Entry Level Network Engineer Salary: 4 Big Questions Answered

 

The job of a entry level network engineergenerally comes with great responsibility, which is why the salary of a typical network engineer tends to be high. If you're interested in a career in the field, it's worth asking how education, experience, and skill sets relate to rewards.

According to Burning Glass, which collects and analyzes millions of jobs across the country, entry level network engineer are in high demand (147,448 jobs in the last 12 months), with a growth rate of 6.5% in the next 10 years. Expected. The job will only get more complicated, and if entry level network engineer want to keep up with demand, they must maintain cutting-edge skills. For example, if you are tasked with creating a scalable network architecture in the cloud, you will need to know how to handle large, sometimes unexpected traffic spikes (and in a entry level network engineer interview question such as You Will Be Asked About This).

Since network threats are constantly changing, entry level network engineer must maintain high levels of cybersecurity skills (and must be more aware of them). Let's take a closer look at the salaries of network engineers.

What Is The Average Salary For A Entry Level Network Engineer?

Burning Glass, which is always helpful, shows that the median salary for entry level network engineers is $ 100,909. This is well above the 2019 tech industry average of $ 94,000, as estimated by Dice's annual salary report. Those at the top of the profession can earn quite a bit.

Dice's Salary Report increases the average salary of a entry level network engineer in 2019 to $ 89,596. It's still high due to different methodologies, but not as high as the Burning Glass numbers. Network engineers are a fast-growing profession in terms of salaries (for example, salaries increased 4% between 2018 and 2019), according to data from Dice.

Are Network Engineers Paid High?

As you can imagine, the average salary for a entry level network engineer increases with experience. People with more than 9 years of experience are often comfortable with a six-digit salary. Before launching other benefits and benefits like stock options and expense reimbursement.

What Are The Most Valuable Skills For Entry Level Network Engineers?

The chart below shows some of the special entry level network engineering skills that often appear on job listings. Also, keep in mind that any job requires not just a technical skill set, but also "soft skills" like communication and teamwork. Entry level network engineers need to interact with executives, teammates, and people in other departments on an almost constant basis.

Do I Need A Degree To Become A Entry Level Network Engineer?

According to Burning Glass, 85% of entry level network engineer jobs require a bachelor's degree, but few require an advanced degree. This is good news for ambitious network engineers who don't necessarily want to spend additional years earning their master's or doctorate. Additionally, employers must demonstrate that they have the right mix of skills and experience to take on the right network engineering role.

For these skills, many employers require network engineers to have certain qualifications. Here are some of the things we see in our job postings with relative frequency:

As you can see, security certifications are very important and for good reason. This is one of the most important aspects of a typical entry level network engineering position. Employers want to be satisfied with your cybersecurity knowledge and certification is an easy way to prove it.