gain additional desktop support consultant certifications

Desktop support consultant certifications can show employers you have a baseline of knowledge expected for the position. Certifications can also make you a more competitive candidate. Even if employers don't require a specific desktop support consultant certification, having one may help you stand out relative to other applicants.

The most common certifications for desktop support consultants include Certified Network Computer Technician (CNCT) and Management Consultant Professional (MCP).

More About Certifications

Research desktop support consultant duties and responsibilities

Install and manage several networking components including routers, switches, routing switches, wireless access points, and hubs.
Manage update deployment and verify policy adherence utilizing SCCM.
Manage backups, replications and disaster recovery plans of company mission critical servers and database files to ensure redundancy.
Perform data backup, virus scanning, and OS updating procedures.

Prepare your desktop support consultant resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your desktop support consultant resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a desktop support consultant resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable desktop support consultant resume templates

Build a professional desktop support consultant resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your desktop support consultant resume.