How To Become A Network Systems Consultant: What It Is and Career Path

What is a network systems consultant and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted expert

Dr. Ariful Azad Ph.D.

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a network systems consultant. For example, did you know that they make an average of $39.28 an hour? That's $81,696 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 5% and produce 18,200 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to a network systems consultant?

Dr. Ariful Azad Ph.D.

Director of Graduate Studies for the Dept. of Intelligent Systems Engineering, Assistant Professor of Intelligent Systems Engineering, Indiana University Bloomington

Look for a job that you would enjoy doing, even if it takes some time to find such a position. Internships are great to explore various options.

ScoreNetwork Systems ConsultantUS Average

Salary

6.4

Avg. Salary $81,696

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

5.7

Growth rate 5%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

3.7

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.31%

Asian 10.46%

Black or African American 8.69%

Hispanic or Latino 12.38%

Unknown 5.07%

White 63.09%

Gender

female 4.53%

male 95.47%

Age - 42

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 42

Stress level

5.7

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

6.7

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

7.1

Work life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a network systems consultant

Explore network systems consultant education requirements

Most common network systems consultant degrees

Bachelor's

68.6 %

Associate

16.2 %

Master's

9.6 %

Start to develop specific network systems consultant skills

Skills	Percentages
Windows Server	7.57%
Switches	6.99%
Technical Support	5.09%
Network Infrastructure	4.60%
VMware	4.18%

Complete relevant network systems consultant training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 3-6 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New network systems consultants learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a network systems consultant based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real network systems consultant resumes.

Research network systems consultant duties and responsibilities

Manage the migration of existing physical infrastructures to virtualization solutions using VMWare ESXi and ESX 3.0/4.1.
Manage and frequently update network configuration settings for internal and external systems, including DNS, DHCP and Cisco equipment settings.
Lead in-house and consultant team in large-scale Linux server upgrade for multinational consulting firm, which significantly enhance system performance.
Install and maintain network infrastructure switches and routers, prepare and maintain documentation and network diagrams.

Prepare your network systems consultant resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your network systems consultant resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a network systems consultant resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable network systems consultant resume templates

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