Senior network administrator vs help desk administrator

The differences between senior 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 senior network administrator and a help desk administrator. Additionally, a senior network administrator has an average salary of $89,169, which is higher than the $49,798 average annual salary of a help desk administrator.

The top three skills for a senior network administrator include switches, routers and troubleshoot. The most important skills for a help desk administrator are customer service, desk support, and troubleshoot.

Senior network administrator vs help desk administrator overview

	Senior Network Administrator	Help Desk Administrator
Yearly salary	$89,169	$49,798
Hourly rate	$42.87	$23.94
Growth rate	5%	5%
Number of jobs	110,027	130,180
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 58%	Bachelor's Degree, 52%
Average age	43	43
Years of experience	2	2

What does a senior network administrator do?

Senior Network Administrators provide system and network solutions for their organizations. They supervise the functioning of networking equipment and follow strict maintenance standards.

What does a help desk administrator do?

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.

Senior network administrator vs help desk administrator salary

Senior network administrators and help desk administrators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Senior Network Administrator	Help Desk Administrator
Average salary	$89,169	$49,798
Salary range	Between $68,000 And $115,000	Between $34,000 And $71,000
Highest paying City	San Mateo, CA	Washington, DC
Highest paying state	California	New Jersey
Best paying company	Tesoro	Houlihan Lokey
Best paying industry	Finance	Finance

Differences between senior network administrator and help desk administrator education

There are a few differences between a senior network administrator and a help desk administrator in terms of educational background:

	Senior Network Administrator	Help Desk Administrator
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 58%	Bachelor's Degree, 52%
Most common major	Computer Science	Business
Most common college	Massachusetts Institute of Technology	Stanford University

Senior network administrator vs help desk administrator demographics

Here are the differences between senior network administrators' and help desk administrators' demographics:

	Senior Network Administrator	Help Desk Administrator
Average age	43	43
Gender ratio	Male, 91.7% Female, 8.3%	Male, 74.3% Female, 25.7%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.0% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 12.7% Asian, 10.1% White, 62.7% 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%

Differences between senior network administrator and help desk administrator duties and responsibilities

Senior network administrator example responsibilities.

Lead IP management specialist and assist with management of DHCP scopes and reservations.
Establish and manage SharePoint base intranet for departmental and interdepartmental support.
Configure and manage SQL database archival requests for automate timely data submissions.
Configure and manage multiple data and application servers and maintain SQL relational databases.
Prioritize and manage servicing of customer trouble calls in locally develop tracking database.
Configure and manage company routers and switches in addition to VPN configuration and policy enforcement.

Help desk administrator example responsibilities.

Create, deploy and manage VMWare virtual desktops as well as configured customize pools for specific operational needs.
Manage the PC refresh program transferring all user data remotely and installing require software applications.
Configure, establish and manage local area network (LAN) connectivity and remote access per customer configuration requirements.
Administer DNS / DHCP servers, work with network administer to make sure the tables are updating correctly.
Administer IP address allocation through DHCP management.
Assist in the deployment of new POS applications and hardware.

Senior network administrator vs help desk administrator skills

Common senior network administrator skills

Switches, 8%
Routers, 5%
Troubleshoot, 5%
Windows Server, 4%
Network Infrastructure, 4%
Lan Wan, 4%

Common help desk administrator skills

Customer Service, 11%
Desk Support, 7%
Troubleshoot, 6%
Technical Support, 5%
Phone Calls, 4%
Remote Desktop, 4%

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Senior Network Administrator
Senior Network Administrator vs Help Desk Administrator

Updated January 8, 2025

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