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The differences between junior help desk technicians and information technology/support technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a junior help desk technician and an information technology/support technician. Additionally, a junior help desk technician has an average salary of $48,069, which is higher than the $45,591 average annual salary of an information technology/support technician.
The top three skills for a junior help desk technician include escalate, help-desk support and technical support. The most important skills for an information technology/support technician are customer service, troubleshoot, and computer system.
| Junior Help Desk Technician | Information Technology/Support Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $48,069 | $45,591 |
| Hourly rate | $23.11 | $21.92 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 104,343 | 161,748 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 39% | Bachelor's Degree, 51% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
A junior helpdesk technician is responsible for providing technical support to clients through calls or correspondence, ensuring efficiency and client satisfaction. They typically assist customers by identifying their needs, troubleshooting problems, providing step by step solutions, and forwarding complicated issues to helpdesk engineers. They may also refer customers to other services should it require. Furthermore, a junior helpdesk technician must maintain records of all transactions, produce progress reports, and develop strategies to help the company build positive relationships with customers.
An information technology (IT) support technician is an individual who is responsible for providing support and troubleshoots software and hardware problems faced by customers. As for larger organizations that have their own IT department, technicians must work together internally with their IT staff members. IT support technicians are involved in inspecting and resolving minor local area network and wireless network issues, which include TCP/IP, DHCP, and VPN. They are also required to obtain an associate's degree in computer science or related field.
Junior help desk technicians and information technology/support technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Junior Help Desk Technician | Information Technology/Support Technician | |
| Average salary | $48,069 | $45,591 |
| Salary range | Between $35,000 And $65,000 | Between $31,000 And $66,000 |
| Highest paying City | Freehold, NJ | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | New Hampshire | Pennsylvania |
| Best paying company | Prolifics | Microsoft |
| Best paying industry | Utilities | Technology |
There are a few differences between a junior help desk technician and an information technology/support technician in terms of educational background:
| Junior Help Desk Technician | Information Technology/Support Technician | |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 39% | Bachelor's Degree, 51% |
| Most common major | Automotive Technology | Computer Science |
| Most common college | SUNY Farmingdale | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between junior help desk technicians' and information technology/support technicians' demographics:
| Junior Help Desk Technician | Information Technology/Support Technician | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 83.8% Female, 16.2% | Male, 85.4% Female, 14.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.2% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.2% Asian, 10.6% White, 56.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 10.7% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.7% Asian, 13.2% White, 54.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |