How to Climb the IT Job Ladder: From Help Desk Support to Systems Engineer ClearanceJobs

Beyond that technical proficiency, they must also have excellent interpersonal skills to interact with customers. In general, desk support technicians achieve similar levels of education than help desk engineers. They’re 2.8% less likely to obtain a Master’s Degree while being 0.6% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree. As you move along in your career, you may start taking on more responsibilities help desk engineer or notice that you’ve taken on a leadership role. Using our career map, a help desk engineer can determine their career goals through the career progression. For example, they could start out with a role such as systems administrator, progress to a title such as information technology manager and then eventually end up with the title information technology director.

In contrast, help desk engineers make the biggest average salary, $67,498, in the finance industry. Help desk technicians belong to the occupational field of computer support specialists. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) projects 5 percent job growth for careers in this field between 2022 and 2032 [3]. Those interested in working in IT can get their start as a help desk technician before acquiring the skills to pursue more specialized roles. Help desk technicians are specialized types of customer service representatives. They use their technical knowledge of hardware and software to help troubleshoot problems users encounter.

Help desk engineer vs. Information engineer

You are a traffic cop, keeping things moving and fixing small things where you can. Coursera’s editorial team is comprised of highly experienced professional editors, writers, and fact… Tech professionals need to stay current with the latest trends and technologies.

While similarities exist, there are also some differences between help desk engineers and desktop support specialist. Help desk engineers and desk support technicians both require similar skills like “troubleshoot,” “help-desk support,” and “technical support” to carry out their responsibilities. In general, senior infrastructure engineers earn the most working in the hospitality industry, with an average salary of $123,360. The highest-paying industry for a help desk engineer is the finance industry. An information engineer is responsible for monitoring the efficiency of computer systems and network infrastructure, performing configuration to boost the optimal performance of the technology systems. Information engineers assist end-users in resolving network issues, identifying the source of inconsistencies, and create resolution reports for reference to avoid reoccurrence.

Help Desk Administrator

Use Reed.co.uk’s average salary checker to find out what you could be earning. Helpdesk Engineer – Newcastle – 30,000 1st/2nd Line We are seeking a highly ambitious, and experienced Helpdesk Engineer to join this fast past team. This role offers the chance to work with a vast variety of all the latest technologies, providing 1s… A wise old man once told me, a journey of 10,000 miles begins with one step…Okay, no one actually told me that – but it’s a good adage to think of as you approach a career in IT. Let’s focus on a couple of different jobs you can do to get off to a good start in your IT career. Take an assessment to learn more about your skills and the careers that might suit you.

become a help desk engineer

You could teach in further education or move into technical sales. Completing a Professional Certificate or other types of education can be worthwhile. For example, IBM offen IT Support Professional Certificate that you can use to gain vital IT skills and experience. Additionally, those who complete this certification course receive an IBM digital badge and access to exclusive job placement resources. In contrast, someone who is technically proficient but without experience in customer service should focus on building their communication skills. You can work on both simultaneously with a foundational online course like Google’s Technical Support Fundamentals.

Related careers

They may escalate complicated technical problems like faulty products to IT support. Find a mentor that will help you understand the ins and outs of the technology that your organization is utilizing and sit in on any architecture or design meetings that you can. Take lots of notes and do your best to gain an expert level understanding of how the organization architected their infrastructure and also why they did. Expect to spend a good chunk of your career in systems administration, starting as a junior sys admin and working your way to a senior admin before moving on.

  • If you enjoy working with people and technology, this position could be a great fit for you.
  • Qualifications for a job description may include education, certification, and experience.
  • Here are courses we recommend for help desk engineers at the beginning of their career paths.
  • To get here, you have to have had lots of hands on experience, both with successful deployments and failed deployments.
  • If the issue involves a user needing a copy of their Exchange .pst file, you will send the ticket to the Exchange Admin queue.

The Find a job service can help you with your search for jobs and send alerts when new jobs become available. Here are courses we recommend for help desk engineers at the beginning of their career paths. You could work in an office, at a client’s business or in a contact centre. You can find out more about working in IT support from techskills and The Chartered Institute for IT. This content has been made available for informational purposes only.

I’ve been in the IT career field for 20 years and it has been an amazing experience to say the least. What I experience in my work now is not what I experienced when I first started 20 years ago, and it’s not just about the technology I was using, either. Everyone has to start somewhere, and since I’ve experienced the highs and lows of climbing the IT ladder, I want to share some tips with you. My hope is you can feel good about kick-starting a career in IT, or get an understanding of what you need to do to keep climbing and have success. One way to gain the necessary skills is to take a comprehensive course. Additionally, you can also gain experience by working on relevant projects or volunteering as a junior help desk engineer.

become a help desk engineer

You have to have a complete understanding of every aspect of a company’s infrastructure (networking, storage, virtualization, OS, security) to architect or design a solution that suits their needs. This is not an easy process but you can get there with years of experience and lots of knowledge. The Information Technology field is one of the most rewarding and challenging career fields in the world today. It is one of the only career fields that changes almost on a daily basis, and requires you to be up on the latest trends in order to keep pace and stay relevant.

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