Computer Technician Careers

If you are considering a career as a computer technician, then you are likely to be making a good choice. There are a whole variety of jobs in different areas that you can choose from, and prospects are good for most of them.

Promising computer technician careers include:

• Computer hardware repair & maintenance technician
• Computer network support technician
• Computer tech support / Help desk technician

Career Prerequisites - Computer Technician

Your fist step is to decide what particular area you are interested in, which will then dictate your computer tech training. You may decide that you are interested in writing programs, and want to train as a software engineer. This career path can require a fair amount of education or experience relative to the technician careers listed above. Typically, programmers must combine experience with specific certifications or a 2- or 4-year degree and excellent analytical and problem-solving skills. Microsoft, for instance, is known to give prospective computer programmers "brain teaser" exams to test their mental agility and problem-solving.

If you are more interested in the hardware and systems side of computing, then a career in repair and maintenance would be more suitable, or possibly one as a computer networking technician. Such technician careers generally require less experience to start, but more specific certifications (CCNA, CCNP, Network+, etc.). Degrees are not generally required to enter these fields, although having a strong foundation in computer networking can only help your career prospects.

Your training program will probably be in a tech school. You will probably find that certification is a good move in this career area, allowing you to acquire specific skills that you may need for your job.

Salary Forecast - Computer Technician

Computer technician careers are a good investment for your future - there are many indications that business and other computerization will continue and expand.

Median computer technician salaries according to Bureau of Labor Statistics are:

• Computer Systems Analysts: $62,890
• Computer Programmers: $60,290
• Computer Support Specialists: $39,100
• Computer Operators: $29,650

Of these professions, the computer support specialist (or computer support technician) field is expected to be the fastest-growing through 2012 and the computer systems analyst, a more senior position typically requiring at least a Bachelor's degree and some work experience, is also expected to be strong.

Computer programming jobs have been cut or shipped overseas such that the demand for junior computer programmers has diminished. However, senior computer programmers and software engineers, especially those with Master's degrees, are still in demand.