There are risks associated with both traditional and non-traditional career paths. Joining a company may provide you with a resource of years of experience, however, they could also be completely out-of-date. Outsourcing is another threat to the traditional employment option. Networking staffs could be reduced to save on costs, and independents could find themselves filling the gap. However, while many of the displaced workers are employed by outsourcing operations, long-term job security is at risk. In spite of the increase in company downsizing and outsourcing, there is still a huge demand for networking professionals.
A well-trained graduate in a high-tech field such as Computer Science or Information Systems, who has courses in networking, can almost be guaranteed several respectable job offers with good starting salaries. Networking and Internetworking are on the rise and will continue as companies develop more wireless networks, and satellite-based systems. It is very difficult today to find any of the traditional LANs, however, the interconnection of WANs is certainly a new source of employment.
A work option frequently chosen by people is the career path. This involves looking at companies in terms of advancement opportunities. For instance, a person may start as a WAN technician and move up to a WAN network manager. This is now seen as a riskier prospect for networking professionals since the information technology sector is in a state of constant flux and because of the fact that jobs that exist today may not exist in the same way in five years.
