How To Become A Fiber Technologist: What It Is and Career Path

What is a fiber technologist and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

A fiber technologist is a skilled professional that installs, repairs, and maintains fiber optic cables. They are responsible for eliminating downtime related to fiber network issues, as well as maintaining the optimal performance of fiber optic systems.

The key duties of a fiber technologist include installing fiber optic systems, conducting inspections, performing preventive maintenance, organizing maintenance schedules, making necessary replacements, and troubleshooting any issues that may arise. They may also engineer broadband optical transmission systems, configure network topologies, terminate cables or connections, and create sensor indicators.

A high school diploma is usually enough qualification to become a fiber technologist, but one may need to be certified as a fiber optics installer or fiber optics technician before they can apply for jobs. More than that, a fiber technologist must be physically fit enough to conduct lots of manual work and travel to different client sites regularly. The average annual salary of a fiber technician is around $39,000 to $95,000. The highest-paying jobs are usually found in the media, technology, and telecommunications industries.

ScoreFiber TechnologistUS Average

Salary

4.0

Avg. Salary $51,824

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

7.2

Growth rate 6%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

5.5

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.86%

Asian 4.01%

Black or African American 9.64%

Hispanic or Latino 18.17%

Unknown 6.37%

White 60.95%

Gender

female 10.13%

male 89.87%

Age - 45

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 - 45

Stress level

7.2

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.2

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

3.9

Work life balance is poor

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a fiber technologist

Explore fiber technologist education requirements

Most common fiber technologist degrees

Bachelor's

40.8 %

Associate

25.2 %

High School Diploma

17.8 %

Start to develop specific fiber technologist skills

Skills	Percentages
OTDR	8.10%
OSP	7.40%
Fiber Optic Cables	6.81%
Hand Tools	6.16%
Ladders	5.86%

Complete relevant fiber technologist training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New fiber technologists 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 fiber technologist based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real fiber technologist resumes.

Research fiber technologist duties and responsibilities

Manage the OSP splicing department for the past year successfully with limit time, tools, and under train techs.
Open and close department independently and also assist surgical staff by managing QC and providing radiopharmaceuticals as needed for procedures.
Engineer broadband optical transmission systems using DWDM.
Used fusion splicer to repair breaks find by OTDR tests.

Prepare your fiber technologist resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your fiber technologist 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 fiber technologist resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable fiber technologist resume templates

Build a professional fiber technologist 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 fiber technologist resume.