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IT CAREER TRACKS:

Systems Analyst

A Systems Analyst, also known as junior systems engineer, a junior network engineer who can also program, or a junior software engineer who can also manage networks, is an IT professional who is a team member in the creation of hybrid software, web and hardware products from initial specifications to final rollout and maintenance. These products are often sophisticated systems that run on the web, proprietary hardware or a combination of systems. The systems analyst helps integrate various network operating systems, application programs and hardware devices to meet the business needs present in an agreed upon specification.


DUTIES

systems analyst; analyst training; analyst classes; PC analyst; computer analyst

Duties of a systems analyst typically include performing some of the tasks related to the development cycle associated with producing an integrated technical system, including: specification, design, coding, testing and maintenance.

With the complexity of modern systems, and with the rapid advance of new tools and platforms, a systems analyst should frequently take time to train and get certified on some of the latest networking and application development topics. As well a systems analyst must deal with customers, coworkers, systems engineers and project managers and thus should be a good team player. A systems analyst will likely be able to fill in for both network and programming staff in a pinch but will tend to specialize in just one of those two job roles. To excel at this role, a candidate must have strong troubleshooting skills and be able to work on a portion of a system and then be able to help integrate that portion to the whole system. A candidate should be a good writer, both for inline code documentation, network configuration documentation, and documentation related to the system development cycle.


PREREQUISITES

A person may consider entering this field after attaining a Computer Science or Computer Engineering university degree or a one or two year computer or engineering diploma from a local technical institute. With the emphasis in engineering principles from a Computer Engineering degree or diploma, this in some ways is preferable to a Computer Science degree or diploma. In any event, the ability to help translate specifications into a design and then to efficiently and successfully implement the design into a reliable working system is key to this job. As well, attention to detail is important, especially when it comes time to integrate work with other team members and to ferret out bugs.


ADVANCEMENT

A systems analyst, as he or she gains experience, generally receives more advanced and interesting systems to work on. Getting the right mix of training and hands on experience will accelerate the career growth of a systems analyst. A systems analyst can grow into a systems engineer, network engineer, lead application developer or software engineer.


Certification Examples Include:

A+; CCNA; CCVP; CIW Associate; CIW Professional; CIW Security Analyst; CIW Web Developer; CWNA; CWSP; Linux+; LPIC1-Linux Junior Level; LPIC2-Linux Intermediate Level; Master CIW Administrator; MCAD .NET; MCDBA; MCSA 2003; MCSD .NET; MCSE 2003; NetWare 5 CAN; NetWare 6 CAN; Network+; RHCE; RHCT; SCP J2SE; Security+; Server+; Solaris 8 SCNA; Solaris 9 SCNA; TICSA