Is networking domain a low paying job

v.Na5h

Skilled
Is networking domain a low paying job?

Lots of people are telling me to avoid getting into networking domain

  • First of all it a tedious,hectic and low paying job.
  • Secondly, sys admins are not given respect as compared to software engineers
  • Thirdly, the growth in terms of salary is very slow...
for eg -

CCNA = 22k 12k + coaching

CCNP = another 20k

rhce, mscitp, msce, rhcss etc etc(optional) = 20k each

and all you get after so much time and expenses is a 15-20k salary

which stays stagnant for almost 3-4 years

you only get paid higher if u get a CCIE certification...

which is a costly , risky and time consuming

need at least 5-6 years of exp

ccie = another 1.5 - 2 lacs

they say instead get an MBA

but im not at all interested in doing MBA
 
Its true(according to my friend), he has done the same and initially for the 1st 5~6 yrs, the workload was terrible, now much better. The trick is to get your CCNA+CCNP done asap, then other courses as you are in the job. But yes without CCIE, your importance will be much less.
 
Seriously ??? Because I want to enter in networking field as I have no interest in programming. Infact, my CCNA would be completed by next month and I have just finished my BCA.
 
goodakash said:
Seriously ??? Because I want to enter in networking field as I have no interest in programming. Infact, my CCNA would be completed by next month and I have just finished my BCA.

ditto here currently in final year E&TC engg
 
and my 2 friends are in nz and london with 20lacs+ annual package pure luck :/

ought to be..

me too like networking but I m here in india using

a crappy internet from reliance 3g. sorry for the ot.
 
Job of Network or Sys Admin is a thankless one, and is not as dynamic as of a Software or QA Engineer. Having said that, Networking and some specialization (VoIP, Security etc.) can help you land a good,stable job. Also Networking is much more stable than say Development jobs.
 
v.Na5h said:
is networking domain a low paying job?

lots of people are telling me to avoid getting into networking domain

first of all it a tedious,hectic and low paying job.
secondly sys admins are not given respect as compared to software engineers
thirdly the growth in terms of salary is very slow...

Can someone please tell me why do sys admins get no respect. They are treated as untouchables.

Personally I always maintain a friendly relationship with the sys ads.
 
Dunno y, but its been that way. Programmers simply think its them who brings in the real profit, as sys admins are kinda slaves just to serve them their wishes. Most of them even think they know the job of sys administering much better and not a big deal. The fact is most sys admins have better qualification than those so called pgmmers and they are into sys administering just for their taste. Just my thoughts. Im not still not experienced enough to talk any more BS :) . maybe time would change to whats good for all. I myself hasnt felt it deeply as most as close buddies, but still its there somewhere, but i dun care as its how this world is :)

Hacker said:
Can someone please tell me why do sys admins get no respect. They are treated as untouchables.

Personally I always maintain a friendly relationship with the sys ads.
 
dOm1naTOr said:
Dunno y, but its been that way. Programmers simply think its them who brings in the real profit, as sys admins are kinda slaves just to serve them their wishes. Most of them even think they know the job of sys administering much better and not a big deal. The fact is most sys admins have better qualification than those so called pgmmers and they are into sys administering just for their taste. Just my thoughts. Im not still not experienced enough to talk any more BS :) . maybe time would change to whats good for all.

Naah, its ok, spew the BS, we all want to hear you .............
 
Certifications are just like a BE or BCA degree... Its just a tag. Everyone in the industry knows that majority of the certifications can be achieved using dumps. The main requirement is technical knowledge, experience and most importantly, attitude. If you crack the interview of a good reputed company, you can easily demand a higher than average package.

@OP, I would suggest you to decide based on your interests, rather than the potential to earn money. Networking is a field which is immensely satisfying, provided you have the inclination for it. There is much more struggle initially as compared to software development, there probably would be shifts when you're starting out and no one really notices you coz most people (even management) don't know how much effort goes into running a network smoothly. They feel the data magically comes into their computers :p. But later, if you get a technical position in a good company, its really fun and challenging.
 
v.Na5h said:
is networking domain a low paying job?

lots of people are telling me to avoid getting into networking domain

first of all it a tedious,hectic and low paying job.

secondly sys admins are not given respect as compared to software engineers

thirdly the growth in terms of salary is very slow...

for eg

ccna = 22k 12k + coaching

ccnp = another 20k

rhce,mscitp,msce,rhcss etc etc(optional) = 20k each

and all you get after so much time and expenses is a 20-25k salary

which stays stagnant for almost 3-4 years

you only get paid higher if u get a CCIE certification...

which is a costly , risky and time consuming

need at least 5-6 years of exp

ccie = another 1.5 - 2 lacs

they say instead get an MBA

but im not at all interested in doing MBA

I was in the same position as yours around 2 years back. My motto was anything but programming (I am an I.T. engineer :|). It was sheer dumb luck, or maybe God, who introduced me to System/Network Administration. It was all that I had done in college. Looking after the LAN, computers and now, eventually have now moved to servers. I could do it with my eyes closed. I found the thing I liked and am making money out of it! That's the best thing, isn't it?

Now let's come to the part about respect. You know, if you have not started working you don't know anything about what an office culture is. More like what human nature is. It's always this way. You command respect, rather than demand it. Well, how do we command respect then? By being the best at what you do. Sure, the top management would not notice you initially. That's what you would think. You do well, in a smart manner, everyone hears about it. You won't believe how shocked I was when I realised that the MD of my company called me by my name. :p Work hard to get noticed and you will. Maybe not in the first 1-3 years, but you will.

Finally, only go into it if you love it. Forget about everything else. Forget about the certifications, forget about the salary. It's really a stupid thing to worry about in the first 2-3 years of your career. That is the time to learn. You got a superb package, then good for you. If not, it's not the end of the world. No need to rush into certifications immediately. I read this on another forum and it holds true here too - Don't let education come in the way of learning.

Parting words.. if you are really into it, forget about the stupid things which you mentioned above. A career in something you love and are good at will be with you for the next few decades rather than choosing another for short-term financial gain of 2-3 years.
 
That's a bit sad to hear. I have some interest in getting into the networking field. It doesn't bother me if I don't get a big fat pay, that's not what I'm looking for. But I don't wanna get into something which makes me work my ass off and not appreciate me either.

Anyways, I'm still confused about what kind of a job I would like. I'm currently in my final year of computer engineering.
 
Sei said:
I was in the same position as yours around 2 years back. My motto was anything but programming (I am an I.T. engineer :|). It was sheer dumb luck, or maybe God, who introduced me to System/Network Administration. It was all that I had done in college. Looking after the LAN, computers and now, eventually have now moved to servers. I could do it with my eyes closed. I found the thing I liked and am making money out of it! That's the best thing, isn't it?

Now let's come to the part about respect. You know, if you have not started working you don't know anything about what an office culture is. More like what human nature is. It's always this way. You command respect, rather than demand it. Well, how do we command respect then? By being the best at what you do. Sure, the top management would not notice you initially. That's what you would think. You do well, in a smart manner, everyone hears about it. You won't believe how shocked I was when I realised that the MD of my company called me by my name. :p Work hard to get noticed and you will. Maybe not in the first 1-3 years, but you will.

Finally, only go into it if you love it. Forget about everything else. Forget about the certifications, forget about the salary. It's really a stupid thing to worry about in the first 2-3 years of your career. That is the time to learn. You got a superb package, then good for you. If not, it's not the end of the world. No need to rush into certifications immediately. I read this on another forum and it holds true here too - Don't let education come in the way of learning.

Parting words.. if you are really into it, forget about the stupid things which you mentioned above. A career in something you love and are good at will be with you for the next few decades rather than choosing another for short-term financial gain of 2-3 years.

Brilliantly put...

I was in the same position myself. Everyone around me got placed in one software company or the other but just sitting on your desk, coding (copying code off google), debugging and going home was not gonna be my cup of tea. I remembered the reason why I got into engineering in the first place and only then it got clear. I took a hard decision and got into it. Started off with just 4.5k per month which barely covered travel expenses. When you love the work you do, all these things don't matter. Later, you'll have what most others don't have - job satisfaction.
 
One of the ways to prove that you're really good to top management - numbers !! If you're a developers, reduce the number of bugs that come up in your code over a period of time, improve the delivery time - if you're into admin, report on the uptime, try and improve on the number of hits the system can take during peak hours, improve average turn around times for issues.

Get these on track and then you can move on to the second step - start showing innovations/ideas, make yourself redundant, reduce people dependency on projects, learn new skills, be proactive, do not be restrained by the designation that the company has give you, explore ! Finally as someone has already said in the last few posts - strive to be the best at what you're doing.

Take it from a guy who's in the wrong side of 30 and have heard quite a few ramblings like these in his times.
 
all is is pure philosophy and impractical. after spending 7+ yrs in the industry, when it comes to marriage, buying a house etc. all you need is money money and more money.

get a job which gives you good money and good scope in future even if its not related to your background. job satisfaction is only an 8hr thing for the remaining 16 hrs of satisfaction you need money.

Folks at IIT's do Btech & join finance/investment backs. are they stupid?

i was at similar stages 10yrs back.. had deep love for physics and mechanics, my dad showed me the mech & CS labs/workshops at one engg college and asked me do i want to spend my life sweating my a** off that those workshops or take a white collar job and sit in A/c.

next thing i decided is to take CS and then get into hardware/networking. upon graduating i stumbled upon the same question what the OP asked. i found programming had more money and i was in need of it. i went ahead and today i am doing better than my friends who took up hw / networking. they are still doing certificatins or have given up and preparing for MBA.

today, i atleast i can ask myself 'Have i made it large', but other are left wondering what have they made?:p
 
^ Buddy, I agree to a certain point with what you are saying but everyone has different aims out of life. For some, the experience is paramount too. For e.g. me. Sure I want to progress into bigger salaries. And trust me, there is definitely a lot of money in these fields once you get into it and make your mark.

But the question here is money. Let me put it this way. I will definitely take up a better paying job involving night shifts in the field that I am if it is a big brand name and better exposure but I would prefer to earn 70% of the money doing what I love than doing something which I don't.

I've seen people, who were excellent at what they did, jumping to jobs paying close to twice of what they were earning here. Opportunities are everywhere, you just have to look for them and give them your best shot.

i was at similar stages 8yrs back.. had deep love for physics and mechanics, my dad showed me the mech & CS labs/workshops at one engg college and asked me do i want to spend my life sweating my a** off that those workshops or take a white collar job and sit in A/c.

Haha, most, if not all of those people sweating their a** off, as you so eloquently put it, must be loving every second of it. I hope there doesn't come a day in your life when you wonder what if... :)
 
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