Useful Qualifications
How much could I expect to earn?
The work
Skills required
Opportunities

IT support technicians help to find and correct software and hardware problems for computer users. They may work as part of a team within their own organisation or support external commercial clients.

IT support technicians work on site or remotely by phone, email or using web-based applications. Typical day-to-day duties might include:

• Working with a client to find the exact nature of a fault.
• Working out the reasons for the breakdown of systems or peripherals - like printers, scanners and modems.
• Visiting clients, or sending out a field technician, to deal with problems that cannot be resolved over the phone or via the website.
• Installing and configuring new equipment and upgrading existing systems.
• Testing, repairing and maintaining equipment.
• Recording problems and their solutions.
• Training clients on new systems or software applications.

Some support technicians work on technical support telephone helplines or online support services for PC manufacturers and retailers, dealing with enquiries from home users. See the profile for Helpdesk Professional for more details about this type of IT support job.

Increasingly, employers seek industry-recognised certification from vendor specific programmes such as CompTIA, Cisco & Microsoft, for example:

• CompTIA N+ Certification covers: installation, configuring and upgrading, Network transmission, protocols, topologies, troubleshooting networks, firewalls, operating systems etc.
• Vendor-specific training, such as Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE) or Cisco certification (CCNA/CCNP) may be an option. These are higher level qualifications for those who have already achieved a foundation qualification such as A+ or N+.

Figures are intended as a guideline only.

IT support technicians' salaries start between £18,500 and £22,000.
Experienced staff can earn between £23,000 and £27,500.
Senior staff with management responsibility may earn in excess of £30,000 a year.

IT support technicians work 37 to 40 hours a week. On-call duties, including weekends, are common as is shift work in certain cases.

As a support technician in an organisation your work will be mainly office based, with some of your time spent visiting other departments. You may need to travel if you are dealing with external clients, or if your support operation works across multiple sites.

As an IT support technician, you need:

• A thorough knowledge of operating systems, networking, hardware and office software.
• Excellent problem solving skills.
• The ability to explain problems and solutions clearly to non-technical staff.
• The ability to work under pressure and to deadlines.
• A patient and methodical approach to work.
• The ability to work alone or as part of a team.
• The ability to prioritise tasks.
• A commitment to keep up to date with IT developments.
• An awareness of electrical health and safety regulations.

You will find job vacancies for IT support technicians across almost all industries. Typical employers include financial organisations, the health service and IT companies. However, all medium-sized and large companies using any kind of IT system will have a need for technical support.

The highest concentration of jobs is in London, the south-east, eastern England and the north-west.  As the IT knowledge of the general workforce improves, some employers may look for IT support technicians with the skills to deal with more complex queries.

As an experienced IT support technician, you can move into a supervisory role or a related area, such as network administration, IT security or training.