Somewhat Resilient
Last Update: 6/19/2026
AI Resilience Score for Network and Computer Admin:
47.4%
Median Score
Meaningful human contribution
Measures the parts of the occupation that still require a human touch. This score averages data from up to four AI exposure datasets, focusing on the role’s resilience against automation.
Low
Long-term employer demand
Predicts the health of the job market for this role through 2034. Using Bureau of Labor Statistics data, it balances projected annual job openings (60%) with overall employment growth (40%).
Med
Sustained economic opportunity
Measures future earning potential and career flexibility. This score is a blend of total projected labor income (67%) and the role’s inherent ability to adapt to economic and technological shifts (33%).
High
This reflects the reliability of your score based on the number of data sources available for this career and how closely those sources agree on the outlook. A higher confidence means more consistent evidence from labor experts and AI models.
Most data sources align, with only minor variation. This is a well-supported result.
Contributing sources
AI Resilience Report forNetwork and Computer Systems Administrators
$96,800 median salary•14,300 annual openings•SOC Code: 15-1244.00
Network and Computer Systems Administrators are somewhat less resilient to AI impacts than most occupations, according to our analysis of 7 sources.
Network and computer systems administration earns a "Somewhat Resilient" label because AI is genuinely changing the day-to-day work, not just hovering on the horizon. Routine tasks like monitoring alerts, triaging tickets, and applying standard fixes are already being handled by automated tools, which means those specific workflows are shrinking for human workers.
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Network and computer systems administration earns a "Somewhat Resilient" label because AI is genuinely changing the day-to-day work, not just hovering on the horizon. Routine tasks like monitoring alerts, triaging tickets, and applying standard fixes are already being handled by automated tools, which means those specific workflows are shrinking for human workers.
Read full analysisAnalysis of Current AI Resilience
Network and Computer Admin
Updated Quarterly
How is AI changing Network and Computer Admin jobs?
Right now, AI in network and systems administration is mostly augmenting people rather than replacing them — but the line is starting to shift. Industry analysts call the new wave "agentic NetOps," in which autonomous software agents monitor telemetry, prioritize incidents, run root-cause analysis, and apply preapproved fixes, escalating to humans only when something unusual happens, as described in NTT DATA's April 2026 explainer on agentic network operations [1]. Early deployments are already showing big productivity gains: Yale's School of Management reports [2] that some telecom operators using agents for automated provisioning have seen "more than 60% reduction in manual network operations." Inside data centers, Uptime Institute's 2026 predictions covered by Network World [3] say AI is moving from pilots into daily use for cooling, power optimization, and "industrial copilots" that help operators — but the industry is "moving toward supervised, practical automation… designed to support operators rather than actually replace them." Security work is similar: the SANS Institute notes [4] that 40% of security operations centers use AI/ML tools without making them a defined part of operations, and 42% rely on tools "out of the box," meaning human admins still do the tuning, validating, and judgment calls.
Sources
How fast is AI adoption growing for Network and Computer Admin?
Adoption is accelerating but uneven. On the fast side, commercial AIOps platforms are everywhere, big vendors are shipping agentic tools, and there are huge economic incentives — agents promise to ease the skills gap, cut incident response time, and handle the floods of data that modern hybrid networks generate, according to NTT DATA [1]. On the slow side, the same source cites Gartner data that fewer than 1% of organizations have actually deployed agentic NetOps, "primarily due to limited vendor capabilities and organizational readiness." Trust, security, and governance worries make IT leaders cautious about letting agents change live production networks.
Labor-market signals are mixed but mostly hopeful for young people: CompTIA's State of the Tech Workforce 2026 [5] projects U.S. tech employment growing 1.9% in 2026 to about 9.8 million workers, with more than 275,000 job postings in January 2026 referencing AI skills. The honest takeaway: routine monitoring, ticket triage, and "load the tapes" style tasks will keep shrinking, but humans who can design guardrails, validate AI output, secure networks, and translate business goals into technical policy remain very much in demand.
Sources
Will AI replace Network and Computer Admin?
Not entirely. We think AI will take over some tasks, but not the whole job.
Our 47.4% AI Resilience Score reflects real pressure on this career. The most routine work, things like monitoring alerts, triaging tickets, and provisioning bandwidth, is already being handed off to autonomous software agents. Some telecom operators using these tools have seen more than 60% reductions in manual network operations [2]. That is a meaningful shift, and it will keep moving.
But the full job is harder to automate than it looks. Right now, fewer than 1% of organizations have actually deployed agentic network operations, mostly because of trust, security, and governance concerns [1]. Even where AI is running, humans are still doing the tuning, validating, and judgment calls. In security operations, for example, 42% of teams rely on AI tools straight out of the box, which means a person still has to make sense of what those tools produce [4]. Designing guardrails, translating business goals into technical policy, and knowing when to override the system are not tasks AI handles well yet.
The economic picture also offers some stability. Wages and adaptive capacity both score well in our data, and U.S. tech employment is projected to keep growing [5]. This role is changing, not disappearing.
Sources
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Latest AI news for Network and Computer Admin
These articles highlight the evolving landscape for Network and Computer Systems Administrators amidst rising AI integration. For instance, the potential Oracle layoffs underscore the need for sysadmins to adapt by embracing AI tools that enhance operational efficiency. Additionally, the IBM Z Database Assistant illustrates how AI can optimize database management, a critical area for sysadmins. By staying informed about AI advancements and incorporating these tools, students can build resilience in their careers, ensuring they remain indispensable in a technology-driven workplace.
IBM Z Database Assistant brings intelligent operations for the AI era
www.ibm.com • 5/20/2026
As enterprises scale AI, database operational efficiency is becoming paramount to unlocking the full value of trusted Z data.
Oracle layoffs could reach 45000 as AI replace database, engineering roles. Job loss flood
investinglive.com • 3/12/2026
If confirmed, layoffs on this scale would highlight how aggressively major software companies are using AI to reduce engineering headcount.
8 ways to use AI for data backup
www.techtarget.com • 1/27/2026
With this article, examine eight ways that using AI can improve backup and how to incorporate it into a backup implementation.
Incorporating AI impacts in BLS employment projections: occupational case studies
www.bls.gov • 2/10/2025
In this article, we explain the Bureau's approach to this type of projections work, illustrating it with several occupational case studies based on research...
Systems Administrators and AI Tools: What You Need to Know
www.dice.com • 1/24/2025
The systems administrator (sysadmin) role has evolved significantly over the years, shifting from managing racks of on-premise servers to...
More Career Info
Career: Network and Computer Systems Administrators
They set up and manage computer networks to keep them running smoothly, making sure people can connect and access the internet and other resources.
Parent Careers
Employment & Wage Data
Median Wage
$96,800
Jobs (2024)
331,500
Growth (2024-34)
-4.2%
Annual Openings
14,300
Education
Bachelor's degree
Experience
None
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2024-2034
Task-Level AI Resilience Scores
AI-generated estimates of task resilience over the next 3 years
1
Train people in computer system use.
2
Maintain an inventory of parts for emergency repairs.
3
Maintain and administer computer networks and related computing environments including computer hardware, systems software, applications software, and all configurations.
4
Perform routine network startup and shutdown procedures, and maintain control records.
5
Plan, coordinate, and implement network security measures to protect data, software, and hardware.
6
Implement and provide technical support for voice services and equipment, such as private branch exchange, voice mail system, and telecom system.
7
Gather data pertaining to customer needs, and use the information to identify, predict, interpret, and evaluate system and network requirements.
Tasks are ranked by their AI resilience, with the most resilient tasks shown first. Core tasks are essential functions of this occupation, while supplemental tasks provide additional context.
