New Jersey·Computer and Mathematical Occupations·SOC 15-1244

Best Network programs in New Jersey, 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.

41 schools in New Jersey run programs that feed this job, graduating 3,623 people a year. The job pays a median of $116,420 in New Jersey across about 9,280 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
3,623
in New Jersey
Median pay · New Jersey
$116,420
BLS OEWS May 2025
Jobs in state
9,280
people employed
Schools
41
with a feeder program
Avg graduation rate
51%
across those schools
Median net price
$23,573
per year, IPEDS

Fields of study in New Jersey that lead to this job

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

3 programs in New Jersey that lead to this job

Ranked by graduates per year in New Jersey (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 New Jersey page.

Degree programs that lead to this occupation, ranked by graduates per year
#ProgramGraduates / yrShare of pipelineSchoolsGrad earnings (1 yr)Median debt
13,081
85.0%
36$57,986$24,286
2470
13.0%
19$48,185$25,250
372
2.0%
3$48,185$25,250

Top 25 schools in New Jersey

Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 17 of the 41 schools in this state.

Schools ranked by graduates per year into this occupation
#SchoolGraduates / yrTop feeder programGrad earnings (1 yr)Grad rateNet priceAcceptance
1Rutgers University - New Brunswick
New Brunswick, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs
983Computer and Information Sciences, General$80,44884%58%
2New Jersey Institute of Technology
Newark, NJ Public · 2 feeder programs
848Computer and Information Sciences, General$68,18373%65%
3Montclair State University
Montclair, NJ Public · 2 feeder programs
257Computer and Information Sciences, General$46,73965%88%
4Rowan University
Glassboro, NJ Public · 2 feeder programs
220Computer and Information Sciences, General$67,27867%78%
5New Jersey City University
Jersey City, NJ Public · 2 feeder programs
121Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance34%98%
6Saint Peter's University
Jersey City, NJ Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs
105Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance58%$14,44090%
7Rutgers University - Newark
Newark, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs
97Computer and Information Sciences, General$80,44864%71%
8Kean University
Union, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs
91Computer and Information Sciences, General$55,86747%76%
9Hudson County Community College
Jersey City, NJ Public · 2 feeder programs
82Computer and Information Sciences, General$25,73526%
10Brookdale Community College
Lincroft, NJ Public · 3 feeder programs
78Computer and Information Sciences, General$31,82730%
11Passaic County Community College
Paterson, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs
61Computer and Information Sciences, General$31,34619%
12Rutgers University - Camden
Camden, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs
52Computer and Information Sciences, General$80,44867%66%
13Fairleigh Dickinson University - Metropolitan Campus
Teaneck, NJ Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs
49Computer and Information Sciences, General$41,78853%$18,05991%
14Ramapo College of New Jersey
Mahwah, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs
45Computer and Information Sciences, General$69,36370%71%
15Essex County College
Newark, NJ Public · 2 feeder programs
42Network and System Administration/Administrator20%
16Camden County College
Blackwood, NJ Public · 2 feeder programs
41Computer and Information Sciences, General31%
17Ocean County College
Toms River, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs
40Computer and Information Sciences, General42%
18The College of New Jersey
Ewing, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs
39Computer and Information Sciences, General$84,53986%62%
19County College of Morris
Randolph, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs
38Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance36%
20Monmouth University
West Long Branch, NJ Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
36Computer and Information Sciences, General$60,30072%$28,51489%
21Thomas Edison State University
Trenton, NJ Public · 2 feeder programs
29Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance
22William Paterson University of New Jersey
Wayne, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs
29Computer and Information Sciences, General$42,55244%90%
23Fairleigh Dickinson University - Florham Campus
Madison, NJ Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
27Computer and Information Sciences, General$41,78867%$23,57395%
24Stevens Institute of Technology
Hoboken, NJ Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
27Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance87%$34,82748%
25Middlesex College
Edison, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs
26Computer and Information Sciences, General33%

All 41 schools in New Jersey

Every school in New Jersey 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 New Jersey that feed this occupation
SchoolCityControlGraduates / yrFeeder programs
Rutgers University - New BrunswickNew BrunswickPublic9831
New Jersey Institute of TechnologyNewarkPublic8482
Montclair State UniversityMontclairPublic2572
Rowan UniversityGlassboroPublic2202
New Jersey City UniversityJersey CityPublic1212
Saint Peter's UniversityJersey CityPrivate not-for-profit1052
Rutgers University - NewarkNewarkPublic971
Kean UniversityUnionPublic911
Hudson County Community CollegeJersey CityPublic822
Brookdale Community CollegeLincroftPublic783
Passaic County Community CollegePatersonPublic611
Rutgers University - CamdenCamdenPublic521
Fairleigh Dickinson University - Metropolitan CampusTeaneckPrivate not-for-profit492
Ramapo College of New JerseyMahwahPublic451
Essex County CollegeNewarkPublic422

What network and computer systems administrators earn in New Jersey

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

Median annual in New Jersey
$116,420
Mean annual
$119,390
Jobs in state
9,280
What the range looks like
10th pct$73,990Median$116,42090th pct$166,690
Versus the national median
+17.4%

U.S. median $99,130. New Jersey pays above the national figure.

Job concentration
1.07×

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

Metro areas in New Jersey

Trenton-Princeton, NJ
$97,230median
980 jobs
Vineland, NJ
$96,660median
70 jobs
Atlantic City-Hammonton, NJ
$99,030median
250 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 New Jersey

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 New Jersey.

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 3,081 degrees in New Jersey in 2024-25, 85.0% 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 3 programs to this occupation. The largest are Computer and Information Sciences, Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management. Together they graduate about 3,623 people a year in New Jersey.

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

The median is $116,420 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 17.4% above 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 New Jersey?+

41 institutions in New Jersey reported graduates from at least one of the 3 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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