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What is a senior systems technician 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 senior systems technician. For example, did you know that they make an average of $39.23 an hour? That's $81,594 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 senior systems technician?

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.
ScoreSenior Systems TechnicianUS Average
Salary
6.4

Avg. Salary $81,594

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level
5.7

Growth rate 5%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity
3.8
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.31%

Asian 9.01%

Black or African American 8.93%

Hispanic or Latino 12.61%

Unknown 5.09%

White 64.04%

Gender

female 10.40%

male 89.60%

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

Senior systems technician career paths

Key steps to become a senior systems technician

  1. Explore senior systems technician education requirements

    Most common senior systems technician degrees

    Associate

    41.6 %

    Bachelor's

    38.7 %

    High School Diploma

    7.2 %
  2. Start to develop specific senior systems technician skills

    SkillsPercentages
    Technical Support11.43%
    Troubleshoot10.60%
    Switches5.07%
    Customer Service4.38%
    Technical Assistance4.22%
  3. Complete relevant senior systems technician training and internships

    Accountants spend an average of 3-6 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New senior systems technicians 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 senior systems technician based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real senior systems technician resumes.
  4. Research senior systems technician duties and responsibilities

    • Recommend, engineer and manage office systems, including centralize productivity and communication systems such as e-mail and centralize desktop environments.
    • Administer of the BGP autonomous system.
    • Troubleshoot network issues including DNS and DHCP.
    • Migrate all Novell printing to NT and Unix.
  5. Get senior systems technician experience

    Generally, it takes 1-2 years to become a senior systems technician. The most common roles before becoming a senior systems technician include system technician, field service technician team lead and electronics technician.
  6. Prepare your senior systems technician resume

    When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your senior systems technician 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 senior systems technician resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

    Choose from 10+ customizable senior systems technician resume templates

    Build a professional senior systems technician resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your senior systems technician resume.
    Senior Systems Technician Resume
    Senior Systems Technician Resume
    Senior Systems Technician Resume
    Senior Systems Technician Resume
    Senior Systems Technician Resume
    Senior Systems Technician Resume
    Senior Systems Technician Resume
    Senior Systems Technician Resume
    Senior Systems Technician Resume
  7. Apply for senior systems technician jobs

    Now it's time to start searching for a senior systems technician job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

    1. Browse job boards for relevant postings
    2. Consult your professional network
    3. Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
    4. Watch out for job scams

How did you land your first senior systems technician job

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Average senior systems technician salary

The average senior systems technician salary in the United States is $81,594 per year or $39 per hour. Senior systems technician salaries range between $54,000 and $122,000 per year.

Average senior systems technician salary
$81,594 Yearly
$39.23 hourly

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Senior systems technician reviews

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A zippia user wrote a review on Nov 2019
Pros

talking to people

Cons

outside weather, I work as a network technician and the main problem I always encounter is the cold weather.


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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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