Systems Support Specialist

What Does a Professional in this Career Do?

A Systems Support Specialist provides technical support for the computer and communications systems at a business or organization. Installs and configures computer software, hardware and equipment, and provides troubleshooting for network issues. Manages documentation, maintenance and repairs. May provide help desk support or manage user accounts.

Job Outlook

There were 218 Systems Support Specialist job postings in North Carolina in the past year and 7185 in the United States.

In combination with other careers in the Computer Support Specialist industry, which includes the Systems Support Specialist career, the following graph shows the number of people employed for each year since 2016:

Salary

Many new Systems Support Specialist 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 $75,276.

State

The average estimated salary in North Carolina for this career, based on job postings in the past year, is $83,041.

Percentiles represent the percentage that is lower than the value. For example, 25% of estimated salaries for Systems Support Specialist postings in the United States in the past year were lower than $59,343.

Education and Experience

Posted Systems Support Specialist 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	34.52%
Master's Degree	3.03%
Doctoral Degree	0.45%
Other	20.75%

Posted Systems Support Specialist 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	39.65%
3 to 5 years	47.18%
6 to 8 years	8.65%
9+ years	4.51%

Skills

Below are listings of the most common general and specialized skills Systems Support Specialist 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) (67.57%)
Communication (44.66%)
Operations (34.85%)
Management (28.78%)
Problem Solving (27.5%)
Customer Service (23.79%)
Microsoft Office (16.26%)
Information Technology (15.91%)
Detail Oriented (14.02%)
Writing (11.54%)

Defining Skills

A core skill for this occupation, it occurs frequently in job postings.

Operating Systems (28.54%)
Technical Support (26.75%)

Necessary Skills

A skill that is requested frequently in this occupation but isn’t specific to it.

Technical Issues (14.95%)
ServiceNow (4.99%)
Microsoft Office 365 (5.88%)
Scripting (5.16%)
Human Machine Interfaces (7.91%)
Commissioning (5.98%)
Process Improvement (3.59%)
System Support (7.72%)
Software Systems (6.72%)
SQL (Programming Language) (5.99%)
Peripheral Devices (11.31%)
Programmable Logic Controllers (11.08%)
Windows Servers (3.68%)
Project Management (11.41%)
Networking Hardware (3.56%)
Issue Tracking (9.28%)
Help Desk Support (15.59%)
Supervisory Control And Data Acquisition (SCADA) (11.36%)
Linux (7.8%)
System Administration (11%)
Computer Science (20.53%)
Information Systems (11.34%)
Computer Networks (6.48%)
Computer Hardware (10.97%)
Continuous Improvement Process (4.89%)
Control Systems (20.99%)
Business Process (2.96%)
Business Systems (2.41%)
Automation (10.79%)
Backup Devices (6.01%)
Electrical Engineering (3.24%)
Auditing (5.7%)
Active Directory (12.44%)
HVAC (8.37%)
Access Controls (8.34%)
Microsoft Windows 10 (4.88%)
End-User Training And Support (7.71%)
Hardware Troubleshooting (5.51%)

Alternative Job Titles

Sometimes employers post jobs with Systems Support Specialist skills but a different job title. Some common alternative job titles include:

Technology Support Specialist
Control Systems Technician
Support Specialist
Controls Engineer
Systems Support Technician
Systems Support Representative
Access Control Technician
Application Support Specialist
Systems Technician

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.

Common Employers

Here are the employers that have posted the most Systems Support Specialist jobs in the past year along with how many they have posted.

United States

Insight Global (99)
Deloitte (77)
Contact Government Services (68)
Johnson Controls (66)
Aerotek (64)
TEKsystems (63)
Cushman & Wakefield (60)
M.C. Dean (56)
Actalent (55)
Eliassen Group (48)

North Carolina

University of North Carolina (8)
Go-Forth Pest Control (7)
Genesis10 (6)
ManpowerGroup (5)
Actalent (4)
Insight Enterprises (4)
Johnson Controls (3)
Biogen (3)
Anistar Technologies (3)
Doosan Fuel Cell America (3)

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!

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.

Information Technology