What is Networking?
Why Work In Networking?
What is Networking?
Why Work In Networking?
Explore Networking Programs
CIAT offers three different Certificate pathways for Networking – designed to fit the needs of students with a range of technical skillsets, prior academic background, and career goals. With stackable IT programs, students can start with a Certificate program and seamlessly transfer completed courses to earn credit towards an Associate or Bachelor’s degree.
Cisco CCNA Certificate Program
Length: 10 weeks
Best Fit If You Are: An IT professional with 24-months+ experience or prior IT certifications
Number of Certifications: 1
Our shortest, most accelerated Certificate program is designed for IT professionals with a prior background in IT network administration and wants to advance their career with the successful completion of the newest Cisco CCNA exam.
Networking Technician Certificate Program
Length: 20 weeks
Best Fit If You Are: An IT professional with 12-months+ experience or prior IT certifications
Number of Certifications: Up to 2
Our Networking Technician program focuses on helping students earn 2 in-demand industry certifications: CompTIA Network+ and Cisco CCNA. This program is ideal for students building a specialized IT networking career but needs skill building on both beginner and advanced networking topics.
Computer Information Systems Certificate Program
Length: 10 months
Best Fit If You Are: New to tech or an early stage IT professional who has a prior degree but need industry certifications
Number of Certifications: Up to 5
Earning our CIS Certificate is a definitive way to show potential employers that you have specialized expertise in hardware and software support, networking, cybersecurity, and cloud administration. This program prepares students to earn up to 5 industry certifications to support a variety of successful IT career paths.
Networking Jobs Are In Demand
Earning Potential
Education
- CompTIA ITF+ Certification
- CompTIA A+ Certification
- CompTIA Network+
- Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA)
- CompTIA Security+
- Microsoft 365 Fundamentals
- Microsoft Azure Fundamentals Certification
- Microsoft Azure Administrator Certification
- AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner Certification
- AWS Solutions Architect
*Job title and salary information displayed are all average annual salaries sourced from paysacle.com in 2022. They represent the most up-to-date information at time of print and are not to be construed as guarantees of employment or future earnings. Some positions may require 5+ years of experience and/or a Bachelor’s degree to be eligible.
Fast Growing Field
Highly-trained networking professionals have been increasing in demand over the past decade with about 5% increases each year in networking career opportunities. There’s no hinting that will slow down as growth is looking to jump to 6.5% over the next decade.
Technology continues to change at a rapid pace, and networking professionals play a crucial role in developing these technologies and bringing them to market. The demand for qualified networking professionals is expected to rise as technology becomes increasingly complex and more businesses rely on computers for daily operations.
Needed In Many Industries
Computer networking, or networking as it’s commonly known, is a critical IT discipline that touches almost every industry and market. Whether you’re in manufacturing, retail or education, chances are that your business network and IT solutions need to be optimized for speed, security, and efficiency.
While these types of systems have become more complex and sophisticated over time, their importance has never diminished. Businesses rely on them daily to function effectively with minimal downtime.
If you have networking skills, you’ll be able to work in virtually any industry. For example, a skilled IT professional with networking expertise is more likely to find a job than one without it.
That’s because all industries are becoming increasingly reliant on high-speed data transmission, cloud computing, and mobile technology – all of which rely on optimized IT networks.
If you’re looking for more variety in your career, then networking might be a great choice. As an IT professional with networking skills, you can work virtually anywhere in any industry. Plus, as technologies become more advanced and internet speeds increase, IT professionals with strong networking abilities will remain in high demand.
Different Career Paths
IT careers are becoming increasingly complex. You can enter into a career in IT and work towards becoming a developer, network specialist, or database administrator, to name just a few. The one thing that all these roles have in common is networking, which helps you build rapport with colleagues across departments and enables you to support your organization’s technology infrastructure.
Popular networking roles include
- Network Technician
- Computer Repair Technician
- Desktop Support Technician
- Junior Network Administrator
Experience New Technology
Because new technologies are constantly being developed, network engineers have a lot of opportunities to try out new things. Whether you’re trying to figure out how to set up a voice-over-IP system for your company or get your head around blockchain, there’s always something new in networking. As long as you have an interest in technology, network engineering is a great career choice.
Because companies are also constantly growing, network engineers have a lot of opportunities to move up. There’s always more knowledge to gain and more responsibility to shoulder, which is why networking is one of those careers that’s never boring. As long as you keep learning, there will always be new challenges for you to solve.
Whether you’re joining a company as an entry-level network engineer or are a senior staff member with years of experience, networking is a career that continues to reward hard work. As long as you continue learning and working, you can enjoy your networking career for many years to come.
Curious about a career in networking?
Contact us today for step-by-step guidance on selecting the right education path that will help you reach your career goals.
Class of 2021
Class of 2021
Class of 2021
Class of 2021
2022 BEST CYBERSECURITY PROGRAMS
CIAT has been awarded top ranking status two years running in Intelligent.com’s Best Cybersecurity Program review, highlighted as “Best For Industry Certifications”. Evaluated based on curriculum quality, graduation rate, reputation, and post-graduate employment.
CIRCLE OF EXCELLENCE AWARD
EC Council, the world's largest cybersecurity technical certification organization, awarded CIAT the Circle of Excellence Award two years in a row for our Certified Ethical Hacker certification training courses and career-ready curriculum.
MILITARY-FRIENDLY
We believe you deserve an education worthy of your service. CIAT welcomes military veterans, active duty service members, and spouses using the Post 9/11 GI Bill®, Veteran Readiness & Employment (VR&E), Active Duty Tuition Assistance, and MyCAA.
FULLY ACCREDITED
We have high standards and we believe you should too. CIAT has proudly earned accreditation from the Accrediting Council for Continuing Education & Training (ACCET) listed by the U.S. Department of Education as a nationally recognized accrediting agency.
2021 BEST CYBERSECURITY PROGRAMS
CIAT has been awarded top ranking status in Intelligent.com’s Best Cybersecurity Program review, highlighted as “Best For Industry Certifications”. Evaluated based on curriculum quality, graduation rate, reputation, and post-graduate employment.
CIRCLE OF EXCELLENCE AWARD
EC Council, the world's largest cybersecurity technical certification organization, awarded CIAT the Circle of Excellence Award two years in a row for our Certified Ethical Hacker certification training courses and career-ready curriculum.
MILITARY-FRIENDLY
We believe you deserve an education worthy of your service. CIAT welcomes military veterans, active duty service members, and spouses using the Post 9/11 GI Bill®, Veteran Readiness & Employment (VR&E), Active Duty Tuition Assistance, and MyCAA.
FULLY ACCREDITED
We have high standards and we believe you should too. CIAT has proudly earned accreditation from the Accrediting Council for Continuing Education & Training (ACCET) listed by the U.S. Department of Education as a nationally recognized accrediting agency.