Network Engineer

A Network Engineer is a technology professional who has the skills to plan, implement and monitor computer networks supporting internal voice, data, video and wireless networks.

Although the names of network professions and the network administrator are sometimes used synonymously, a network engineer generally has more executive responsibilities than a network administrator. The engineering part tends to deal more with planning, design and technical specifications, while the administrative part mainly concerns daily maintenance, management and problem-solving efforts.

Job titles can also be differentiated by education and / or income. Usually, a network engineer has more education and earns more than a network administrator.

Responsibility of a network engineer

Network engineers focus on offering high-availability network infrastructures to maintain information technology activities online and on user sites. Network engineers often overlap with other functions, such as computer network architects or security systems engineers, and work internally within an organization or as external consultants.

Network engineers design and implement network configurations, solve performance problems, monitor the network and configure security systems such as firewalls. They often inform a CIO, the director of information security and other business line leaders to discuss and decide on general company goals, policies and updates on network status. In many situations, network engineers work closely with project managers and other engineers, manage capacity and perform remote or on-site support.

Qualifications for a Network Engineer

Several universities and other institutions offer training programs in network engineering. A Network Engineer may only need an associates degree to get an entry level job, but most positions will require a degree in computer science or additional experience. Many network engineers also come from areas such as electrical, physical or mathematical engineering. For many engineers, additional qualifications and training are closely related to the Cisco engineering certification program, which offers five levels of professional training. Other certifications are available from suppliers and organizations such as Juniper Networks, Microsoft, Aruba, Alcatel-Lucent, Riverbed Technology Inc., SolarWinds, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Extreme Networks Inc. and IPv6 Forums.

In addition to technical skills, network engineers need analytical skills, leadership and organizational skills. Attention to detail and the ability to solve problems are also important. Engineers must be able to understand complex networks and detect problems or suggest ways to solve them. They must also be able to work collaboratively, as well as instruct other engineers and support staff to manage the network. And they must be flexible enough to work with engineers and business line colleagues who may not understand the networks.

Increasingly, network engineers must also learn about application and software development, reflecting the growing role of automation and software-defined networks. Therefore, engineers must understand traffic flows, application priority and data transport. In addition, engineers should also familiarize themselves with hyper-convergence, virtualization, security, containers, geographic networks and storage engineering.

Network Engineer Career Path

Network engineers' salaries range from $ 46,500 to over $ 115,000 a year, depending on skills and experience. Engineers can also earn bonuses and some employers also offer profit sharing. Network engineers work 40 hours a week, but can be called on weekends, evenings and after work hours to solve technical problems.

Network Engineer can also follow different paths in the field of networks. Network analysts specialize in the installation and maintenance of networks and often cross over into the technical and commercial aspects of an organization. Network administrators perform a similar function, but must train and direct network technicians. The most specialized roles include cloud network architects, who help organizations with cloud infrastructure deployment and network security specialists, which detect and prevent network security threats. Other specialists focus on engineering for VoIP, telecommunications and data centers.