Online Telecommunications Degree Programs

Telecommunications is a giant global industry with a whole host of opportunities for educated professionals. It represents a $1 trillion industry in the United States alone, and is predicted by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) to be a high-growth industry.

Telecommunications Careers

Telecommunications professionals make their companies more efficient by understanding the needs of their customers and leveraging technology to meet those needs more effectively than the competition.

While telecommunications technology used to consist of only telephone, television, video, and fax, today the industry has blossomed to include cell phones, DVDs, digital cable, and the Internet. Well-trained telecom technology experts are needed to keep up with the industry's constant innovations.

The field of telecommunications has exploded in the last ten years, as Internet and mobile technology comprise the most widely used forms of communication and information sharing across the world.

Preparing for a Telecommunications Career

Telecommunications majors study two distinct areas of technology and business. First, telecommunications students learn to understand the hardware and software that keep information flowing freely. Many telecommunications programs expose their students to courses in software programming and hardware engineering.

Second, telecommunications majors learn how to use that technology to share that information. Students learn how to replace inefficient cross-country business trips with effective multi-media conferences. They discover how a simple tool like a bar code scanner can shave days off the time it takes to ship a customer order from one coast to the other.

Online Degrees Offer Career Training in Telecommunications

Degree programs can help you learn these types of innovations in telecommunications. Online degree programs allow you to study without ever leaving home, through two- and four-year degree programs.

Most telecom degrees are available at the associate's and bachelor's levels. Typical coursework includes marketing, computer and information systems, customer relations, project management, and more. Once you earn your degree, you can qualify for many areas of telecommunications, including installation and maintenance, administration, sales, marketing, customer service, and more.

Telecommunications Salaries

According to the BLS, the telecommunications industry is very profitable, with average salaries much higher than other industries. With various occupations within the industry, earning potential should vary from field to field. In 2007, these occupations earned the following median annual salaries:

Business operations specialists: $57,090
Customer service representatives: $29,040
Sales representatives: $48,550
Computer support specialists: $42,400

The telecommunications industry should enjoy 11 percent job growth between 2006 and 2016, according to the BLS. The growth and popularity of high-speed Internet, wireless communication, as well as video-on-demand, are spurring growth in telecommunications.

Regardless of their field of expertise, professionals can reinvigorate their careers by pursuing career training and education in telecommunications. With numerous employment opportunities and a growing industry, telecommunications may be where you want to start your next career.