Computer Support Specialist
Career Area: Information Technology
Occupation Group: Network and Systems Support
Salary
Percentile wages tell how much a certain percentage of an overall population in a geographic area or within a given industry or field makes. The percentile wage estimate is the value of a wage below which a certain percent of workers fall.
An example would be the 25th percentile, 25 percent of workers employed in that occupation earn less and 75 percent earn more than the estimated wage value. At the 75th percentile, 75 percent of workers employed in that occupation earn less and 25 percent earn more than the estimated wage value.
A typical Computer Support Specialist earns the following wages (national and state):
State
The average salary in North Carolina for those pursuing this career is $46,132
National
The average salary in the United States for those pursuing this career is $47,812
What Does a Professional in this Career Do?
Provides technical support to computer users, either as a part of an organization's information technology department, or to individual users in person or via telephone or other communication. Helps to maintain computer networks and fix problems as they arise, or helps clients diagnose and solve computer problems.
Employment Trends
The job demand and job growth statistics shown here were derived from job posts over the past year. Expected job growth projections are extrapolated from year-over-year job post listing history.
Job demand and job growth is expected at the following rates:
| Location | Growth | |
|---|---|---|
| North Carolina | 2983 | +11.9% |
| Nationwide | 86131 | +10.6% |
Skills
A professional in this position typically utilizes the following skills in the course of everyday work in this exciting and challenging field:
Baseline Skills
The following are baseline skills every Computer Support Specialist is expected to have in order to experience success in this field:
- Troubleshooting: Troubleshooting or dpanneuring is a form of problem solving, often applied to repair failed products or processes on a machine or a system.
- Communication Skills: The ability to convey information to another effectively and efficiently.
- Problem Solving: Problem solving consists of using generic or ad hoc methods, in an orderly manner, for finding solutions to problems.
- Microsoft Office: Microsoft Office is an office suite of applications, servers, and services developed by Microsoft.
- Microsoft Windows: Microsoft Windows, or simply Windows, is a metafamily of graphical operating systems developed, marketed, and sold by Microsoft.
Specialized Skills
These skills are specific to working in this career:
- Technical Support: Technical support (often shortened to tech support) refers to a plethora of services by which enterprises provide assistance to users of technology products such as mobile phones, televisions, computers, software products or other informatic, electronic or mechanical goods.
- Customer Service: Working experience with the provision of service to customers before, during and after a purchase.
- It Support: Working experience of monitoring and maintaining the computer systems as well as the networks within an organisation.
- Repair: Restoration of a broken, damaged, or failed device, equipment, part, or property to an acceptable operating or usable condition or state.
- Printers: In computing, a printer is a peripheral which makes a persistent human-readable representation of graphics or text on paper or similar physical media.
Distinguishing Skills
Any Computer Support Specialist that possesses the following skills will stand out against the competition:
- Break/Fix: Working experience of Break/Fix. The term break/fix refers to the fee-for-service method of providing information technology services to businesses. Using this method an IT solution provider performs services as needed and bills the customer only for the work done. The service may include repairs, upgrades or installation of systems, components, peripheral equipment, networking or software.
- Virtual Private Networking (VPN): A virtual private network (VPN) extends a private network across a public network, and enables users to send and receive data across shared or public networks as if their computing devices were directly connected to the private network.
- MacIntosh OS: Working experience of MacIntosh OS. MacOS is a series of graphical operating systems developed and marketed by Apple Inc. since 2001. It is the primary operating system for Apple's Mac family of computers.
- Hardware Support: Hardware Support comprises services that physically repair or optimize hardware, including basic installation, contract maintenance and per-incident repair both on-site and at a centralized repair depot. Hardware support also includes telephone technical troubleshooting and assistance for setup and all fee-based hardware warranty upgrades
- Software Support: After-sales service provided by a software publisher or vendor in solving software conflicts and usability problems, and in supplying updates and patches for bugs and security holes in the program.
Experience
This position typically requires the following level of experience. The numbers presented in the pie charts below were derived from actual job posts over the past year. Not all job postings list experience requirements.
| Experience Required | % |
| 0 to 2 years | 57% |
| 3 to 5 years | 36% |
| 6 to 8 years | 4% |
Many of the programs offered through NC State are designed for working professionals who need additional credentials to enhance existing work experience.
Students who do not have the expected level of experience may wish to look into internship and employment opportunities.
Common Job Titles
It is possible to find work in this field in positions commonly listed as the following job titles:
- It Support Specialist
- Desktop Support Technician
- Technical Support Specialist
- It Support Technician
- Desktop Support
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