Technical Support Specialists
Overview
Introduction
Technical support specialists investigate and resolve problems in computer functioning. They listen to customer complaints, walk customers through possible solutions, and write technical reports based on their work. Technical support specialists have different duties depending on whom they assist and what they fix. Regardless of specialty, all technical support specialists must be knowledgeable about the products with which they work and be able to communicate effectively with users from different technical backgrounds. There are ap...
Quick Facts
Median Salary
Employment Prospects
Minimum Education Level
Experience
Skills
Personality Traits
Earnings
Technical support specialist jobs are plentiful in areas where clusters of computer companies are located, such as northern California and Seattle, Washington. Median annual earnings for computer user support specialists were $52,270 in May 2019, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. The lowest paid 10 percent earned $32,330, while the highest paid 10 percent earned $88,470 or more per yea...
Work Environment
Technical support specialists work in comfortable business environments. They generally work regular, 40-hour weeks. For certain products, however, they may be asked to work evenings or weekends or at least be on call during those times in case of emergencies. Some Web sites may offer customer service hours in the evening. If they work for service companies, they may be required to travel to cl...
Outlook
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) predicts that employment for technical support specialists will grow by 8 percent, which is much faster than the average for all occupations, through 2029. Each time a new computer product is released on the market or another system is installed, problems arise, whether from user error or technical difficulty. Technical support specialists will continue to be ...