13 High Paying Tech Careers You Can Get Without A College Degree

Who said you need a college degree to earn the big bucks? It’s a common misconception that if you don’t have a bachelor’s, you’ll be stuck in minimum wage all your life. In reality, there are plenty of jobs out there that won’t make you take out a billion student loans. Here are 13 lucrative tech jobs you can land without a four-year degree.

All data has been taken from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, unless otherwise noted.

1. Computer user support specialist

Median annual wage, 2015: $48,620 (BLS)

Computer user support specialists provide technical assistance to users by answering questions or resolving computer problems. This can be in person, through telephone or electronically (over chat messaging or email).


2. Junior data analyst

Median annual wage: $52,188 (Payscale)

Data is so hot right now that even entry-level analysts can make good money. Usually, junior analysts are the ones who conduct searches for data, create Excel spreadsheets and generate material for analysis, and present their findings to more senior colleagues, who handle the bulk of the more complex work. Some jobs do require a degree to enter the field; others do not.

3. Computer network support specialists

Median annual wage, 2015: $62,250 (BLS)

Computer network support specialists are responsible for keeping networks running smoothly. They test, troubleshoot, analyze, perform maintenance, and solve network problems. Usually you’ll need a certificate or associate’s degree to enter this career.

4. Digital marketer

Median annual wage: $63,239 (Payscale)

Marketing via the Internet is one of the primary ways companies reach customers in the 21st century. Digital marketers enable this in a variety of ways: search engine optimization (SEO), search engine marketing (SEM), social media marketing, content marketing, e-mail marketing, and others. Often a digital marketer will specialize in only one or two of these areas.

5. Cyber security analysts (entry level)

Median annual wage: $63,911 (Payscale)

Many cyber security professionals who obtain four-year degrees head straight for the higher-up positions after graduating, leaving companies with a dearth of entry-level workers to handle a lot of the day-to-day. Junior cyber security analysts handle the “grunt work” like reviewing logs, controlling network settings, doing basic testing, etc.

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NetAlly Launches EtherScope nXG Handheld Network Testing Solution

COLORADO SPRINGS, CO — NetAlly, a provider of handheld testing solutions for wired and wireless access networks, announced the release of EtherScope nXG Portable Network Expert, a powerful handheld network tester that enables network engineers and technicians to quickly discover, test, verify and troubleshoot enterprise access networks. As the first handheld tool to offer a single user interface (UI) that fully integrates both wired and wireless network test data, the EtherScope nXG dramatically increases network visibility, accelerates and simplifies testing, and simplifies team collaboration. This is the first portable tool with the right combination of capabilities to “break the Layer 2 ceiling” – allowing users to easily identify wireless clients not just by MAC address, but by IP, name and type, delivering visibility most Wi-Fi tools cannot provide.

“As today’s networks continue to grow in complexity, network teams often struggle to keep pace. They need better solutions that help streamline their network testing and troubleshooting process,” said Mike Parrottino, CEO at NetAlly. “To help address these challenges, we designed EtherScope nXG to be the most comprehensive and powerful portable network tester available.”

Combining Wired and Wireless Data Analysis

EtherScope nXG’s all new UI combines wired and wireless data analysis and purpose-built hardware to support a broad range of technologies like line-rate 10G (over copper and fiber), NBASE-T, Wi-Fi 5/Wi-Fi 6, and high-power PoE (Power over Ethernet).

Parrottino continues, “With EtherScope nXG’s advanced out-of-the-box auto-testing capabilities, network engineers and technicians get unprecedented visibility that accelerates testing and drives collaboration, all in a truly portable, light weight tool that can easily be brought to problem areas. With it, teams will simply get more done, faster.”

According to a recent Spiceworks survey, IT professionals face a variety of challenges that include implementing planned changes, managing unexpected changes, ensuring network security, and a lack of time and resources. These challenges are caused primarily by the disparity in staff skills and toolsets (between engineers and technicians), and visibility gaps across wired and wireless networks. The EtherScope nXG was designed to overcome these issues with key features and capabilities that enable users to:

Test, Validate and Troubleshoot the Latest Network Technology – Users can assess support for NBASE-T, 10G, Wi-Fi 5/Wi-Fi 6, with advanced Android-based troubleshooting apps and purpose-built test hardware. Additional test capabilities include packet capture at line-rate to 10G, network discovery and path analysis, 24-hour RF traffic analysis, cable testing, and PoE TruePowerTM load testing.

Quickly Verify Performance – The product offers 10G line-rate performance testing for critical servers, uplinks and key end devices over Ethernet, iPerf testing over Wi-Fi or wired links, and testing against another EtherScope nXG or other NetAlly tools for end-to-end tests.

Bridge the Gap Between Engineer and Technician – Users can dive deep to verify, troubleshoot and document complex networks with multiple VLANs and Wi-Fi SSIDs, or take advantage of out-of-the-box AutoTests that require minimal skill and training. Through the EtherScope nXG, offsite engineers can extend their expertise via remote control to collaborate with technicians at distant sites to solve tough problems without the need for travel.

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The 5 Technologies that will Change Networking in 2019

The networking field is changing fast. This year, several emerging technologies will fundamentally impact how businesses and their employees connect. The good news is that each technology also represents a solid opportunity to improve some aspect of how a company runs – from network efficiency all the way up to business models.

Wi-Fi 6
The Win: Wireless Density
The Winners: Office networking, IoT

When: Prep and first rollout in 2019, broad adoption in 2020

Wi-Fi 6, also called 802.11ax, is an upgrade on the current highest-speed Wi-Fi protocol in wide use, 802.11ac. Wi-Fi 6 brings a dramatic improvement in efficiency across all existing Wi-Fi bands, including older 2.4GHz frequencies. Wi-Fi 6 will also likely get new spectrum in the 6GHz band in 2019 or 2020, further improving its speed.

The biggest improvement that comes with Wi-Fi 6 is that it increases the density of devices that can co-exist in a single space, further increasing the speed of all devices when there is more than one.

The new standard also improves performance by supporting deterministic (that is, not random) packet scheduling, which, as well as increasing the efficiency of the use of any given band, also makes for dramatic improvements in power utilization by mobile devices.

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The future of networking: Open source networking is the new norm

If you weren’t in Amsterdam last week, you missed an extremely exciting conference – the Open Networking Summit Europe 2018. This Linux Foundation event drew more than 700 networking, development and operations leaders and enterprise users from open source service providers, cloud companies, and more.

Chief among the conference themes was the idea that open source networking is the "new norm," with lots of vendors attesting to how this theme is playing out in the IT industry. Dan Kohn who leads the Linux Foundation's Cloud Native Computing Foundation cites cost savings, improved resilience and higher development velocity for both bug fixes and the rolling out of new features for this change. Arpit Joshipura, General Manager of Networking at The Linux Foundation used the term "open-sourcification" in his keynote.

The conference drew both business and technical leaders focused on networking beyond software-defined networking (SDN) and network function virtualization (NFV) with deep technical tracks and opportunities for attendees to learn from peers across the industry.

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3 strategies to simplify complex networks

Innovations such as SD-WAN, Wi-Fi 6 and 5G have enabled networks to do more, but they’ve also made them complex. Software, machine learning, and automation will alleviate the problem. As the cloud era meets the demands of digital transformation, networks must change. That means for enterprises, they must become simpler, said Juniper CEO Rami Rahim, speaking at the company's annual industry analyst conference last week.

The past five years has seen more innovation in networking than in the previous 30. Things such as SD-WAN, multi-cloud, Wi-Fi 6, 5G, 400 Gig, and edge computing are on the near-term horizon for almost every company. While all of those technologies have enabled the network to do so much more than ever before, their complexity has also risen.

Network engineers face the harsh reality that they are being tasked with working faster but also more accurately to cut down on unplanned downtime. Networks must become simpler to run, which actually requires more engineering from the vendor. Think of the iPhone. It’s so simple, my dad can use it without calling me every hour. Making it easy requires a tremendous amount of innovation from Apple to mask the underlying complexity.

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How to Become a Network Specialist?

Becoming a Network Specialist

Network specialists also known as computer support specialists, set up, support, and maintain local area networks (LANs), wide area networks (WANs), and other networking systems. These professionals also install routers, switches, firewalls and network-related software programs. Network specialists work for a variety of employers, including information technology firms, education companies, and health care organizations. Network specialists are sometimes able to work from home, but may also travel to see clients in person to solve networking problems. These professionals have to work long hours, or even nights and weekends, to complete their tasks, which are necessary to keep a company running smoothly.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), job openings for network specialists are expected to increase by 20% between 2012 and 2022, which means this is an in-demand position.

Career Requirements

To become a network specialist, you need the right education. Most employer's look for someone with a bachelor's degree but some entry level positions may only require an associate's degree. The degree should be in computer science, information technology, computer engineering, or a related field. Work experience is not typically required for entry-level positions but advanced positions commonly require 2-3 years of IT experience. Some employers prefer or require certification.

Key skills you need for a network specialist position include ability to analyze and solve problems, good interpersonal skills, ability to describe technical terms in non-technical language, expertise with routers and switches, Cisco networking software and LAN/WAN networks.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median salary for a computer network support specialist, is $62,250.

Step 1: Earn a Bachelor's Degree

The first step to becoming a network specialist is to earn a bachelor's degree in computer science, information technology, or a related field. Degree programs in these areas can provide prospective network specialists with training in computer network installation and maintenance. Some programs even offer network administration or network specialist concentrations. Most of these programs combine general education coursework with specialized courses in information security, routers and switches, network design and introductory programming. Many programs also prepare graduates for certification.

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