Overview
1. Automation Risk
2. User Poll
3. Growth
4. Wages
5. Volume
Decription
Resources
Comments

Network and Computer Systems Administrators

AUTOMATION RISK
CALCULATED
44%
risk level
POLLING
36%
Based on 598 votes
LABOR DEMAND
GROWTH
3.4%
by 2031
WAGES
$90,520
or $43.52 hourly
VOLUME
325,930
as of 2022
SUMMARY
JOB SCORE
6.2/10
Vote
Comments (12)

Automation risk

44% (Moderate Risk)

Moderate Risk (41-60%): Occupations with a moderate risk of automation usually involve routine tasks but still require some human judgment and interaction.

More information on what this score is, and how it is calculated is available here.

Some quite important qualities of the job are difficult to automate:

  • Originality

  • Social Perceptiveness

User poll

36% chance of full automation within the next two decades

Our visitors have voted that there is a small chance this occupation will be replaced. This assessment is further supported by the calculated automation risk level, which estimates 44% chance of automation.

What do you think the risk of automation is?

What is the likelihood that this occupation will be replaced by robots or AI in the next 20 years?






Growth

Slow growth relative to other professions.

The number of 'Network and Computer Systems Administrators' job openings is expected to rise 3.4% by 2031

Total employment, and estimated job openings

* Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics for the period between 2021 and 2031.
Updated projections are due Sep 2023.

Wages

Very high paid relative to other professions

In 2022, the median annual wage for 'Network and Computer Systems Administrators' was $90,520, or $43.52 per hour

'Network and Computer Systems Administrators' were paid 95.5% higher than the national median wage, which stood at $46,310

Wages over time

* Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics

Volume

Significantly greater range of job opportunities compared to other professions

As of 2022 there were 325,930 people employed as Network and Computer Systems Administrators within the United States.

This represents around 0.22% of the employed workforce across the country.

Put another way, around 1 in 453 people are employed as Network and Computer Systems Administrators.

Job description

Install, configure, and maintain an organization's local area network (LAN), wide area network (WAN), data communications network, operating systems, and physical and virtual servers. Perform system monitoring and verify the integrity and availability of hardware, network, and server resources and systems. Review system and application logs and verify completion of scheduled jobs, including system backups. Analyze network and server resource consumption and control user access. Install and upgrade software and maintain software licenses. May assist in network modeling, analysis, planning, and coordination between network and data communications hardware and software.

SOC Code: 15-1244.00

Resources

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Comments

Leave a comment

Jay (No chance) says
No way too many variables
Jul 28, 2021 at 02:56 PM
Bengt says
I took a career in a Management position. If you are afraid to lose your job in the technical field, Management is always a good path.

Remember; soon rather than later gentlemen :)

Jul 28, 2021 at 08:14 AM
Simon (Could go either way) says
Automation is a crustal part of IT System operations. But configuring new Infrastructure or troubleshooting "broken" networks requires manual Human actions. All repetitive Work is or will be completely automated.
Jul 18, 2021 at 08:53 AM
Gabriel (Small chance) says
someone got to watch the watchers
Mar 18, 2021 at 07:16 PM
Ni says
The problem of automation here is that the technology changes very fast.
Automation can be done in a limited way in an evolving environment.
Mar 09, 2021 at 01:32 PM
jeff (No chance) says
Creates and manages the communication layer AI uses. Would require either a common available complete drop in network solution that never needs changed or robots to manage the physical side. Neither are less than 20 years away minimum.
Feb 07, 2021 at 02:43 PM
Chanwit Chonsuwanwat (Small chance) says
Because A.I. and Big Data must rely on Good System / Network Infrastructure either organization will use On-Premise or On-Cloud. However Traditional System Admin can upskills themselves to be Cloud Administrator / Engineer , DevOps Engineer , Security Administrator / Engineer and etc.
Jul 18, 2020 at 09:09 AM
Nick M. says
I’m a network engineer and agree with the other comment. We have automation and some GUI based systems, but without the underlying knowledge, it’s meaningless. A human will always be needed.
Jun 30, 2020 at 05:02 AM
letouane (Likely) says
With an AI tranning or eating support tickets the job can be automatized. "Is it working now" can be answered by the customer...
The only part of the work that need a human is in case of material problem only...
Jun 25, 2020 at 01:47 AM
Marek (Could go either way) says
Lots of work can be automated and implemented via scripts and parts of the code. On the other hand what saves this position is that network topology design changes over time and new implementation methods are needed and all has to be updated.
Jun 23, 2020 at 01:09 PM
Guadalupe Toro says
Systems administrators, or sysadmins, are responsible for deploying, configuring, maintaining, monitoring and managing an organizations servers or other computer systems. Propelled by the DevOps trend, people in these professions have become increasingly reliant on automation in recent years to help them handle mundane tasks like server configuration and software updates. In addition, many monitoring tools are beginning to incorporate machine learning and AI capabilities, which can reduce the number of false alerts and, in some cases, warn sysadmins in advance of problems that are likely to occur so that they can take preventive action. This is likely a position where AI will augment the capabilities of human workers rather than replacing them entirely. The BLS reports median pay for network and computer systems administrators was $79,700 per year in 2016, and the field is experiencing average growth.
Feb 03, 2020 at 01:59 PM
Bjarki Heimisson (No chance) says
I'm a system administrator and even without human error and though a lot of systems are automated in some ways, having the human touch is always needed.
Aug 28, 2019 at 04:54 PM

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