What does a fiber technologist do?
Fiber Technologists are responsible for the installation, repair, and maintenance of fiber optic cables. Their duties include organizing maintenance schedules, conducting fiber optic system installation, replacing old fiber optics cables, troubleshoot fiber optic issues, and manage fiber splicing. They are responsible for undertaking fiber optic inspection, creating sensor indicators, fulfilling cable requirements, and implementing cabling for premises. Fiber Technologists also manage system records as well as track devices' signal strengths.
Fiber technologist responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real fiber technologist resumes:
- 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.
- Design & build CWDM and DWDM fiber optic jumper cords.
- Install and troubleshoot electronic cctv and access control point security systems.
- Prepare and present PowerPoint lectures for colleagues and Kenyan medical personnel.
- Assist in the electronic balancing and testing of the ISP and OSP.
- Resolve problematic issues with wire and wireless network systems and LAN architectures.
- Supervise the initial setup and provisioning of all phones by the VOIP crew.
- Design and supervise the installation of conduit and raceway systems for MDU buildings.
- Utilize in house java application to configure and add nodes to the network.
- Create weekly PowerPoint presentations of all work orders, tools, and maintenance statuses.
- Analyze fiber-test data, OTDR traces, and power meter for true-wave and single-mode fiber.
- Back up billing files from local switch and assure all switches are sending files remotely.
Fiber technologist skills and personality traits
We calculated that 8% of Fiber Technologists are proficient in OTDR, OSP, and Fiber Optic Cables. They’re also known for soft skills such as Physical strength, Teamwork, and Color vision.
We break down the percentage of Fiber Technologists that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- OTDR, 8%
Tested fiber with Fluke Networks DTX-1800 & Compact OTDR (Optical Timed Domain Reflector).
- OSP, 7%
Splice locations ranged from OH OSP, UG OSP.
- Fiber Optic Cables, 7%
Served as team leader; trained and managed staff on the installation, cleaning and testing of fiber optic cables.
- Hand Tools, 6%
Skilled in the proper use and operation of power and hand tools required for cable installation, testing and repair
- Ladders, 6%
Used all types of ladders and man lifts.
- ST, 6%
Implemented MT-RJ LC, SC, and ST connecters.
Most fiber technologists use their skills in "otdr," "osp," and "fiber optic cables" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential fiber technologist responsibilities here:
Physical strength. One of the key soft skills for a fiber technologist to have is physical strength. You can see how this relates to what fiber technologists do because "line installers and repairers must be strong enough to lift heavy tools, cables, and equipment on a regular basis." Additionally, a fiber technologist resume shows how fiber technologists use physical strength: "terminated fiber optic cablestested signal strengthsrouted ethernet and managed cable laddershad access to restricted server rooms"
Teamwork. Many fiber technologist duties rely on teamwork. "because workers often rely on their fellow crew members for their safety, teamwork is critical.," so a fiber technologist will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways fiber technologist responsibilities rely on teamwork: "provide guidance to other technicians on technical issues, customer service issues, and situations requiring good teamwork skills. "
Color vision. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of fiber technologists is color vision. This skill is critical to many everyday fiber technologist duties, as "workers who handle electrical wires and cables must distinguish colors because the wires and cables are often color coded." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "maintained a positive attitude and strong work ethic that can provide high productivity with minimal supervision. "
Mechanical skills. fiber technologist responsibilities often require "mechanical skills." The duties that rely on this skill are shown by the fact that "line installers and repairers must have the knowledge and skills to repair or replace complex electrical and telecommunications lines and equipment." This resume example shows what fiber technologists do with mechanical skills on a typical day: "spliced cables, using hand tools, epoxy and mechanical equipment. "
Troubleshooting skills. A commonly-found skill in fiber technologist job descriptions, "troubleshooting skills" is essential to what fiber technologists do. Fiber technologist responsibilities rely on this skill because "line installers and repairers must diagnose problems in increasingly complex electrical systems and telecommunication lines." You can also see how fiber technologist duties rely on troubleshooting skills in this resume example: "crew member experienced in installation, terminating, testing, troubleshooting with fiber, copper and repair on telecommunication cabling system. "
Physical stamina. Lastly, "physical stamina" is an important element of what a fiber technologist does. Fiber technologist responsibilities require this skill because "line installers and repairers often must climb poles and work at great heights with heavy tools and equipment." This resume example highlights how fiber technologist duties rely on this skill: "performed physical adds, moves and changes on pbx and ksu phone systems. "
The three companies that hire the most fiber technologists are:
- AT&T194 fiber technologists jobs
- Integrated Services35 fiber technologists jobs
- Spectrum16 fiber technologists jobs
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Compare different fiber technologists
Fiber technologist vs. Locator
A locator or utility locator is an individual who is responsible for locating, identifying, and marking underground utilities before the start of construction or other projects in an area. Locators are required to read maps and blueprints to determine where utilities are located and protect those underground utilities from damage during excavation. They must be able to operate small or medium-sized vehicles and direct traffic away from the worksite.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, fiber technologist responsibilities require skills like "otdr," "osp," "ladders," and "st." Meanwhile a typical locator has skills in areas such as "necessary paperwork," "working independently," "tv," and "water lines." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
On average, locators reach similar levels of education than fiber technologists. Locators are 3.1% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.3% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Fiber technologist vs. Telecommunications line installer
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, fiber technologist responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "otdr," "osp," "fiber optic cables," and "st." Meanwhile, a telecommunications line installer has duties that require skills in areas such as "mechanical equipment," "analyze test results," "auxiliary equipment," and "utility poles." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
Telecommunications line installers earn similar levels of education than fiber technologists in general. They're 0.9% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.3% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Fiber technologist vs. Construction lineman
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, fiber technologists are more likely to have skills like "otdr," "osp," "fiber optic cables," and "hand tools." But a construction lineman is more likely to have skills like "construction equipment," "cdl," "tv," and "trenchers."
Most construction linemen achieve a similar degree level compared to fiber technologists. For example, they're 4.4% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.4% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Fiber technologist vs. Reel cart operator
Types of fiber technologist
Updated January 8, 2025
