Network Administration major
Network Administration: courses, careers, and where to study
Network Administration trains you to keep an organization's networks and servers running securely, connecting users to systems and data day to day.
Network Administration is the study of how to set up, run, and protect the systems that connect computers to each other and to the wider internet. Students learn how local and wide-area networks are designed, how servers are configured, and how traffic moves between machines. You spend time on hardware and operating systems, monitoring how much storage and bandwidth a network is using, scheduling backups, allocating accounts and resources to users, and following secure procedures to bring systems online and take them down. The major leans practical and operations-focused: rather than writing the applications themselves, like a software engineering program, or studying the underlying theory of computation, like computer science, this field is about making real infrastructure dependable, reachable, and safe day to day.
Many programs are heavily lab-based, giving students access to physical or virtual environments where they wire, configure, and break-and-fix networks and servers in controlled conditions. Coursework often pairs with industry certification preparation, and some programs include a capstone or internship where students manage a working environment end to end. There is no state license to administer networks, though employers frequently expect vendor or security certifications, and you should verify any certification or accreditation expectations for a given program. Graduates work across nearly every sector that relies on connected systems, including corporate IT departments, hospitals and schools, government agencies, internet and cloud service providers, and managed-service firms that run infrastructure on behalf of other businesses.
In federal data for the closely related occupation of network and computer systems administrators, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports a 2024 median wage of $96,800 and projects employment to decline about 4.2% from 2024 to 2034; a bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education for that occupation. National figures are occupation-wide medians across all experience levels, not starting wages or graduate outcomes.
Academic classification (CIP)
In the federal Classification of Instructional Programs, Network Administration maps to CIP 11.1001, Network and System Administration/Administrator, within the COMPUTER AND INFORMATION SCIENCES AND SUPPORT SERVICES family. The official definition:
A program that prepares individuals to manage the computer operations and control the system configurations emanating from a specific site or network hub. Includes instruction in computer hardware and software and applications; local area (LAN) and wide area (WAN) networking; principles of information systems security; disk space and traffic load monitoring; data backup; resource allocation; and setup and takedown procedures.
Source: U.S. Department of Education (NCES), Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) 2020. View on nces.ed.gov
What you'll study
- Local-area and wide-area network design and configuration
- Server operating system administration across Windows and Linux
- Routing, switching, and TCP/IP protocol fundamentals
- Information systems and network security principles
- Storage capacity, bandwidth, and traffic-load monitoring
- Data backup, recovery, and disaster-readiness procedures
- User accounts, permissions, and resource allocation
- Virtualization and cloud infrastructure management
- Hands-on networking labs with troubleshooting and configuration
Typical careers
- Network Administrator
- Systems Administrator
- Network Engineer
- Cloud Infrastructure Engineer
- IT Operations Analyst
- Network Security Administrator
Typical salary range: Early-career wages vary by employer, region, and experience (BLS, 2024 network and computer systems administrators median $96,800).Ranges are early-career estimates. Any BLS figure shown is the occupation-wide median across all experience levels, not a starting wage, and is informational only.
Related occupations
Occupations the federal CIP–SOC crosswalk associates with Network Administration. Linked titles open a CampusPin career page with BLS pay and outlook data; others are listed for reference.
- Computer and Information Systems Managers
- Information Security Analysts
- Computer Network Support Specialists
- Computer Network Architects
- Network and Computer Systems Administrators
Source: U.S. Department of Education (NCES), Crosswalk: CIP 2020 to SOC 2018. A program of study does not guarantee any specific occupation.
Before you commit to a Network Administration major
CampusPin does not rank programs. Use these prompts to pressure-test whether a specific Network Administration program fits your goals, they are decision questions, not claims about any school.
Ask the Network Administration department
- Which concentrations or specializations are offered, and which faculty lead them?
- What does the typical course sequence look like, and how much is required vs. elective?
- What labs, studios, clinical placements, or research opportunities are available to undergraduates?
- Is there a capstone, thesis, internship, or co-op requirement?
Ask current students & check the curriculum
- How heavy is the workload, and how accessible is the faculty?
- What internships or co-ops did you do, and where do recent graduates end up?
- Does the required curriculum actually match the careers listed above?
- How easy is it to add a minor, double major, or switch tracks later?
Find a Network Administration program
CampusPin lists U.S. universities and community colleges that offer Network Administration programs. Filter by state, tuition, school size, acceptance rate, and campus setting, no account required.
Network Administration by state
- Network Administration in California
- Network Administration in Florida
- Network Administration in Georgia
- Network Administration in Illinois
- Network Administration in Maryland
- Network Administration in Massachusetts
- Network Administration in New York
- Network Administration in North Carolina
- Network Administration in Pennsylvania
- Network Administration in Texas
Related majors
Information Technology
Information Technology (IT) focuses on applying computing systems to organizational needs, administering networks, supporting users, building business systems, and managing IT operations.
Cybersecurity
Cybersecurity prepares graduates to defend networks, systems, and data, combining computing fundamentals with offensive and defensive security techniques and the policy frameworks that govern them.
Computer Science
Computer Science combines the mathematical foundations of computation with practical software engineering, preparing graduates for careers in software, AI/ML, security, data, and research.
Information Systems
Information Systems bridges business and technology, teaching students to design, analyze, and manage the systems organizations run on, suiting those drawn to both computing and how companies operate.
Computer Engineering
Computer Engineering blends electrical engineering and computer science to design the hardware and embedded systems that run modern devices, suiting students who enjoy both circuits and code.
How this guide is sourced
This is an editorial guide from the CampusPin Editorial Team. Career and wage figures are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, occupation-wide medians across all experience levels, not starting wages, and link to each career page. Program availability comes from CampusPin's free institution search; CampusPin does not assert that any specific school offers this exact major until that program data is verified. Last reviewed 2026-06-15. How CampusPin sources data · Report a correction.