Career profile for Security Technician

What does a Security Technician do?

Security Technicians install, program, maintain, and repair security and fire alarm wiring and equipment.

In addition, Security Technicians ensure that work is in accordance with relevant codes.

What kind of tasks does a Security Technician perform regularly?

Security Technicians are often responsible for overseeing or executing some or all of the following tasks:

Install, maintain, or repair security systems, alarm devices, or related equipment, following blueprints of electrical layouts and building plans.
Mount and fasten control panels, door and window contacts, sensors, or video cameras, and attach electrical and telephone wiring to connect components.
Demonstrate systems for customers and explain details, such as the causes and consequences of false alarms.
Test and repair circuits and sensors, following wiring and system specifications.
Feed cables through access holes, roof spaces, or cavity walls to reach fixture outlets, positioning and terminating cables, wires, or strapping.
Examine systems to locate problems, such as loose connections or broken insulation.
Test backup batteries, keypad programming, sirens, or other security features to ensure proper functioning or to diagnose malfunctions.
Drill holes for wiring in wall studs, joists, ceilings, or floors.
Inspect installation sites and study work orders, building plans, and installation manuals to determine materials requirements and installation procedures.
Mount raceways and conduits and fasten wires to wood framing, using staplers.
Consult with clients to assess risks and to determine security requirements.
Adjust sensitivity of units, based on room structures and manufacturers' recommendations, using programming keypads.
Keep informed of new products and developments.
Order replacement parts.

The above responsibilities are specific to Security Technicians. More generally, Security Technicians are involved in several broader types of activities:

Activities	Importance	Details
Repairing and Maintaining Electronic Equipment		Servicing, repairing, calibrating, regulating, fine-tuning, or testing machines, devices, and equipment that operate primarily on the basis of electrical or electronic (not mechanical) principles.
Communicating with People Outside the Organization		Communicating with people outside the organization, representing the organization to customers, the public, government, and other external sources. This information can be exchanged in person, in writing, or by telephone or e-mail.
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge		Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.
Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events		Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials		Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects.

Repairing and Maintaining Electronic Equipment

Servicing, repairing, calibrating, regulating, fine-tuning, or testing machines, devices, and equipment that operate primarily on the basis of electrical or electronic (not mechanical) principles.

Communicating with People Outside the Organization

Communicating with people outside the organization, representing the organization to customers, the public, government, and other external sources. This information can be exchanged in person, in writing, or by telephone or e-mail.

Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge

Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.

Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events

Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.

Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials

Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects.

What is a Security Technician salary?

The median salary for a Security Technician is $50,940, and the average salary is $52,150. Both the median and average roughly describe the middle of the Security Technician salary range, but the average is more easily affected by extremely high or low salaries.

Many Security Technicians earn significantly more or less than the average, due to several factors. About 10% of Security Technicians earn less than $32,280 per year, 25% earn less than $39,240, 75% earn less than $63,050, and 90% earn less than $76,690.

Between the years of 2020 and 2030, the number of Security Technicians is expected to change by 16.5%, and there should be roughly 9,200 open positions for Security Technicians every year.

Median annual salary: $50,940
Typical salary range: $32,280 - $76,690
Projected growth (2020 - 2030): 16.5%

What personality traits are common among Security Technicians?

Interests

Career interests describe a person's preferences for different types of working environments and activities. When a person's interest match the demands of an occupation, people are usually more engaged and satisfied in that role.

Compared to most occupations, those who work as a Security Technician are usually higher in their Realistic interests.

Security Technicians typically have very strong Realistic interests. Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.

Values

People differ in their values, or what is most important to them for building job satisfaction and fulfillment.

Compared to most people, those working as a Security Technician tend to value Support, Relationships, and Independence.

Most importantly, Security Technicians strongly value Support. Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees.

Second, Security Technicians moderately value Relationships. Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to provide service to others and work with co-workers in a friendly non-competitive environment.

Lastly, Security Technicians moderately value Independence. Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to work on their own and make decisions.

Psychological Demands

Each occupation brings its own set of psychological demands, which describe the characteristics necessary to perform the job well.

In order to perform their job successfully, people who work as Security Technicians must consistently demonstrate qualities such as dependability, integrity, and attention to detail.

Below, you'll find a list of qualities typically required of Security Technicians, ranked by importance:

Demands	Importance	Details
Dependability		Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
Integrity		Job requires being honest and ethical.
Attention to Detail		Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
Independence		Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done.
Self-Control		Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.

Dependability

Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.

Integrity

Job requires being honest and ethical.

Attention to Detail

Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.

Independence

Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done.

Self-Control

Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.

What education and training do Security Technicians need?

Security Technicians often have training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.

Security Technicians usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with this occupation.

Educational degrees among Security Technicians

7.2% did not complete high school or secondary school
34.1% completed high school or secondary school
35.6% completed some college coursework
13.0% earned a Associate's degree
9.2% earned a Bachelor's degree
0.7% earned a Master's degree
0.2% earned a doctorate or professional degree

Knowledge and expertise required by Security Technicians

Security Technicians may benefit from understanding of specialized subject areas, such as public safety and security, computers and electronics, or customer and personal service knowledge.

The list below shows several areas in which most Security Technicians might want to build proficiency, ranked by importance.

Knowledge areas	Importance	Details
Public Safety and Security		Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
Computers and Electronics		Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
Customer and Personal Service		Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Telecommunications		Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
Building and Construction		Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.

Public Safety and Security

Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.

Computers and Electronics

Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

Customer and Personal Service

Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

Telecommunications

Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.

Building and Construction

Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.

Important Abilities needed by Security Technicians

Security Technicians must develop a particular set of abilities to perform their job well. Abilities are individual capacities that influence a person's information processing, sensory perception, motor coordination, and physical strength or endurance. Individuals may naturally have certain abilities without explicit training, but most abilities can be sharpened somewhat through practice.

For example, Security Technicians need abilities such as oral comprehension, problem sensitivity, and oral expression in order to perform their job at a high level. The list below shows several important abilities for Security Technicians, ranked by their relative importance.

Abilities	Importance	Details
Oral Comprehension		The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
Problem Sensitivity		The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.
Oral Expression		The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
Near Vision		The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
Deductive Reasoning		The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.

Oral Comprehension

The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.

Problem Sensitivity

The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.

Oral Expression

The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.

Near Vision

The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).

Deductive Reasoning

The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.

Critical Skills needed by Security Technicians

Skills are developed capacities that enable people to function effectively in real-world settings. Unlike abilities, skills are typically easier to build through practice and experience. Skills influence effectiveness in areas such as learning, working with others, design, troubleshooting, and more.

Security Technicians frequently use skills like speaking, critical thinking, and installation to perform their job effectively. The list below shows several critical skills for Security Technicians, ranked by their relative importance.

Skills	Importance	Details
Speaking		Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Critical Thinking		Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
Installation		Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or programs to meet specifications.
Active Listening		Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Reading Comprehension		Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.

Speaking

Talking to others to convey information effectively.

Critical Thinking

Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.

Installation

Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or programs to meet specifications.

Active Listening

Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

Reading Comprehension

Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.

What is the source of this information?

The information provided on this page is adapted from data and descriptions published by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration under the CC BY 4.0 license. TraitLab has modified some information for ease of use and reading, and the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment, and Training Administration has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.

If you have any questions or suggestions about this information, please send a message.

Career profile Security Technician

Security Technician

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