Who Earns the Most?
Most of you—52 percent—believe others are better compensated than you are. Among those respondents who consider themselves better compensated, a slight majority believe that certification played a role in their success.

So let's look at what jobs bring in the highest dollars. It appears we have a tie. Both developers and trainers top the certification charts with an average salary of $78,600.

As MCTs provide a foundation upon which many MCPs build their careers, it only makes sense that their experience, knowledge and talent are amply rewarded. This is a significant jump in salary for MCTs, who were earning 18 percent less (an average of $65,100) in 2000. It could simply be a matter of supply and demand. With the Win2K certification program there has been a growing need in the last year (and, therefore, a greater reward) for those who teach. Another effect on the higher numbers may be Microsoft's requirement that MCTs also possess a premium certification. That may have forced MCTs without those qualifications out of the program, thereby drawing up salaries for those remaining. It could also mean that employers hiring trainers may have been forced to up the ante to prevent their MCTs from going elsewhere with their titles.

Those trainers who have management in their titles tend to bring their salaries up to about $93,400.

When it comes to MCSDs, who have a tradition of earning top salaries in our surveys, it appears that being the lead on a programming team is the way to go. The average salary for MCSDs jumps from $78,600 to $97,100 when respondents claim a management title. The gap may be a result of the level of responsibility between those who write code and those with more experience, who lead and manage projects or divisions. Our survey shows that MCSDs with titles such as Programmer/Analyst bring in an average of $71,700. That jumps to $87,100 when "Programming Project Lead" is added.

This is the first year we've been able to do much analysis on the MCDBA title, and that's worth a mention. After MCT and MCSD, your best bet currently for a lucrative field is to consider becoming a database administrator or developer. The average base salary for that is just above $75,000.

Another way of evaluating the question of earnings is by looking at average base salary strictly by job title no matter which certifications are held. (See Chart 7.) In that case, the highest salaries are earned by programming project leads at $87,100. The lowest salary by title—$47,900—is earned by the help desk/user support professional. You'll find a breakout of job titles by certification at the end of this report.

Salary by Job Title
Project Lead/Programming	$87,100
Management	$81,400
Database Administrator	$72,100
Project Lead/Networking	$71,900
Programmer/Analyst	$71,700
Webmaster/Web developer	$70,300
Trainer	$66,400
Network Engineer	$62,300
Help Desk/User support	$47,900

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Chart 7. One of the many determining factors in salary is job title. We asked respondents to choose one of nine titles that best described their position. Project lead is non-supervisory, but management is supervisory. Numbers are 2001 average base salary.

The Impact of Certification
Fifty eight percent of respondents told us that certification will probably help them land a job promotion in 2001—if it hasn't already. The other 42 percent said that achieving certification resulted in no job promotion. Yet only a third of respondents said that certification had no impact on their salary. In other words, even if obtaining a new certification doesn't lead to a promotion, it could lead to a better salary.

More than a third of MCTs and a quarter of MCSE+Internets reported a higher-than-25 percent jump in their salaries due, in part, to their certification. Overall, respondents said they expected about a 15 percent raise due to certification. (See Chart 8 for a breakdown of salary increases.) About two-thirds of respondents said this change in income will be the same as or higher than they expect.

Effect of Microsoft Certification on Salary
No change	31%
Up to 10% increase	28%
11% to 15% increase	10%
16% to 25% increase	14%
More than 25% increase	17%

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Chart 8. Although many respondents expect that Microsoft certification will have no effect on their salaries in 2001, 17 percent anticipate reaping an increase of more than 25 percent.

Nearly a quarter of respondents who expect an increase in salary in 2001 said it could be because they have changed or expect to change employers during the year.

Does certification really have an impact on how well you do your work? We asked how many servers and workstations respondents managed. On average, you support 23 servers and 580 workstations. Those of you who don't hold Microsoft certification reported supporting 28 percent fewer servers and 24 percent fewer workstations.

Multiple Microsoft Certifications
Frequently, people contact us wanting to know what impact multiple Microsoft certifications should have on their salaries. Although after a certain number of titles, there's a diminishing return, the numbers do look favorable.

If you possess an MCSE under NT 4.0, as you've already read in this survey, you can expect an average base salary of around $62,700. When you add an MCSD to that, the average goes up to $85,200. Or, if you add the MCDBA to the MCSE, the average is around $73,200.

The average base salary for an MCSE+Internet is $72,800. Adding an MCSD to that cranks up the average to a handsome $90,200.

Other Certifications
The most commonly held certification outside of Microsoft was CompTIA's A+. Generally considered an entry-level designation, A+ jumped in popularity this year, with 47 percent of respondents holding it, up from 20 percent in 2000. Of course, those holding that title tend to fall between the MCP and the MCSE in the salary heap because that's an entry-level certification.

Novell came in second, with 33 percent of respondents claiming a certification. Next in line is Cisco, with 29 percent earning some sort of designation, typically, the CCNA. Rounding out the top four is CompTIA's Network+, with 16 percent earning certification. (See Chart 9 for Salaries by Other Certifications.)

Salary by Other Certifications Cisco CCIE $91,900 Citrix CCEA $87,600 Compaq Master ASE $87,300 Sun SCJP $85,600 Oracle OCP-DBA $81,800 Cisco CCNP $80,700 Lotus CLS $79,600 Novell MCNE $78,000 Compaq ASE $75,400 Lotus CLP $74,600 Red Hat RHCE $74,600 Novell CNE $72,000 Cisco CCNA $71,700 CompTIA i-NET+ $71,600 Prosoft CIW Associate $70,900 Novell CNA $65,200 CompTIA Network+ $65,000 CompTIA A+ $59,200

Chart 9. We asked respondents what other certifications they held besides Microsoft's. Numbers are 2001 average base salaries. As with many skill comparisons, there are a variety of factors (such as experience and multiple certifications) that influence salary other than the title itself, which may explain some of the large salary differences.

The Year of the Upgrade
Results this year suggest that the majority of certified professionals intend to achieve their Win2K certification in the next year. MCPs with NT certification are extremely motivated to get their Win2K MCP (88 percent). Fifty eight percent also plan to reach for the top and attain a Win2K MCSE. In addition, a whopping 92 percent of Win2K MCPs—who have already started the process—are planning to attain their MCSE title this year.

MCSEs on NT, for good reason, are studying just as hard, with 83 percent going for their Win2K title before the end of the year.

Among those who hold the MCSD title, 63 percent expect to achieve an MCDBA this year and 34 percent want to obtain an MCSE under Win2K.

Who's Footing the Bill?
On a positive note, it appears that companies are back to taking a greater interest (and paying for) continuing education for their IT personnel. (See Chart 10.) The percentage of companies completely footing the bill for certification has risen to 46 percent from just 39 percent last year (which was down from 50 percent in 1999). Perhaps companies are trying to find other ways to keep their best and brightest. Employees tend to consider training a great benefit, which makes it a good retention tool for managers.

Again this year, salaries for those whose companies paid for certification were higher (averaging $69,700, down from $71,400 in 2000) than those who paid for certification themselves ($60,000, up from $58,500 in 2000). When compared to 2000, it appears that those candidates who fund their own certification have closed the salary gap a bit.

The average amount of paid training allotted to certified professionals comes in at just more than a week and a half per year. The exception to this is for MCTs, who expect to get, on average, two and a third weeks of paid training this year.

Who Pays for Training
Self	41%
Company	46%
Jointly (self and company)	13%

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Chart 10. This year the percentage of companies paying for certification training increased to 46 percent from last year's 39 percent. The percentage of respondents that named training as a benefit is also up this year to 61 percent (compared to last year's 35 percent).

The average amount you and your companies expect to spend in 2001 on materials and training related to certification is about $2,121. It took about two months on average for respondents to prepare for their latest exam and a little longer than six months to get through the latest certification title, such as MCSE. Overall, respondents expect to spend about 227 hours—almost six full-time weeks—on study and certification efforts this year. Since that count was about 188 hours for 2000, we expect a lot of certified professionals are preparing to tackle their Win2K exams before year's end. (The number is highest among current MCPs under Win2K.)

The most popular means of obtaining certification show up in Chart 11. Book publishers will be glad to hear they're at the top of the list; Ninety five percent of you rely on books to get you through the process. Unfortunately, about 40 percent of you still rely on braindump Web sites as well.

Means of Certification Preparation Books 95% Exam simulation products 74% On the job training 69% Disk or CD-based software 51% TechNet 41% Braindump sites 40% Authorized practice test vendors 29% CTEC training 27% Web or magazine articles 24% Other instructor-led training 19% Web sites 19% Study groups 14% Conferences 10% Boocamps 9% College or university courses 9% AATP training 9% e-training 9% User groups 7% Videos 6%

Chart 11. We asked respondents to list all methods they've used in the last year to prepare for certification

A Matter of Service
We asked respondents which type of organization they worked for: a company that supplies services to external customers (solution providers, value-added retailers or systems integration firms) or internal customers (corporate IT/IS). Of those who aren't self-employed, 40 percent work for a solution provider-type firm; 60 percent supply internal IT/IS support.

Interestingly, professionals supplying external services averaged $72,400 in base salary, which is about 15 percent more than the $61,900 earned by those who provide internal services. Likewise, monetary bonuses were higher for those who work with external customers ($4,336) than for those who work with internal customers ($3,036). The reason for these differences is most likely the fact that companies supplying outside services tend to employ more experienced, more highly skilled professionals.

No matter which type of work environment you're in, on average, you've been with your current employer for about three and a half years.

Getting a Life
This year IT professionals are taking things a little bit easier. The number of people who reported receiving income from outside sources was down from last year's 66 percent to just 42 percent. The average was $2,906. As the number of years of experience went up, so did the amount respondents earned from outside sources. Those with fewer than two years of experience reported bringing in about $2,000. Those with more than 15 years of experience brought in an average of $3,770.

In addition, it appears everyone is working hard to get home at a decent hour. In an industry typically known for its long hours, the average number of hours worked per week stood at 43 (from 45 per week in 2000). This finding was fairly consistent across all certifications, job titles and skill sets.

However, the higher the average salary you reported, the more hours you tended to put in on the job. A third of respondents told us they work more than 46 hours a week. That group earned about 22 percent more income than those who worked fewer hours.

Also, many of you seem determined to "get away" this year, with 58 percent of you planning to take all your vacation time. The average amount of vacation reported by respondents was 2.6 weeks a year.

The Consulting Life
Nine percent of our respondents are self-employed, and we asked them to provide some insight on how that affects compensation. The average salary for the self-employed respondent was $78,900.

More than half (55 percent) contract directly with clients (they're responsible for filling out 1099s, filing their own taxes, and covering all overhead costs) and take home an average salary of $83,500. Those who work through a broker/placement firm or IT staffing company (10 percent) make about $76,500 per year. Those who combine both (35 percent) top the scale at $87,800.

When that's broken down, it equates to $87 per hour for all self-employed professionals. The typical placement or staffing firm charges about $105 an hour. The certified professional working through that firm receives an average of $71.

Although a fifth of respondents work 51 or more hours a week, the average is 38 hours. Self-employed respondents expect to take less vacation this year and they enjoy fewer perks such as paid medical/dental or classroom training.

Gender Gap
Women in IT—10 percent of our respondents—make less than their male counterparts across the board. The titles in which women are least represented are the MCSE+Internet at seven percent and MCT and MCP+Internet at nine percent. On the upside, the percentage of female MCSDs stands at 11 percent this year. The highest representation of women is still the MCP designation, with 14 percent. In addition, we can hope that number will grow; 15 percent of women currently make up the Win2K MCP designees.

When it comes to salary, women are beginning to close the gap. In 2000, there was a $10,000 difference across all certification titles, whereas this year the chasm has narrowed to a difference of $7,100, with men bringing in an average of $66,500 and women earning an average of $59,400. (The gap is wider among those respondents who had no Microsoft certification.) The difference is smallest when it comes to the MCP title, with women making about $51,200 and men earning an average of $54,000—a $2,800 disparity.

Value of Education
As is typical in IT, formal education isn't the most important income factor. Those with a high school diploma reported earning slightly more ($60,700) than those who attained a two-year college degree ($58,900). This may be because those who dove into the IT industry directly out of high school got a jump on their college-bound counterparts.

Although not the most important variable, this year's survey shows that education does play a role (see Chart 12). Most common among our respondents was a four-year college degree (33 percent), with an average salary of $67,200. A master's degree garners about $75,600, with a doctorate bringing the average up to $82,700.

Salary by Education Level
Doctoral degree	$82,700
Master's degree	$75,600
Post-graduate study without degree	$70,100
Four-year degree	$67,200
Attended some college	$61,100
Graduated from high school	$60,700
Two-year degree	$58,900

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Chart 12. Although not the most important factor in salary, the level of formal education does play a role for the 55 percent of respondents who hold at least a four-year degree.

Outlook on Work

Certified professionals tend to be more satisfied with their co-workers than with their pay. When we asked how happy you were with various aspects of your work environment, on a scale of one to three (with three being very satisfied), you scored salary and bonuses at 1.66, overall job at 2.13, and co-workers at 2.26. The higher the number of years of experience and the more premium the certification, the more content you were with your compensation.

When it comes to how you see the future, our survey showed cautious optimism. While 69 percent of you feel the U.S. is headed for an economic downturn and 87 percent think that a downturn would affect the number of available IT jobs, 62 percent of you still generally feel that your individual prospects look good for the future.

Salary by Skill MCP MCSE MCP+I MCSE+I MCSD MCT E-commerce $70,600 $77,200 $73,800 $82,800 $83,200 $87,500 Oracle $67,200 $74,200 $70,900 $82,100 $85,400 $89,000 Strategic planning $66,200 $72,800 $70,700 $80,100 $87,000 $85,900 Software design $66,000 $77,500 $71,900 $81,600 $79,400 $86,900 Research/ development $65,900 $73,800 $69,700 $79,800 $84,700 $89,800 Web (other than e-commerce) $65,200 $73,500 $70,700 $80,700 $81,100 $86,200 Outsourcing/ASPs $64,200 $78,200 $76,000 $83,300 $83,300 $91,000 Extranets $64,100 $75,800 $73,500 $80,500 $86,700 $84,100 Web site development/ management $62,100 $70,600 $67,600 $78,800 $80,700 84,500 Database development/data warehousing $61,400 $73,300 $70,100 $80,300 $80,600 $84,600 Unix $61,200 $68,700 $84,600 $79,100 $82,900 $84,600 Hardware design $61,100 $68,700 $69,300 $76,700 $87,300 $82,900 Systems integration $60,200 $70,100 $69,400 $77,500 $82,600 $83,500 VPN/remote management $59,900 $67,900 $67,500 $75,700 $87,300 $82,300 Security $58,700 $67,800 $67,000 $76,300 $83,900 $82,800 Wireless $58,500 $68,100 $67,400 $80,000 $82,100 $87,500 Systems management $57,900 $67,400 $66,600 $75,200 $82,300 $80,900 Intranets $57,600 $66,400 $65,400 $75,100 $79,600 $80,900 Data warehousing $57,500 $75,800 $71,500 $82,200 $83,000 $89,500 Windows 2000 testing/planning/ pilot $57,200 $67,500 $66,600 $75,300 $80,200 $81,200 Telephony $57,200 $66,400 $67,100 $76,500 $80,300 $81,300 Messaging/e-mail $56,800 $64,900 $65,300 $73,900 $81,100 $80,000 Training $56,500 $65,500 $64,100 $77,100 $$82,400 $79,100 Routers and switches $55,700 $64,700 $65,300 $74,000 $86,900 $80,200 Linux $55,600 $66,100 $66,000 $74,000 $86,500 $77,900 Backup and storage management $55,500 $65,200 $65,000 $73,200 $78,600 $81,100 Novell $55,200 $63,000 $63,200 $72,800 $89,200 $78,500 Customer relationship management $53,500 $64,700 $63,800 $73,700 $81,300 $78,600

Chart 13. We asked respondents which of a multitude of products or technologies they've worked with for at least six months and then sorted that information by salary. The large difference between MCPs and MCSEs most likely has more to do with experience and other factors than certification alone. Note: MCDBA salaries unavailable for this chart.

Salary by Microsoft Expertise .NET $84,700 Visual Interdev $79,200 Visual Basic or VBA $77,400 Site Server $77,300 Other developer tools (ActiveX, Visual C++, FoxPro, Access) $76,600 ISA Server $76,300 SQL Server $74,300 SMS $73,000 IIS $69,000 Proxy Server $67,600 Windows 2000 $67,600 Exchange $66,600 Other Internet products (Internet Explorer, FrontPage, IEAK) $65,400 Windows NT $64,200 Windows desktop $62,400

Chart 14. When it comes to compensation by Microsoft expertise, newer, more sophisticated technologies, like .NET, top the charts. It's probable that the professionals working with these technologies also have more experience and are, therefore, better compensated.

Salary by Metropolitan Area MCP MCSE MCP+I MCSE+I MCSD MCT Albuquerque * $55,700 $56,200 * * * Atlanta * $67,700 $66,000 $72,600 $88,000 $85,200 Austin $62,000 $63,300 $61,100 $73,900 * $92,200 Baltimore * $70,700 $60,300 $67,700 * $76,500 Birmingham * $61,100 $56,600 * * * Boise * $55,000 $53,400 * * * Boston $57,700 $73,900 $68,800 $72,800 $80,700 $94,100 Buffalo * $46,400 * * * * Charlotte $51,700 $66,200 $61,300 $70,500 $74,200 $77,800 Chicago $52,900 $67,600 $67,300 $75,700 $84,700 $86,200 Cincinnati * $67,100 $61,000 $71,500 * $91,700 Cleveland $59,800 $62,200 $57,200 $67,500 * $79,200 Columbus $52,500 $64,800 $65,100 $69,400 $71,500 * Dallas/Fort Worth $58,900 $65,000 $68,100 $78,600 $94,700 $83,900 Denver $49,600 $67,000 $68,900 $89,000 $82,500 $96,200 Des Moines * $53,800 $50,500 * * * Detroit $55,000 $63,500 $64,100 $70,200 $77,900 $76,200 Honolulu $58,200 * $61,200 * * * Houston $56,500 $65,900 $64,400 $67,300 $82,800 $73,900 Indianapolis * $60,900 $63,400 $72,900 * $78,900 Kansas City * $62,100 $69,700 $90,000 $* $69,300 Las Vegas * $54,800 * * * * Los Angeles $52,300 $64,400 $62,200 $71,300 $87,900 $76,800 Memphis * $54,800 $58,600 $72,200 * * Miami $51,200 $59,800 $54,800 $82,000 * $89,200 Milwaukee * $57,200 $56,300 $67,100 * * Minneapolis $59,000 $60,900 $61,000 $67,100 $79,200 $76,800 Nashville * $60,900 $56,800 $65,800 $71,000 * New Orleans * $52,000 $56,600 $58,900 * * New York $64,500 $73,000 $71,600 $85,200 $88,200 $98,200 Oklahoma City * $61,500 $52,900 * * * Omaha * $55,700 * * * * Orlando * $56,500 $55,500 $64,300 * $66,900 Philadelphia $48,200 $65,200 $63,900 $73,300 $76,400 $79,700 Phoenix $48,700 $67,900 $58,800 $66,200 $75,500 $79,600 Pittsburgh * $58,900 $54,000 $69,800 * $84,200 Portland, Oregon * $59,200 $54,200 $61,700 $78,000 * Sacramento * $64,900 $72,000 $91,000 * * Salt Lake City * $53,800 $53,000 $66,200 * $70,100 San Antonio $51,000 $57,300 $55,900 * * * San Diego $56,700 $62,300 $62,200 $78,100 * $78,800 San Francisco $62,900 $75,000 $75,100 $85,700$ $95,700 $88,900 San Jose $$81,100 $83,500 $80,800 $84,500 $100,000 $89,200 Seattle $52,100 $64,100 $61,700 $73,500 $72,700 $80,500 St. Louis $53,000 $58,500 $62,100 $75,500 $75,000 $68,200 Tucson * $49,800 * * * * Washington D.C. $57,000 $71,400 $70,900 $80,400 $86,300 $89,000 *Indicates insufficient data

Chart 15. Proximity to a large, metropolitan area can have a positive effect on salary, as companies in large cities tend to compensate for the higher costs of living. These are the top major metropolitan areas represented by respondents. Note: MCDBA salaries are unavailable for this chart.

Salary by State No Microsoft Certification MCP (NT 4.0) MCP+I** MCSE (NT 4.0) ** Alabama * * $54,000 $58,600 Alaska * * * * Arizona * $47,500 $58,800 $63,800 Arkansas * * $48,300 $46,100 California $69,100 $56,500 $67,700 $66,800 Colorado * $50,400 $66,100 $64,600 Connecticut * * $70,100 $72,500 Delaware * * $67,900 $63,200 Florida $74,700 $45,200 $55,200 $56,700 Georgia * $62,200 $64,600 $66,200 Hawaii * * $61,200 * Idaho * * $53,000 $57,900 Illinois * $48,200 $65,500 $64,500 Indiana * * $60,600 $57,200 Iowa * * $52,200 $48,800 Kansas * * $69,800 $57,500 Kentucky * * $55,400 $56,100 Louisiana * * $55,100 $50,500 Maine * * * * Maryland * $54,500 $66,100 $71,900 Massachusetts * $56,100 $68,800 $73,400 Michigan * $49,000 $62,900 $61,000 Minnesota * $47,000 $60,300 $59,200 Mississippi * * * * Missouri $54,200 $48,600 $60,100 $57,600 Montana * * * * Nebraska * * * $54,800 Nevada * * $54,800 $49,000 New Hampshire * * $68,700 $66,000 New Jersey $62,500 $64,800 $69,700 $73,300 New Mexico * * $55,000 $57,500 New York $67,900 $48,200 $65,000 $64,900 North Carolina * $50,500 $60,900 $61,400 North Dakota * * * * Ohio $67,200 $48,400 $59,900 $61,400 Oklahoma * * $47,500 $59,700 Oregon * * $53,800 $57,600 Pennsylvania * $45,700 $59,400 $62,100 Rhode Island * * * $56,500 South Carolina * * $60,600 $56,900 South Dakota * * * * Tennessee * $48,000 $57,900 $61,700 Texas $56,500 $49,400 $63,900 $61,800 Utah * * $52,500 $53,000 Vermont * * * * Virginia $70,000 $52,500 $65,800 $64,300 Washington $68,600 $48,600 $61,100 $63,300 West Virginia * * * * Wisconsin * * $57,400 $56,200 Wyoming * * * * Salary by State MCSE+I** MCSE (Win2K) ** MCSD** MCT** Alabama $65,600 * $71,000 * Alaska * * * * Arizona $64,800 $74,400 $77,300 $76,500 Arkansas $67,000 * $62,500 * California $78,200 $88,800 $82,000 $80,200 Colorado $84,900 $85,500 $74,800 $92,500 Connecticut $84,500 * $94,800 * Delaware * * * * Florida $69,800 $84,200 $70,500 $75,500 Georgia $71,800 $87,500 $72,300 $81,800 Hawaii * * * * Idaho * * * * Illinois $72,900 $85,300 $79,500 $77,700 Indiana $75,400 $67,500 $75,200 $76,300 Iowa $63,400 * * * Kansas $79,600 * * $65,200 Kentucky * $58,800 $76,100 $67,500 Louisiana $61,200 * * $55,800 Maine * * * * Maryland $73,100 $85,900 $86,400 $85,500 Massachusetts $73,800 $80,700 $86,500 $103,600 Michigan $69,300 $77,500 $80,800 $76,300 Minnesota $66,000 $77,500 $66,100 * Mississippi * * * * Missouri $74,200 $68,300 $73,200 $65,700 Montana * * * * Nebraska * $67,000 * * Nevada * * * * New Hampshire * * * * New Jersey $83,400 $93,600 $88,100 $97,600 New Mexico * * * * New York $76,600 $81,300 $87,800 $90,500 North Carolina $67,500 $75,400 $76,000 $73,500 North Dakota * * * * Ohio $67,800 $81,200 $73,700 $83,700 Oklahoma * * $62,500 * Oregon $60,700 * $78,000 * Pennsylvania $69,800 $76,000 $78,100 $77,100 Rhode Island * * * * South Carolina $71,400 * * $68,000 South Dakota * * * * Tennessee $63,600 $70,700 $69,200 $70,600 Texas $73,800 $83,400 $76,800 $79,300 Utah $66,200 * $55,200 $70,100 Vermont * * * * Virginia $80,800 $79,200 $77,000 $84,200 Washington $72,100 $73,500 $68,900 $79,300 West Virginia * * * * Wisconsin $64,300 $67,800 $70,000 * Wyoming * * * * *Indicates insufficient data **These individuals may also hold other premium certifications, such as MCSE, MCSE+I, MCSD, MCDBA or MCT.

Chart 16. Location is one of the largest factors affecting compensation. We asked respondents to report their base 2001 income before taxes. Excluded are all forms of non-direct compensation and the incomes of the self-employed, as well as salaries less than $27,500 and more than $150,000. Note: Two columns have been excluded from this chart, MCP (Win2K) and MCSE (Win2K). All states had insufficient data to show results for the MCP (Win2K). Only two states had enough respondents for the MCSE (Win2K): California ($68,300), and Texas ($66,000).

It's Time to Get to Work
Good jobs and good salaries are out there and—although the future appears uncertain—the IT industry remains strong If your salary doesn't match what we've published, keep in mind that there are a variety of factors that influence compensation. As this year's results have shown, the most important of these is experience. The more experience you have, the more highly skilled you're likely to be and the more valued by employers. Unfortunately, this doesn't allow for a quick fix; you can't jump from being a neophyte to being a veteran.

And, of course, there's location. If you're in or near a metropolitan area where costs of living are higher, chances are you'll be better compensated than if you've chosen to live in a more rural setting. Finally, the level of responsibility is a factor. Those who have taken leadership roles within their organizations (managers and team leads, for example) are more likely to garner the higher salaries.

You also can't forget about certifications and job skills, which are tightly connected. MCSEs tend to bring in higher salaries than MCPs—not only because of the power behind the higher certifications, but because MCSEs tend to have a greater number of years in the business and more hands-on experience.

Finally, this year's survey—while it may have raised as many questions as it has answered—shows that professionals working with Win2K are making (and, we suspect, will continue to make) more than those who have yet to immerse themselves in the newer OS.

So there's your direction: Update your certification, get as much experience in the field as you can, and take a leadership role whenever possible. The economic rewards are within reach.