How To Become A Telecommunication Engineer: What It Is and Career Path

What is a telecommunication engineer and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted expert

Daniel Armentrout

The role of a Telecommunication Engineer, who is also known as a telecoms engineer, is to install, maintain, and repair various types of visual, voice, and data communications servers and networks, such as mobile telephone networks, cable, and satellite systems. This means that they are essentially responsible for the GPS and WiFi systems we use in our everyday lives.

Their responsibilities generally include connecting and examining cables and other machinery and hardware, fixing issues as they come up, installing equipment on buildings and other tall structures, and even designing and building equipment and parts used to install the communication systems themselves. Though it might make sense for these Engineers to work at the highest levels of the IT industry, they actually work at various levels and in various industries.

A person looking to work as a Telecommunication Engineer should generally have excellent maths, science, and engineering skills. A higher education diploma is necessary, whether that means an Associate's degree or a Master's is entirely dependent upon the level and the complexity of the position.

What general advice would you give to a telecommunication engineer?

Daniel Armentrout

Clinical Associate Professor/Associate Chair

The excessive number of baby boomer engineers are retiring at high rates and you as a new engineering graduate are desperately needed to make up for their loss in the workforce. You will face challenges in your career we could not anticipate or prepare you for in your education. You will have to adapt and continue to learn new fields of study which did not exist when you graduated. We have given you tools to learn and you will have to use those tools to remain relevant throughout your career. Find your place as an engineer when you can be effective, help humanity, and have fun. Plot a career path where you can utilize your strengths and challenge your mind to do new things. Contribute to making a better world and you will be able to enjoy immense satisfaction and a sense of accomplishment.

ScoreTelecommunication EngineerUS Average

Salary

6.3

Avg. Salary $80,789

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

5.7

Growth rate 3%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

6.1

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.18%

Asian 14.37%

Black or African American 4.87%

Hispanic or Latino 11.34%

Unknown 4.71%

White 64.51%

Gender

female 12.27%

male 87.73%

Age - 44

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 - 44

Stress level

5.7

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.3

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

7.2

Work life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a telecommunication engineer

Explore telecommunication engineer education requirements

Most common telecommunication engineer degrees

Bachelor's

60.2 %

Associate

17.2 %

Master's

12.0 %

Start to develop specific telecommunication engineer skills

Skills	Percentages
Telecommunication	11.02%
VoIP	7.87%
RF	4.66%
Switches	4.61%
Fiber Optic	4.51%

Complete relevant telecommunication engineer training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-2 years on post-employment, on-the-job training. New telecommunication engineers 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 telecommunication engineer based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real telecommunication engineer resumes.

Research telecommunication engineer duties and responsibilities

Manage, administer UCCE / PCCE contact center environment.
Manage main distribution frame (mdf) and record keeping.
Manage video conferencing technologies such as Telepresence, and video support in WebEx.
Manage services providers and vendors including contract negotiations, billing and SLA management.

Prepare your telecommunication engineer resume

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

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