Network Engineer / Architect
What Does a Professional in this Career Do?
A Network Engineer or Architect designs and builds computer network systems, including software and hardware. Runs program and system tests, solves technical problems and maintains the network system. Designs and analyzes computer network models.
Job Outlook
There were 1833 Network Engineer / Architect job postings in North Carolina in the past year and 51699 in the United States.
In combination with other careers in the Network Engineer / Architect industry, which includes the Network Engineer / Architect career, the following graph shows the number of people employed for each year since 2016:
Salary
Many new Network Engineer / Architect jobs have salaries estimated to be in the following ranges, based on the requirements and responsibilities listed in job postings from the past year.
National
The average estimated salary in the United States for this career, based on job postings in the past year, is $134,894.
State
The average estimated salary in North Carolina for this career, based on job postings in the past year, is $128,846.
Percentiles represent the percentage that is lower than the value. For example, 25% of estimated salaries for Network Engineer / Architect postings in the United States in the past year were lower than $117,929.
Education and Experience
Posted Network Engineer / Architect jobs typically require the following level of education. The numbers below are based on job postings in the United States from the past year. Not all job postings list education requirements.
| Education Level | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Associate's Degree | 0% |
| Bachelor's Degree | 60.55% |
| Master's Degree | 15.72% |
| Doctoral Degree | 4% |
| Other | 5.48% |
Posted Network Engineer / Architect jobs typically require the following number of years of experience. The numbers below are based on job postings in the United States from the past year. Not all job postings list experience requirements.
| Years of Experience | Percentage |
|---|---|
| 0 to 2 years | 6.87% |
| 3 to 5 years | 41.59% |
| 6 to 8 years | 28.45% |
| 9+ years | 23.09% |
Skills
Below are listings of the most common general and specialized skills Network Engineer / Architect positions expect applicants to have as well as the most common skills that distinguish individuals from their peers. The percentage of job postings that specifically mention each skill is also listed.
Baseline Skills
A skill that is required across a broad range of occupations, including this one.
- Troubleshooting (Problem Solving) (56.62%)
- Communication (44.11%)
- Operations (39.69%)
- Management (35.78%)
- Problem Solving (25.82%)
- Planning (24.41%)
- Leadership (18.01%)
- Information Technology (17.43%)
- Wireless Communications (15.33%)
- Customer Service (12.6%)
Defining Skills
A core skill for this occupation, it occurs frequently in job postings.
- Network Engineering (68.28%)
- Network Routing (54.56%)
- Firewall (47.09%)
- Network Switches (36.12%)
- Wide Area Networks (31.78%)
- Computer Science (30.49%)
- Border Gateway Protocol (32.47%)
- Local Area Networks (27.91%)
- Network Infrastructure (30.86%)
- Virtual Private Networks (VPN) (28.63%)
- Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) (26.87%)
- Network Security (28.41%)
- Networking Hardware (23.47%)
- TCP/IP (20.94%)
- Automation (23.73%)
- Network Architecture (18.42%)
- Network Performance Management (22.11%)
- Network Planning And Design (17.23%)
- Multiprotocol Label Switching (16.27%)
- Routing Protocols (16.54%)
- Juniper Network Technologies (15.44%)
- Network Troubleshooting (14.06%)
- Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocols (11.36%)
- Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) (12.64%)
- Virtual Local Area Network (VLAN) (13.19%)
- Network Monitoring (13.1%)
- Network Quality Of Service (QoS) (11.41%)
- Network Protocols (13.99%)
- Complex Networks (13.38%)
- Wireless Networks (10.25%)
- Software-Defined Networking Wide Area Network (SD-WAN) (12.08%)
- Internet Protocol Security (IP SEC) (9.08%)
- Load Balancing (8.84%)
- Aruba (Network Management Software) (7.62%)
- Network Management (8.3%)
- Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) (8.02%)
- SolarWinds (8.47%)
- Software Defined Networking (SDN) (7.83%)
- Cisco Networking (6.87%)
- Cisco Routers (6.16%)
- Cisco Meraki (7.08%)
Necessary Skills
A skill that is requested frequently in this occupation but isn’t specific to it.
- Python (Programming Language) (20.96%)
- Microsoft Azure (19.57%)
- Project Management (14.28%)
- Scripting (17.32%)
- Computer Networks (14.12%)
- Amazon Web Services (17.57%)
- Operating Systems (13.98%)
- Linux (13.39%)
- Telecommunications (10.02%)
- Scalability (16.21%)
- Ansible (12.62%)
- Systems Engineering (8.98%)
- Microsoft Visio (7.05%)
- Technical Support (8.01%)
- Data Centers (8.44%)
- Cyber Security (10.23%)
- Virtualization (8.65%)
- IT Capacity Management (7.52%)
Distinguishing Skills
A skill that may distinguish a subset of the occupation.
- Fortinet (7.94%)
- Internet Protocols Suite (4.84%)
- Wireshark (6.26%)
- Simple Network Management Protocols (5.36%)
- Wireless LAN (5.39%)
- Voice Over IP (4.84%)
- Palo Alto Firewalls (5.81%)
- Network Automation (7.63%)
- IPv6 (5.96%)
- Network Support (5.09%)
- Network Layer (5.67%)
- Topology (4.81%)
- Cisco IOS (4.61%)
- OSI Models (4.3%)
- Cisco Adaptive Security Appliance (ASA) (4.23%)
- Network Access Control (4.41%)
- Network Topology (4.62%)
- Spanning Tree Protocols (3.97%)
- VxLAN (Virtual Extensible LAN) (5.37%)
- Subnetwork (5.67%)
- Cisco PIX (4.06%)
- IPv4 (4.67%)
- Multicasting (4.26%)
- Network Diagrams (5.09%)
- Network Configuration And Change Management (4.33%)
- Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) (3.75%)
- Hot Standby Router Protocol (3.2%)
- Packet Analyzer (2.65%)
- IP Addressing (4.12%)
- Session Initiation Protocols (2.98%)
- IP Address Management (IPAM) (4%)
- Ethernet (2.99%)
- Network Address Translation (3.66%)
- IP Routing (3.03%)
- Remote Authentication Dial In User Service (RADIUS) (2.89%)
- Network Communications (2.89%)
- Terminal Access Controller Access-Control System (TACACS) (2.78%)
- Dynamic Multipoint Virtual Private Networks (2.54%)
Salary Boosting Skills
A professional who wishes to excel in this career path may consider developing the following highly valued skills. The percentage of job postings that specifically mention each skill is listed.
- SolarWinds (9.53%)
- Cisco Meraki (7.97%)
- EVPN (Ethernet VPN) (3.65%)
- VxLAN (Virtual Extensible LAN) (6.04%)
- Juniper Network Technologies (17.38%)
- Network Automation (8.58%)
- Software Defined Networking (SDN) (8.81%)
- Automation (26.7%)
- Border Gateway Protocol (36.53%)
- Spanning Tree Protocols (4.47%)
- Cisco IOS (5.19%)
- Cisco Routers (6.93%)
- Complex Networks (15.05%)
- Network Address Translation (4.12%)
- Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocols (12.78%)
- IPv6 (6.7%)
- IP Routing (3.41%)
- Multiprotocol Label Switching (18.31%)
- Network Layer (6.38%)
- Multicasting (4.8%)
- Network Planning And Design (19.38%)
- Network Engineering (76.82%)
- Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) (30.23%)
- Terminal Access Controller Access-Control System (TACACS) (3.13%)
- Virtual Router Redundancy Protocols (2.38%)
- Network Access Control (4.96%)
Alternative Job Titles
Sometimes employers post jobs with Network Engineer / Architect skills but a different job title. Some common alternative job titles include:
- Network Engineer
- Network Architect
- Principal Network Engineer
- Cloud Network Engineer
- Network Systems Engineer
- Lead Network Engineer
- Network Infrastructure Engineer
- Network Software Engineer
- IT Manager/Network Engineer
- Network Security Engineer
Similar Occupations
If you are interested in exploring occupations with similar skills, you may want to research the following job titles. Note that we only list occupations that have at least one corresponding NC State Online and Distance Education program.
- Network Administrator
- Network Analyst / Specialist
- Cisco Engineer
- Network / Systems Support Specialist
- IT Administrator
- Systems Administrator
Common Employers
Here are the employers that have posted the most Network Engineer / Architect jobs in the past year along with how many they have posted.
United States
- Lumen Technologies (1301)
- Leidos (1036)
- TEKsystems (905)
- Insight Global (845)
- Amazon (808)
- The Judge Group (788)
- Robert Half (740)
- GovCIO (679)
- General Dynamics (606)
- Windstream (586)
North Carolina
- Genesis10 (156)
- TEKsystems (69)
- Insight Global (51)
- General Dynamics (43)
- ASGN (41)
- Spectrum (35)
- Robert Half (30)
- BCforward (30)
- CACI International (29)
- Lumen Technologies (27)
NC State Programs Relevant to this Career
If you are interested in preparing for a career in this field, the following NC State Online and Distance Education programs offer a great place to start!
- Computer Networking Master's Degrees
- Cybersecurity Graduate Certificates
- Cybersecurity Master's Degrees
All wages, job posting statistics, employment trend projections, and information about skill desirability on this page represents historical data and does not guarantee future conditions. Data is provided by and downloaded regularly from Lightcast. For more information about how Lightcast gathers data and what it represents, see Lightcast Data: Basic Overview on Lightcast's Knowledge Base website.