Network security specialist vs network administrator

The differences between network security specialists and network administrators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a network security specialist, becoming a network administrator takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a network security specialist has an average salary of $82,206, which is higher than the $71,357 average annual salary of a network administrator.

The top three skills for a network security specialist include network security, incident response and IDS. The most important skills for a network administrator are switches, windows server, and troubleshoot.

Network security specialist vs network administrator overview

	Network Security Specialist	Network Administrator
Yearly salary	$82,206	$71,357
Hourly rate	$39.52	$34.31
Growth rate	32%	5%
Number of jobs	82,646	106,886
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 61%	Bachelor's Degree, 55%
Average age	42	43
Years of experience	6	2

What does a network security specialist do?

A Network Security Specialist is a person who oversees computer networks to find security threats or unauthorized users. Their responsibilities include: identifying compromised machines, creating briefs of security measures taken, identifying possible security risks, determining the proper procedure to address the risks, assessing software that security aid, and researching security devices to get proper information on installation, audit-related information, and disaster recovery plans.

What does a network administrator do?

A network administrator is responsible for managing an organization's computer systems, ensuring its smooth operations and highest efficiency. Network administrators' duties include inspecting network malfunctions, troubleshooting unresponsive programs, improving system processes, analyzing client's specifications, upgrading existing applications, coordinating with the technology department, and creating a report of network issues resolutions. A network administrator should display a strong command of programming languages. Extensive knowledge in the technology industry and analytical and problem-solving skills to manage network problems immediately is also necessary.

Network security specialist vs network administrator salary

Network security specialists and network administrators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Network Security Specialist	Network Administrator
Average salary	$82,206	$71,357
Salary range	Between $60,000 And $112,000	Between $56,000 And $90,000
Highest paying City	Sunnyvale, CA	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	California	Washington
Best paying company	JPMorgan Chase & Co.	Google
Best paying industry	Technology	Finance

Differences between network security specialist and network administrator education

There are a few differences between a network security specialist and a network administrator in terms of educational background:

	Network Security Specialist	Network Administrator
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 61%	Bachelor's Degree, 55%
Most common major	Computer Science	Computer Science
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Network security specialist vs network administrator demographics

Here are the differences between network security specialists' and network administrators' demographics:

	Network Security Specialist	Network Administrator
Average age	42	43
Gender ratio	Male, 83.6% Female, 16.4%	Male, 88.6% Female, 11.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 6.1% Hispanic or Latino, 9.0% Asian, 9.6% White, 65.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%	Black or African American, 8.8% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 12.5% Asian, 9.6% White, 63.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between network security specialist and network administrator duties and responsibilities

Network security specialist example responsibilities.

Achieve a reputation as a security and technology leader in the LINUX world, interview profiled by several LINUX publications.
Manage project to maximize available bandwidth and throughput by implementing QOS technologies including compression, traffic shaping and priority/custom queuing.
Install new firewalls, switches and routers contingent on management schedule.
Create encryption policy and technical solutions to protect company mobile computing devices including laptops and smart phones.
Manage project to maximize available bandwidth and throughput by implementing QOS technologies including compression, traffic shaping and priority/custom queuing.
Coordinate efforts in moving data from Novell servers to Microsoft server with total overhaul of file and security group structure.

Network administrator example responsibilities.

Lead and manage desktop standards project.
Manage backups using EMC Networker and Avamar.
Manage Solarwinds to monitor servers and networks for all locations.
Manage all provisioning and technical issues for new customer IP blocks.
Deploy and manage storage (windows file servers and NetApp NAS).
Manage all technology: Novell, Microsoft, Cisco, email, library, labs, dorms, programs

Network security specialist vs network administrator skills

Common network security specialist skills

Network Security, 12%
Incident Response, 6%
IDS, 5%
Firewall, 5%
Switches, 4%
Intrusion Detection, 4%

Common network administrator skills

Switches, 7%
Windows Server, 6%
Troubleshoot, 5%
Network Hardware, 5%
Routers, 4%
Lan Wan, 4%

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Network Security Specialist vs Network Administrator

Updated January 8, 2025

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