While everyone is familiar at this stage with the World Wide Web and mobile applications, people rarely consider the networks upon which they operate. A network is the infrastructure that connects computers and devices and allows the Internet to operate; while code is how we create fun and interesting things online.
A network engineer is responsible for the implementation and maintenance of computer networks. Strong technical skills, ability to define network architectures and design methodologies are part of the skillset of a good network engineer. Beyond technical skills-, a network engineer is a person with great attention to detail, creative thinking and attitude to master technologies in fast and efficient way.
To get a better understanding of the work of a network engineer, we can look at the story of Elle, a network engineering specialist who holds a Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA) Switch certification.
"I believed that a career in networking would suit me because I was computer savvy, I was actually interested in technology from the standpoint of how it worked and I believed that I could be good at working with computers in general."
"In general, my team takes designs created by architects, planners and salespeople and makes changes to the network topology based on issues like traffic congestion, preventative maintenance, necessary infrastructure upgrades, customer issues, new product offerings, etc."
"There are a ton of things to learn on my job. There are several different teams and projects always ongoing. I find it very interesting that my company is really moving into SDN (Software-Defined Networking). There is a team working on that and we are starting to use scripts more and more. I have started learning Python".
If you are interested in a career in network engineering, the CompTIA A+ is a widely-recognised entry-level certification; course materials, sample questions and exam objectives can be found on CompTIA's website.