West Virginia·Computer and Mathematical Occupations·SOC 15-1244

Best Network programs in West Virginia, 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 West Virginia run programs that feed this job, graduating 974 people a year. The job pays a median of $74,490 in West Virginia across about 1,510 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
974
in West Virginia
Median pay · West Virginia
$74,490
BLS OEWS May 2025
Jobs in state
1,510
people employed
Schools
19
with a feeder program
Avg graduation rate
40%
across those schools
Median net price
$16,943
per year, IPEDS

Fields of study in West Virginia that lead to this job

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

3 programs in West Virginia that lead to this job

Ranked by graduates per year in West Virginia (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 West Virginia page.

Degree programs that lead to this occupation, ranked by graduates per year
#ProgramGraduates / yrShare of pipelineSchoolsGrad earnings (1 yr)Median debt
1861
88.4%
11$48,185$25,250
282
8.4%
7$57,986$24,286
331
3.2%
4$48,185$25,250

Top 19 schools in West Virginia

Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 7 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
1American Public University System
Charles Town, WV Private for-profit · 2 feeder programs
714Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance$66,58857%$10,199
2Marshall University
Huntington, WV Public · 2 feeder programs
68Computer and Information Sciences, General$52,04751%96%
3West Virginia University
Morgantown, WV Public · 1 feeder programs
34Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance65%89%
4Blue Ridge Community and Technical College
Martinsburg, WV Public · 1 feeder programs
32Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance32%
5Shepherd University
Shepherdstown, WV Public · 1 feeder programs
18Computer and Information Sciences, General$57,26551%97%
6West Virginia Junior College - Morgantown
Morgantown, WV Private for-profit · 2 feeder programs
18Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance$40,08771%$19,134
7New River Community and Technical College
Beaver, WV Public · 1 feeder programs
16Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance36%
8BridgeValley Community & Technical College
South Charleston, WV Public · 1 feeder programs
14Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance34%
9Fairmont State University
Fairmont, WV Public · 1 feeder programs
12Computer and Information Sciences, General$64,97544%99%
10West Virginia Northern Community College
Wheeling, WV Public · 1 feeder programs
10Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance33%
11Mountwest Community and Technical College
Huntington, WV Public · 1 feeder programs
9Network and System Administration/Administrator19%
12West Virginia Junior College - Charleston
Cross Lanes, WV Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
8Network and System Administration/Administrator60%$15,408
13Bluefield State University
Bluefield, WV Public · 1 feeder programs
5Computer and Information Sciences, General37%97%
14Salem University
Salem, WV Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
5Computer and Information Sciences, General20%$14,845
15West Virginia University Institute of Technology
Beckley, WV Public · 1 feeder programs
4Computer and Information Sciences, General$65,22333%37%
16Davis & Elkins College
Elkins, WV Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
3Computer and Information Sciences, General39%$19,28494%
17Strayer University - West Virginia
Scott Depot, WV Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
2Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance$61,8100%$16,943
18Concord University
Athens, WV Public · 1 feeder programs
1Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance39%93%
19Pierpont Community and Technical College
Fairmont, WV Public · 1 feeder programs
1Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance42%

All 19 schools in West Virginia

Every school in West Virginia 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 West Virginia that feed this occupation
SchoolCityControlGraduates / yrFeeder programs
American Public University SystemCharles TownPrivate for-profit7142
Marshall UniversityHuntingtonPublic682
West Virginia UniversityMorgantownPublic341
Blue Ridge Community and Technical CollegeMartinsburgPublic321
Shepherd UniversityShepherdstownPublic181
West Virginia Junior College - MorgantownMorgantownPrivate for-profit182
New River Community and Technical CollegeBeaverPublic161
BridgeValley Community & Technical CollegeSouth CharlestonPublic141
Fairmont State UniversityFairmontPublic121
West Virginia Northern Community CollegeWheelingPublic101
Mountwest Community and Technical CollegeHuntingtonPublic91
West Virginia Junior College - CharlestonCross LanesPrivate for-profit81
Bluefield State UniversityBluefieldPublic51
Salem UniversitySalemPrivate for-profit51
West Virginia University Institute of TechnologyBeckleyPublic41

What network and computer systems administrators earn in West Virginia

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

Median annual in West Virginia
$74,490
Mean annual
$81,080
Jobs in state
1,510
What the range looks like
10th pct$53,640Median$74,49090th pct$112,410
Versus the national median
-24.9%

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

Job concentration
1.06×

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

Metro areas in West Virginia

Morgantown, WV
$74,240median
160 jobs
Parkersburg-Vienna, WV
$71,670median
30 jobs
Wheeling, WV-OH
$81,000median
70 jobs
Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH
$76,320median
160 jobs
Weirton-Steubenville, WV-OH
$75,590median
50 jobs
Charleston, WV
$72,040median
280 jobs
Beckley, WV
$71,700median
40 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 West Virginia

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 West Virginia.

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 Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance, which awarded 861 degrees in West Virginia in 2024-25, 88.4% 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/Information Technology Administration and Management, Computer and Information Sciences. Together they graduate about 974 people a year in West Virginia.

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

The median is $74,490 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 24.9% 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 West Virginia?+

19 institutions in West Virginia 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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