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The differences between field technicians and system technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 6-12 months to become a field technician, becoming a system technician takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a system technician has an average salary of $43,410, which is higher than the $37,520 average annual salary of a field technician.
The top three skills for a field technician include customer service, ladders and test equipment. The most important skills for a system technician are customer service, hand tools, and preventative maintenance.
| Field Technician | System Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $37,520 | $43,410 |
| Hourly rate | $18.04 | $20.87 |
| Growth rate | 8% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 123,149 | 137,121 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 40% | Associate Degree, 40% |
| Average age | 44 | 43 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 2 |
A field technician is responsible for providing technical and maintenance support for the customers by area visits. Field technicians' duties include diagnosing technical problems, replacing malfunction components, upgrading systems for efficiency, running equipment tests to ensure stability, creating draft reports of performed processes, utilizing vehicles and other tools safely, following client's specifications on operating equipment, and adhering to the safety standards. A field technician must have excellent communication and decision-making skills, as well as extensive knowledge of the technological industry.
A system technician is an individual responsible for supporting users with issues related to the computer system. System technicians conduct appropriate diagnostics on computer issues and must be able to explain technical issues to clients or team members. They should carry out tests on the system so that they can generate error reports to identify and fix any computer system problems. System technicians also can write and maintain computer programs and work with computers and electronics, including circuit boards, computer hardware and software, and computer processors.
Field technicians and system technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Field Technician | System Technician | |
| Average salary | $37,520 | $43,410 |
| Salary range | Between $28,000 And $48,000 | Between $27,000 And $67,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | Seattle, WA |
| Highest paying state | Connecticut | Washington |
| Best paying company | DCP Midstream | Bristol-Myers Squibb |
| Best paying industry | Energy | Government |
There are a few differences between a field technician and a system technician in terms of educational background:
| Field Technician | System Technician | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 40% | Associate Degree, 40% |
| Most common major | Business | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | - | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between field technicians' and system technicians' demographics:
| Field Technician | System Technician | |
| Average age | 44 | 43 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 88.5% Female, 11.5% | Male, 90.0% Female, 10.0% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.5% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 17.8% Asian, 1.7% White, 71.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 8.8% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 12.5% Asian, 8.8% White, 64.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% |
| LGBT Percentage | 1% | 9% |