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The differences between junior network 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 a junior network administrator and a help desk administrator. Additionally, a junior network administrator has an average salary of $51,121, which is higher than the $49,798 average annual salary of a help desk administrator.
The top three skills for a junior network administrator include windows server, troubleshoot and network hardware. The most important skills for a help desk administrator are customer service, desk support, and troubleshoot.
| Junior Network Administrator | Help Desk Administrator | |
| Yearly salary | $51,121 | $49,798 |
| Hourly rate | $24.58 | $23.94 |
| Growth rate | 5% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 121,498 | 130,180 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 51% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
Junior network administrators are entry-level information technology (IT) professionals who are responsible for assisting senior administrators to establish and set up new computer networks for an organization. These junior administrators are required to monitor computer networks while providing network security to avoid any suspected activities on the computer network systems. They are in charge of purchasing computer components and software that are needed for the daily operations of the organization. Junior network administrators must also educate their non-network employees so that they can properly use computers and perform timely maintenance.
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.
Junior network administrators and help desk administrators have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Junior Network Administrator | Help Desk Administrator | |
| Average salary | $51,121 | $49,798 |
| Salary range | Between $39,000 And $66,000 | Between $34,000 And $71,000 |
| Highest paying City | Costa Mesa, CA | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | Exegy | Houlihan Lokey |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Finance |
There are a few differences between a junior network administrator and a help desk administrator in terms of educational background:
| Junior Network Administrator | Help Desk Administrator | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 51% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Most common major | Computer Information Systems | Business |
| Most common college | Carnegie Mellon University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between junior network administrators' and help desk administrators' demographics:
| Junior Network Administrator | Help Desk Administrator | |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 87.7% Female, 12.3% | Male, 74.3% Female, 25.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 8.8% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 12.5% Asian, 11.3% White, 62.1% 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% |