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The differences between enterprise systems administrators and help desk administrators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both an enterprise systems administrator and a help desk administrator. Additionally, an enterprise systems administrator has an average salary of $89,075, which is higher than the $49,798 average annual salary of a help desk administrator.
The top three skills for an enterprise systems administrator include troubleshoot, powershell and database. The most important skills for a help desk administrator are customer service, desk support, and troubleshoot.
| Enterprise Systems Administrator | Help Desk Administrator | |
| Yearly salary | $89,075 | $49,798 |
| Hourly rate | $42.82 | $23.94 |
| Growth rate | 5% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 132,907 | 130,180 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 58% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
Enterprise systems administrators install, maintain, upgrade software and hardware and interface with users to identify the support needs. They ensure system files and user safety by backing up the system's files to enhance system recreation after the system disc driver's hardware crashes. Besides installing, configuring, and supporting enterprise software applications, these systems administrators also assure system security by managing network security, including the operating system, files, and passwords. Moreover, enterprise systems administrators contribute to the computer services' success by performing all other assigned duties.
Help desk administrator is responsible for handling activities related to system support for their company or organization. They are in charge of providing superb client experiences and working in resolving support issues in a professional and timely manner. One of their primary tasks includes providing login resets and passwords for end-users. In addition, they will also perform innovative systems and network repairs, as well as assist computer information responses as required. Moreover, they support complete equipment set-up, renewal, or termination of a user account, handle server, and domain account changes.
Enterprise systems administrators and help desk administrators have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Enterprise Systems Administrator | Help Desk Administrator | |
| Average salary | $89,075 | $49,798 |
| Salary range | Between $63,000 And $124,000 | Between $34,000 And $71,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | California | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | Adobe | Houlihan Lokey |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Finance |
There are a few differences between an enterprise systems administrator and a help desk administrator in terms of educational background:
| Enterprise Systems Administrator | Help Desk Administrator | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 58% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between enterprise systems administrators' and help desk administrators' demographics:
| Enterprise Systems Administrator | Help Desk Administrator | |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 84.3% Female, 15.7% | Male, 74.3% Female, 25.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 12.8% Asian, 9.5% White, 63.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 9.1% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 12.8% Asian, 8.8% White, 63.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% |
| LGBT Percentage | 9% | 9% |