Mississippi·Computer and Mathematical Occupations·SOC 15-1244

Best Network programs in Mississippi, ranked by enrollment

Install, configure, and maintain an organization's local area network (LAN), wide area network (WAN), data communications network, operating systems, and physical and virtual servers.

19 schools in Mississippi run programs that feed this job, graduating 761 people a year. The job pays a median of $79,990 in Mississippi across about 1,380 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).

Also calledNetwork AdministratorSystems Administrator (Systems Admin)Information Technology Specialist (IT Specialist)Local Area Network Administrator (LAN Administrator)Network ManagerSoftware ManagerSystems OperatorSystems Specialist
Graduates / yr
761
in Mississippi
Median pay · Mississippi
$79,990
BLS OEWS May 2025
Jobs in state
1,380
people employed
Schools
19
with a feeder program
Avg graduation rate
45%
across those schools
Median net price
$22,476
per year, IPEDS

Fields of study in Mississippi that lead to this job

Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.

2 programs in Mississippi that lead to this job

Ranked by graduates per year in Mississippi (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are national College Scorecard figures reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. Each program also links to its own Mississippi page.

Degree programs that lead to this occupation, ranked by graduates per year
#ProgramGraduates / yrShare of pipelineSchoolsGrad earnings (1 yr)Median debt
1480
63.1%
11$57,986$24,286
2281
36.9%
11$48,185$25,250

Top 19 schools in Mississippi

Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 3 of the 19 schools in this state.

Schools ranked by graduates per year into this occupation
#SchoolGraduates / yrTop feeder programGrad earnings (1 yr)Grad rateNet priceAcceptance
1University of Southern Mississippi
Hattiesburg, MS Public · 2 feeder programs
205Computer and Information Sciences, General49%99%
2Mississippi State University
Mississippi State, MS Public · 2 feeder programs
171Computer and Information Sciences, General$58,75567%78%
3University of Mississippi
University, MS Public · 1 feeder programs
87Computer and Information Sciences, General$66,08272%97%
4Hinds Community College
Raymond, MS Public · 1 feeder programs
80Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance43%
5Northwest Mississippi Community College
Senatobia, MS Public · 1 feeder programs
38Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance45%
6Jackson State University
Jackson, MS Public · 1 feeder programs
37Computer and Information Sciences, General51%93%
7Alcorn State University
Alcorn State, MS Public · 1 feeder programs
33Computer and Information Sciences, General57%45%
8Meridian Community College
Meridian, MS Public · 1 feeder programs
20Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance34%
9Holmes Community College
Goodman, MS Public · 1 feeder programs
15Computer and Information Sciences, General39%
10Copiah - Lincoln Community College
Wesson, MS Public · 1 feeder programs
13Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance50%
11Pearl River Community College
Poplarville, MS Public · 1 feeder programs
13Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance37%
12East Central Community College
Decatur, MS Public · 1 feeder programs
10Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance36%
13East Mississippi Community College
Scooba, MS Public · 2 feeder programs
9Computer and Information Sciences, General48%
14Jones County Junior College
Ellisville, MS Public · 1 feeder programs
8Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance41%
15Mississippi Christian University
Clinton, MS Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
7Computer and Information Sciences, General59%$21,09629%
16Itawamba Community College
Fulton, MS Public · 1 feeder programs
6Computer and Information Sciences, General50%
17Mississippi Valley State University
Itta Bena, MS Public · 1 feeder programs
4Computer and Information Sciences, General27%92%
18Strayer University - Mississippi
Jackson, MS Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
3Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance$61,8100%
19Belhaven University
Jackson, MS Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
2Computer and Information Sciences, General49%$22,47650%

All 19 schools in Mississippi

Every school in Mississippi with a program that feeds this job, ordered by graduates per year. Earnings are shown for the ranked schools above; open a school profile for the rest.

All schools in Mississippi that feed this occupation
SchoolCityControlGraduates / yrFeeder programs
University of Southern MississippiHattiesburgPublic2052
Mississippi State UniversityMississippi StatePublic1712
University of MississippiUniversityPublic871
Hinds Community CollegeRaymondPublic801
Northwest Mississippi Community CollegeSenatobiaPublic381
Jackson State UniversityJacksonPublic371
Alcorn State UniversityAlcorn StatePublic331
Meridian Community CollegeMeridianPublic201
Holmes Community CollegeGoodmanPublic151
Copiah - Lincoln Community CollegeWessonPublic131
Pearl River Community CollegePoplarvillePublic131
East Central Community CollegeDecaturPublic101
East Mississippi Community CollegeScoobaPublic92
Jones County Junior CollegeEllisvillePublic81
Mississippi Christian UniversityClintonPrivate not-for-profit71

What network and computer systems administrators earn in Mississippi

What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.

Median annual in Mississippi
$79,990
Mean annual
$88,760
Jobs in state
1,380
What the range looks like
10th pct$51,410Median$79,99090th pct$136,950
Versus the national median
-19.3%

U.S. median $99,130. Mississippi pays below the national figure.

Job concentration
0.58×

1.00× means the state has its expected share of these jobs.

Metro areas in Mississippi

Gulfport-Biloxi, MS
$82,960median
160 jobs
Hattiesburg, MS
$79,110median
70 jobs
Jackson, MS
$75,050median
390 jobs

Job outlook

Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.

Projected growth 2024–34
-4.2%
Decline
Openings per year
14,300
new jobs plus replacements
Employment change
-13,800
331,500 → 317,700
Typical entry education
Bachelor's degree

Growth and openings are national. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish employment projections at state level, so these figures describe the occupation across the whole U.S., not this state alone.

How to get in

The full skills, tools, and day-to-day breakdown lives on the national Network and Computer Systems Administrators page.

How to become a Network

Job zone 4 of 5 · SVP 7.0 to < 8.0
Typical entry education
Bachelor's degree

Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.

A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.

Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.

Top skills

Critical ThinkingReading ComprehensionMonitoringActive ListeningSpeakingWriting

The same job in other states

Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.

Related careers in Mississippi

Every major mapped to this job

The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.

All 3 majors mapped to Network and Computer Systems Administrators3 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
  • 11.0101Computer and Information Sciences, General
  • 11.1001Network and System Administration/Administrator
  • 11.1003Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance

Common questions

Answers for people weighing network and computer systems administrators programs in Mississippi.

What degree do you need to become a Network?+

Bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Computer and Information Sciences, General, which awarded 480 degrees in Mississippi in 2024-25, 63.1% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.

Which college majors lead to becoming a Network?+

The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 2 programs to this occupation. The largest are Computer and Information Sciences, Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management. Together they graduate about 761 people a year in Mississippi.

How much do network and computer systems administrators earn in Mississippi?+

The median is $79,990 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 19.3% below the U.S. median of $99,130. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.

Is demand for network and computer systems administrators growing?+

BLS projects a -4.2% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, decline, with roughly 14,300 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.

How many schools offer programs for this career in Mississippi?+

19 institutions in Mississippi reported graduates from at least one of the 2 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.

What other job titles do network and computer systems administrators work under?+

Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Network Administrator, Systems Administrator (Systems Admin), Information Technology Specialist (IT Specialist), Local Area Network Administrator (LAN Administrator) among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 15-1244.

Network and Computer Systems Administrators in other statesTexasGeorgiaFloridaVirginiaUtahNew YorkMarylandCalifornia

About the data on this page

Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024–25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).

  • BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics

    May 2025

    Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.

  • BLS Employment Projections

    2024–34

    Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.

  • IPEDS Completions

    2024-25 (provisional)

    Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.

  • College Scorecard, Field of Study

    2020-21 cohorts

    Median graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.

  • Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes

    latest available

    Graduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.

  • NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk

    CIP 2020 / SOC 2018

    Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.

  • O*NET Database 30.3

    30.3

    Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.

    Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA

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