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Switch technician vs field technician

The differences between switch technicians and field technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a switch technician has an average salary of $101,377, which is higher than the $37,520 average annual salary of a field technician.

The top three skills for a switch technician include switches, routine maintenance and T1. The most important skills for a field technician are customer service, ladders, and test equipment.

Switch technician vs field technician overview

Switch TechnicianField Technician
Yearly salary$101,377$37,520
Hourly rate$48.74$18.04
Growth rate8%8%
Number of jobs46,430123,149
Job satisfaction-5
Most common degreeAssociate Degree, 42%Bachelor's Degree, 40%
Average age4544
Years of experience-12

Switch technician vs field technician salary

Switch technicians and field technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

Switch TechnicianField Technician
Average salary$101,377$37,520
Salary rangeBetween $76,000 And $134,000Between $28,000 And $48,000
Highest paying City-Washington, DC
Highest paying state-Connecticut
Best paying company-DCP Midstream
Best paying industry-Energy

Differences between switch technician and field technician education

There are a few differences between a switch technician and a field technician in terms of educational background:

Switch TechnicianField Technician
Most common degreeAssociate Degree, 42%Bachelor's Degree, 40%
Most common majorElectrical EngineeringBusiness
Most common collegeInter American University of Puerto Rico Bayamon-

Switch technician vs field technician demographics

Here are the differences between switch technicians' and field technicians' demographics:

Switch TechnicianField Technician
Average age4544
Gender ratioMale, 88.6% Female, 11.4%Male, 88.5% Female, 11.5%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 12.5% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 18.5% Asian, 6.3% White, 57.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%Black or African American, 4.5% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 17.8% Asian, 1.7% White, 71.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage6%1%

Differences between switch technician and field technician duties and responsibilities

Switch technician example responsibilities.

  • Manage LAN as an administrator for NATO HQ network.
  • Assist in managing CDMA network, Voice/EVDO circuit's layouts, CDM circuit inventory and roll over's for cell sites.
  • Configure Veraz switch for TDM and IP services.
  • Coordinate installation, testing, and troubleshooting of transmission facilities (OC48, T3, T1, and DSO).
  • Work with management team to develop a comprehensive and successful IP and TDM base network infrastructure and unify communications plan.
  • Circuit switching (DMS-250 and Alcatel DEX-600E).
  • Show more

Field technician example responsibilities.

  • Lead training, operations, user hardware and software support, and logbook oversight.
  • Manage network reliability, capacity and performance in conjunction with RF engineering establish guidelines.
  • Install cable to data network, pulling cat5, cat6 to racks, patch panel patch cords.
  • Provide desktop support and troubleshoot network communications issue at customer homes.
  • Install AWS and LTE Equiptment.
  • Work with NOC's for trouble issues.
  • Show more

Switch technician vs field technician skills

Common switch technician skills
  • Switches, 9%
  • Routine Maintenance, 7%
  • T1, 7%
  • RF, 6%
  • Technical Support, 4%
  • Trouble Tickets, 4%
Common field technician skills
  • Customer Service, 11%
  • Ladders, 9%
  • Test Equipment, 7%
  • Hand Tools, 6%
  • Smartphones, 4%
  • Preventative Maintenance, 4%

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