Information and Communications Network Maintenance Workers Digital occupation

How to become a Telecoms Network Technician

Official Chinese title (2022 occupational classification): 信息通信网络机务员

Also called: Microwave Communications Technician, Satellite Communications Technician, Data Communications Technician, Mobile Communications Technician, Shortwave Communications Technician, Transmission Technician, Switching Technician, Power Grid Communications Technician, Data Centre Operations Technician

Installs, tests, inspects and repairs telecoms network equipment, fixes faults and keeps emergency communications running.

Main tasks

Installing, testing and configuring all kinds of network equipment, such as transmission, access, data, mobile and satellite equipment
Inspecting, maintaining and testing network equipment
Analysing, tracing and fixing network equipment faults
Handling network installation and activation, fault repair and quality assurance
Analysing network performance and supporting network optimisation
Protecting equipment and assessing risks, and checking services, equipment and networks for hidden problems
Coordinating telecoms construction work and cutovers
Setting up emergency communications equipment, activating, maintaining and repairing it and fixing faults
Testing new systems and equipment before they join the network

Ways in

Vocational majors: Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Communications Systems Operation and Management (510306). Vocational major 510306 Communications Systems Operation and Management (通信系统运行管理), 3 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向). Example certificates: Network System Construction and Maintenance; Network Equipment Installation and Maintenance; Cloud Data Centre Construction and Maintenance.; Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Computer Network Technology (510202). Vocational major 510202 Computer Network Technology (计算机网络技术), 3 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向). Example certificates: Computer Technology and Software Professional Qualification; Network System Construction and Maintenance; Web Front End Development; Cloud Computing Platform Operation and Development; Network Security Operations and Maintenance; WPS Office Applications.; Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Satellite Communication and Navigation Technology (510304). Vocational major 510304 Satellite Communication and Navigation Technology (卫星通信与导航技术), 3 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向). Example certificates: Telecommunications Professional Qualification; Surveying and Geographic Information Data Acquisition and Processing; Intelligent Surveying and Geographic Information Applications.; Vocational bachelor (职业本科) major: Modern Communications Engineering (310301). Vocational major 310301 Modern Communications Engineering (现代通信工程), 4 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向). Example certificates: Telecommunications Professional Qualification; 5G Base Station Construction and Maintenance; 5G Mobile Network Operation and Maintenance; Network System Construction and Maintenance.

Pay · AI and this job

Median pay in China: CN¥96,000 a year (2025).
Middle half: CN¥64,300 to CN¥153,500. One in ten earn less than CN¥45,600 and one in ten more than CN¥236,700.
This is the figure for the mid group Information Transmission, Software and IT Services Workers, not for this job alone.
National figure: wage prices of enterprise employees from the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS) enterprise pay survey. The public sector and the self-employed are not covered.
Guangzhou only: median CN¥111,008 a year (2025), middle half CN¥72,000 to CN¥182,640.
Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.

Who does this work

The census group Information Transmission, Software and IT Services Workers holds 0.84% of everyone employed in China; 30% of its workers are women (2020 Census).
69.2% are under 35, 29.3% are 35 to 54 and 1.5% are 55 or older. The middle age band is 30 to 34.
Census figures for the whole mid group (2020 long-form sample), not for this job alone.

Questions people ask

How do I become a Telecoms Network Technician?

Ways in include: Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Communications Systems Operation and Management (510306); Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Computer Network Technology (510202).

How much does a Telecoms Network Technician earn in China?

Across China, the median pay of enterprise employees is CN¥96,000 a year (Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS), 2025). The public sector and the self-employed are not covered. It is the figure for the mid group Information Transmission, Software and IT Services Workers. In Guangzhou alone it is CN¥111,008 a year (2025).

Will AI change the work of a Telecoms Network Technician?

Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.

Sources

Guangzhou Human Resources and Social Security Bureau: Guangzhou 2025 labour market wage prices (P10 to P90 annual CNY by occupation) (2025 (enterprise pay survey)), retrieved 4 October 2026
National Bureau of Statistics of China: China Population Census Yearbook 2020, long-form tables 4-6 and 4-7 (employed by occupation mid group, sex, age) (2020 Census long form (10% sample)), retrieved 4 October 2026
Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS): 2025 enterprise pay survey information: wage prices of enterprise employees by occupation mid group, and digital occupations (P10 to P90 annual CNY) (2025 (published 2026-07-08)), retrieved 5 October 2026
International Labour Organization, Generative AI and Jobs: A Refined Global Index of Occupational Exposure (ILO Working Paper 140, Gmyrek et al.) (ILO Working Paper 140, May 2025, Annex Table A1), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 4 October 2026
Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, State Administration for Market Regulation, National Bureau of Statistics: Occupational Classification of the People's Republic of China, 2022 edition (public consultation draft) (2022 public consultation draft (1,636 occupations; final edition 1,639)), retrieved 4 October 2026

Sources: Occupational Classification of the People's Republic of China (2022 edition, public consultation draft), Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, State Administration for Market Regulation and National Bureau of Statistics; Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, 2025 enterprise pay survey information; Guangzhou Human Resources and Social Security Bureau, 2025 labour market wage prices; National Bureau of Statistics of China (www.stats.gov.cn), 2020 Population Census yearbook; Ministry of Education, vocational education major profiles (2022 revision) and undergraduate major catalogue (2025); Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, national vocational qualifications catalogue (2021); O*NET interest scores (CC BY 4.0); ILO global generative AI exposure index (CC BY 4.0). Figures processed by Peernovo. English text, translations and the matching of occupations to ISCO-08, majors, degree fields and qualifications by Peernovo.

Descriptions and tasks are Peernovo's own words, written from the facts in the Occupational Classification of the People's Republic of China (2022 edition). Job titles and work types are the classification's own.

Updated 5 October 2026