What areas outside of basic networking administrating job functions, do you have experience with?

"Although my core function within the IT organization is as a network administrator, I'm capable of doing many other tasks. These include hardware troubleshooting, software patches and updates, asset disposal, and compliance audits. While some of these are network-related, I'm also able to extend my skills to other areas and assist other groups within the Ide organization to accomplish their work."

Another characteristic of working as a network administrator is the ability to do multiple jobs that may not be directly related to your profession. IT organizations typically have a great many responsibilities and a limited number of resources. This requires the team members to be versatile and to be able to cover each other's jobs when necessary. It would be best if you discussed your ability and willingness to do this and any training you have, which will help you do jobs outside of the one you were hired for.

What is a transparent firewall?

"A transparent firewall, also known as a stealth firewall, is a layer two firewall. It provides additional protection to the network because it is connected to both internal and external ports on the network. Transparent firewalls prevent malicious activity from authorized users."

You've probably already recognized this as another technical question. You should also start to recognize that firewalls and network protection are very important topics to the interviewer. Once you understand this, you should feel comfortable expanding your answers to demonstrate your knowledge of firewalls and network protection.

What is the difference between IPS and a firewall?

"An IPS is an intrusion prevention system. This is a passive device that constantly monitors your network and identifies possible intrusions, creating a log of them. Firewalls are active devices or software applications that detect intrusions and take actions to prevent them. These two technologies can be used in tandem to provide a higher level of security for your network."

You probably recognize a trend here. The interviewer is asking technical questions comparing different types of network devices & technologies to each other. The purpose of questions like these is to test your knowledge about networking technologies. They are likely asking about technologies that are currently employed on their network. Continue to answer these technical questions as you have throughout the interview.

What is the difference between a network gateway and a firewall?

"As previously discussed, a firewall is either hardware software that controls which data packets are allowed to enter the network as well as what users are permitted on the network. A gateway, on the other hand, connects two disparate networks and allows them to communicate with each other. Gateways and firewalls can be configured to work with each other. Can I ask if your organization is experiencing issues with connecting networks or preventing unauthorized users access to your network?"

This is a follow-up to the previous question. As mentioned earlier, you can anticipate follow-up questions any time you provide the interviewer with an answer. Follow-up questions indicate that the interviewer has a specific interest in the topic you are discussing or wants to get more details from you. This is a signal that the topic is important, and you should discuss it in more depth when answering the interviewer's questions. You may even want to ask them questions about the topic to determine if they are experiencing any issues with it.

Can you describe what a firewall is, and how it is used to secure a network?

"Firewalls are devices that sit outside the network and prevent unauthorized users or traffic from entering the network. Firewalls can be customized to either allow most traffic, which improves performance or restrict most traffic, at the expense of performance. Networks can have multiple firewalls on different segments or set up in a hierarchical configuration."

This is a technical question. You will recall that technical questions ask you to define a topic or concept and then describe how it is used and the job for which you are interviewing. Technical questions should be answered directly and briefly, allowing the interviewer the opportunity to ask follow-up questions.

What is one of your weaknesses, how does it impact your work, and what are you doing to improve it?

"One of my greatest work-related weaknesses is trying to do everything myself. This often slows down the process and results in projects taking longer than they should. I recognize this and am working on my delegation skills. This was difficult for me at first, but I'm gaining confidence in the people I work with, and I'm becoming more comfortable handing off tasks I used to do myself."

Even more difficult than talking about our strengths during an interview is discussing our weaknesses. Nobody likes to admit they have a weakness. However, we all do. Being self-aware and able to identify a weakness allows you to address and correct it. Two approaches to discussing weaknesses are talking about those not related to the work you do or discussing a weakness that can be resolved and which you are working on. Since this question specifically asks about how it impacts your work, you'll need to use the second option.

What is your greatest technical strength and how do you use it while managing an organization's network infrastructure?

"One of my greatest strengths is attention to detail. I am very patient and will take the time to examine all the details of the task I am working on. This helps me identify anomalies or locate the source of an issue I am trying to fix. I often see things that other people miss, and this has helped to save our organization time and money."

When asked about your strengths, you should reply with the items related to the job you are interviewing for. When looking for a job or participating in an interview, it is not the time to be humble. This is the one opportunity you'll have to describe your qualifications to the hiring manager. You should take advantage of it. However, do not embellish or overstate your strengths. If you are hired, the manager will expect you to perform the job based on the information you provided. If you elaborate, your performance may fall short of expectations.

What have you done in the past year to become a better Network Administrator?

"Networking technologies are constantly evolving and changing. Staying current with these is challenging but can be accomplished by having a consistent development plan and executing it. A part of the plan is also improving my skills to be prepared when the opportunity to advance occurs. I do this by reading industry journals, subscribing to online blogs, meeting with vendors and suppliers to learn about their newest technology, and getting together with my peers to discuss new developments that they are aware of. I also take formal classes and obtain all of the Cisco certifications I can."

This question addresses your professional development plan and what you do to stay current in the field and improve your capabilities. Every professional should have a development plan and should be able to easily describe it to the interviewer. You can anticipate being asked some form of this question and every interview you attend.

What do you think sets our company apart from our competitors?

"I believe there are several qualities which make your organization unique in this industry and gives you a competitive advantage. The first of these is your technology vision and how you have adopted cutting edge technologies to develop innovative products the market needs. Additionally, you're known for employing people who are at the top of their field, collaborate well with each other, and have a history of producing results faster and with fewer resources than your competitors. This is exactly the type of environment that I excel in and want to become a part of."

An interviewer will ask this question for two reasons. The first is that they want to confirm that you've done some research about the organization and can discuss what makes it unique in its industry. The second is to gain an understanding of why you want to work for them. Keep in mind that you've already answered a question similar to this earlier in the interview. Make sure you keep your answers consistent throughout the interview.

What do you know about the network topology our company uses?

"While preparing for this interview, I did a great deal of research on your organization and the network topology you use. As I understand it, you have both a WAN and a LAN infrastructure and WiFi throughout the campus. Cisco manufactures the majority of your equipment, but you also use a few pieces of hardware from other suppliers. Your network monitoring software is the SolarWinds suite, which I have a great deal of experience with. As best I can tell, you have had very few network outages or security threats. Is this accurate?"

The interviewer has already asked you what you know about their company. Now they are asking you what you know about their network infrastructure. Many job candidates will not have done their homework and will need to ask the interviewer some questions to qualify this. However, as a well-qualified candidate, you should have done your research and already have a good understanding of their network topology. You can find this information on their website, in public documents they have released, from other job search sites such as Glassdoor, and by conducting informational interviews with some of their employees. You can also ask qualifying questions of the interviewer once you begin to describe the topology.

Why are you the best candidate for us?

"There are several reasons I believe I am the best candidate for this role. First, I have all the skills and experience needed to perform the job. Second, I have worked for several organizations that have IT infrastructures similar to yours. I'm familiar with the network issues you're likely to encounter and how to resolve them. Finally, I understand this industry and know what the organization needs to do to accomplish its business objectives. Everything I do within the network administration role will contribute to this goal."

When organizations post a job description, they are likely to receive hundreds of applications. Even after narrowing down the list of viable candidates, they still have several people from which to choose. You need to respond to this question with a value statement that describes the contributions you can make to the organization's business objectives. An easy way to prepare for this question is to think about how you can help the organization make money, save money, or save time. These are the three main reasons companies hire their workers.

Tell us about a time when you influenced the outcome of a project by taking a leadership role.

"At my previous company, we were presented with a network security issue which nobody seemed to know how to resolve. We had to address this as quickly as possible to prevent any damage to the organization's information. I assumed a team leadership role, calling everyone together and brainstorming the issue. We came up with several ideas about how to fix the problem, which I assigned to each member of the team. Within a few hours, we identified the issue and came up with a resolution. We implemented it, and the network was secured."

Organizations love to hire leaders. Even if the role for which you are interviewing is not a leadership position, the hiring manager will want to know about your leadership experience and your ability to assume a leadership role when necessary. This question was asked in the form of a behavioral question. Behavioral questions present you with situations and ask how you would respond or have responded. The best way to answer a behavioral question is by using the STAR framework. First, state the Situation. Next, briefly describe the Task you needed to accomplish. Discuss the Actions you took, followed by the Results you attained.

Some people work best as part of a group - others prefer the role of an individual contributor. How would you describe yourself?

"I function well while working both as an individual contributor and as a member of a highly functional team. There are benefits to both of these work styles. If the problem is simple, requires only my expertise, and can be done relatively quickly, working alone is the best method. However, for complex situations, which require input from many different perspectives and resources provided by individuals with different talents, teaming works best. Given a choice, I would rather work in a team. Not only is this more enjoyable, but it also provides me the opportunity to learn from others."

Every profession requires you to work both individually and as a member of a team. Different situations require different ways of working. You probably have a preference for one or the other of these. When you answer this question, begin by recognizing that you need to be able to do both of these, and then state your preference, providing the interviewer with a rationale for your choice.

What have you done in past situations to contribute to a teamwork environment?

"IT organizations are made up of disparate groups with common goals. We each have our own specialties within the IT infrastructure. This enables us to maximize our efficiency and effectiveness. It also requires us to work together in a team environment. We need to make sure our actions are coordinated so that each contributes to a common goal without interfering with the others. I've become very effective at doing this and have done it many times in my previous positions."

You may feel that this question is similar to one you have already answered. In fact, this is the case. Interviewers will ask you multiple questions about similar topics throughout the interview. This helps them correlate your answers and ensure that you are responding consistently throughout the interview. It may also be an attempt to discuss the topic in more detail. The best way to respond to this is, in the same manner, you responded to all their questions about this topic.

Tell me about a difficult challenge you faced as a network admin.

"One of the biggest challenges I have encountered in my career as a network administrator is overcoming vendor lock-in. Many organizations similar to yours will elect to implement technology from a single vendor whose products and solutions are leading edge when they choose to work with them. However, this industry evolves quickly, and other solutions come to the market regularly. It is often difficult to transition between the older solutions, which are vendor proprietary and newer ones, which have better features. I've overcome this by choosing to work with open source systems and ensuring that the vendors are compatible with other products before selecting them."

This is a general question which the interviewer may ask early in the interview to begin the conversation, learn more about your background, and collect some information they can use for subsequent questions. When discussing challenges, your answer should align with the challenges the organization with which you are interviewing may be facing. You can learn about these by researching the organization, its network infrastructure, and any challenges it talks about. Resources for the research include its website, public financial documents, or discussions in user forums. Once you discover these, you can answer this question by describing a similar challenge and the ways resolved them.

What experiences do you have working with other IT professionals?

"When working as a network administrator, I need to be able to collaborate with other groups within the IT organization. These include hardware, software, security, and several others. I've learned that the best way to accomplish this is to develop relationships with members of these other groups. This helps us to better work together when an issue arises that needs input from all of us."

The ability to collaborate and work with other professionals in your industry as a key talent every professional need to have. This is especially important in the IT industry. There are many moving parts in IT infrastructures, many of which are controlled by other organizations or groups within the company. When responding to this question, you should discuss your ability to collaborate and your communication skills, which help you to do this effectively.

How does subnetting add security to a network?

"Subnetting is the process of dividing the network into smaller segments. This adds additional security to the network by enabling you to better control the flow of traffic. It also enhances your ability to identify threats, points of entry, and to address the issues quicker and more directly."

This is a technical question. Interviewers ask technical questions to determine how well you understand the concepts, technologies, and terms involved in your work. The best way to respond to a technical question is directly and briefly defining the concept and then describing how it is used in your profession. Anticipate that the interviewer will ask a follow-up question to dig deeper into the topic or explore it in more detail.

What monitoring tools are you most familiar with?

"I have direct experience working with or am at least familiar with the most popular network monitoring tools on the market. These include SolarWinds, which monitors SNMP devices, Datadog, which is a cloud-based SaaS service, ManageEngine's OpManager, which monitors the performance of network devices including servers, routers, and switches in real-time, and Paessler PRTG, which is a free network monitoring suite and has the dashboard feature I mentioned earlier."

This is a follow-up to a previous question. Follow-up questions can occur any time during the interview and do not necessarily have to immediately follow the question to which they are referring. Interviewers use this technique to determine that you are answering questions consistently throughout the interview. You should be prepared for follow-up questions at any time.

What types of networks are you experienced working with?

"I have direct experience working with networks of virtually every type. These include WANs, LANs, and wireless networks. I've also worked with public, private, and shared networks. I have good relationships with most of the leading network hardware and software vendors and can call on them if I have questions or encounter a situation I'm not familiar with. I am very confident I can deal with any network issue which may come up."

This is another operational question. The interviewer is interested in discovering if you have direct experience working with the types of networks they employ within their organization. You should know which networks these are based on the research you did about the organization and as technologies before coming to the interview. If you don't have experience in all of the network types, emphasize the ones you are skilled in, and then discuss how you will be able to learn about the other ones quickly if hired.

"I am more comfortable working with WAN, LAN and any wireless network."

It is critical our network remain online all the time; how will you test and troubleshoot the network to make sure this happens?

"Throughout my career, I have strived to provide 'five-nines' uptime reliability. I accomplish this by continually monitoring the network using utilities and tools available for this purpose. One helpful technique is aggregating these tools into a single dashboard, which provides all the information I need about the network's status and potential issues. If a problem does occur, there are several different techniques I can use to identify the error and fix it. An example of this is tracerouting, which identifies network bottlenecks."

This is an operational question. Interviewers will ask questions like this one to gain an understanding of how you go about doing your job. Operational questions are best answered directly and briefly. You should also anticipate follow-up questions once you provided the interviewer with your answer.

"I will constantly use the command prompt and ping other hostnames in the LAN and outside the LAN to ensure the DNS server is up and running. If I cannot ping the hostnames, I will open the IP configuration and first check the IP addresses."

Why did you choose a career in network administration?

"As a child, I was always interested in technology. I was fascinated by how different devices could communicate with each other and share information. My interest continued throughout my high school and my college years. I knew very early that I wanted to work in this industry, but I was unsure of exactly which role. When I was exposed to network technology, I knew I had discovered the area in which I wanted to work. I focused on networking and took classes related to this technology. I also volunteered while still in school to keep our church's network up and running. This interest, education, and experience all led me to become a network administrator."

And an interviewer will typically ask this general-purpose question early in the interview to start the conversation, learn more about your background, and collect some information they can use for future questions. This provides you the opportunity to not only discuss your motivations for becoming a network administrator but also to guide the conversation towards an area you are comfortable discussing.

"By instinct, I am a problem solver; that is why I choose to major in mathematics. As a network administrator, your main job is to fix network related issues, I believe the main purpose of this job align with my natural-born skill, and I believe that will make me enjoy a career as a network administrator."

During downtime, how do you keep busy as a network admin?

"While it is rare, I do occasionally experience downtime when the network is running well, and there is no need to actively monitor or fix anything. During these times, I keep myself busy by updating my knowledge about network technologies, disposing of unused equipment safely and securely, networking with other members of the organization whose assistance I may need in the future, and participating in some fun team building events with my coworkers. All of these activities directly contribute to my ability to manage a high-performing and secure network infrastructure."

Your first inclination when asked this question may be to respond that you don't have any downtime. However, every profession has some time when there are no immediate demands on the person's time and attention. You should prepare for this question by having 2 to 3 different activities you can perform if you're not immediately needed to monitor or fix issues related to the network.

"I watched videos on YouTube channels; I work on stuff I am not fully comfortable dealing with, I tried to improve myself during downtime."

How do you keep up with new network technologies?

"I recognize the need to stay current with evolving technologies, and have made this a part of my job during my entire career. I accomplish this by reading several different industry journals, following leading experts on the internet, meeting regularly with vendors and product developers, and networking with my peers to discuss the techniques they are using and new products they have discovered."

Network Technologies evolve at a very rapid pace. New products, techniques, and technologies are being developed continuously. Keeping up with these developments and staying current with new technologies is a challenging task. However, failing to do so will put you and the organization behind the curve and may result in lower performance or security vulnerabilities with the network. Since staying current with technology is an important part of your job, you should have a plan for doing so and be able to describe it to the interviewer. Your answer may look something like this: "I recognize the need to stay current with evolving technologies, and have made this a part of my job during my entire career. I accomplish this by reading several different industry journals, following leading experts on the internet, meeting regularly with vendors and product developers, and networking with my peers to discuss the techniques they are using and new products they have discovered."

"I attend seminars frequently, I am part of the network professional association and we constantly shared updated information on new technologies and betters ways to fix known issues in the field"

Why do you want to work for us?

"There are several reasons I want to work for your organization. The first are some of the points I made earlier. Your industry leadership, use of cutting edge technologies, and the quality of the people who work here are very compelling. Another reason is I feel I can learn a lot from the other members of your networking team and advance my career within the organization. While I'm already qualified for the position we're discussing, my goal is to contribute to the organization's success, so I am recognized for my achievements and given the opportunity to work in more advanced and challenging positions."

This is a follow-up to a previous question. During an interview, the hiring manager will ask similar questions. The purpose of this is the calibrate your answers and make sure that you are consistent throughout the interview. Answering truthfully, keeping your answers brief and to the point, and aligning your answers with the needs of the organization will help you be consistent during the interview.

"Your company gives me the opportunity to grow, and I would like to be part of your family and contribute to your mission."

Have you ever experienced a network crash? How did your team restore the network?

"Unfortunately, in one of my previous positions, we did experience a crash of the network. This was due to a denial of service attack from an outside hacker. The first thing we did was to immediately shut down the entire network. We then discovered the port which the hacker was using to infiltrate the network and closed it. We reset the DNS server and tested it to verify that it was working properly. We then brought the network up, one segment at a time. We were satisfied that we had solved the problem and that the vulnerability had been fixed. The entire process took less than 3 hours. This was not optimal, but it was better than being down for days or having our data compromised."

There are two ways you can answer this type of question. One is to acknowledge that you have experienced a network crash and discuss how you recovered from it. The second is to state that you never experienced a network crash, but then describe what you would do if one occurred. This is an operational question, and the interviewer is seeking to understand how you go about doing your job. Describing the correct way to respond to a network crash, either historically or in the future, will accomplish this.

"Yes, my team and I experienced a network crash before. We restored the network by ensuring all the LAN systems and WAN can still communicate with each other. When they couldn't, we troubleshoot by checking the DNS IP addresses, the system IP address and the Default getaway IP address to make sure they were still in the same workgroup."

What experience do you have implementing security features in a network?

"When designing a network infrastructure, one of the key elements I focus on is security. If the network is not secure, performance is irrelevant because bad actors can penetrate the network, compromise information, and insert malware, which causes additional damage to the organization. I have a great deal of experience in implementing network security features. This includes creating firewalls, managing user authentication, tracing packets within the network to assure that they are legitimate, and managing both vulnerabilities in threats as they emerge."

Network Security is second only to the performance of the network. Some people may even argue that it is the primary element you need a focus on. As a network administrator, you should be able to discuss your skills and experience implementing the security features of a network. You may want to talk about specific technologies and provide the interviewer with examples of how you have successfully done this in your previous positions.

What do you know about our organization?

"When looking for my next position, I researched many organizations in this area. This company stood out due to your success in the market segment, the level of technology you use, other members of your network management team, and online statements made by your current and former employees about the work environment. When taken together, these create a compelling reason to want to work for your organization."

By the time you are invited to an interview, the hiring manager is convinced that you have the skills and experience necessary to do the job. The purpose of the interview is to verify this, learn more about your personality, and understand why you want to work for the company. A good network administrator can usually write their own ticket and work with just about any organization. You should be able to make a compelling statement as to why you chose the interview with this organization and the reasons you would like to work with them.

Have you ever had a problem at your last job that you couldn't solve yourself? How did you go about solving it?

"While working for my previous company, we encountered a network performance issue. As hard as we worked, we could not identify the sources of slow performance. I decided to consult with our hardware team to find out if there was something in the IT infrastructure that was slowing things down. We created a plan of action, and executed it, then met to discuss the results. It turned out that one of our servers did not have enough memory and had become a bottleneck. We installed more RAM and resolved the issue, working together as a team."

The purpose of this question is to learn more about your collaboration skills. No matter how talented you are, at some point, you are going to need the help of other people. Being able to collaborate with others requires tolerance, strong communication skills, and establishing relationships with people before you need their assistance. When answering this question, you should include one or all of these points. It is also helpful if you provide examples of how you did this and the results you achieved.

Network Administrator Interview Questions

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1. What areas outside of basic networking administrating job functions, do you have experience with?
2. What is a transparent firewall?
3. What is the difference between IPS and a firewall?
4. What is the difference between a network gateway and a firewall?
5. Can you describe what a firewall is, and how it is used to secure a network?
6. What is one of your weaknesses, how does it impact your work, and what are you doing to improve it?
7. What is your greatest technical strength and how do you use it while managing an organization's network infrastructure?
8. What have you done in the past year to become a better Network Administrator?
9. What do you think sets our company apart from our competitors?
10. What do you know about the network topology our company uses?
11. Why are you the best candidate for us?
12. Tell us about a time when you influenced the outcome of a project by taking a leadership role.
13. Some people work best as part of a group - others prefer the role of an individual contributor. How would you describe yourself?
14. What have you done in past situations to contribute to a teamwork environment?
15. Tell me about a difficult challenge you faced as a network admin.
16. What experiences do you have working with other IT professionals?
17. How does subnetting add security to a network?
18. What monitoring tools are you most familiar with?
19. What types of networks are you experienced working with?
20. It is critical our network remain online all the time; how will you test and troubleshoot the network to make sure this happens?
21. Why did you choose a career in network administration?
22. During downtime, how do you keep busy as a network admin?
23. How do you keep up with new network technologies?
24. Why do you want to work for us?
25. Have you ever experienced a network crash? How did your team restore the network?
26. What experience do you have implementing security features in a network?
27. What do you know about our organization?
28. Have you ever had a problem at your last job that you couldn't solve yourself? How did you go about solving it?

Network Administrator Interview Questions

1. What areas outside of basic networking administrating job functions, do you have experience with?

2. What is a transparent firewall?

3. What is the difference between IPS and a firewall?

4. What is the difference between a network gateway and a firewall?

5. Can you describe what a firewall is, and how it is used to secure a network?

6. What is one of your weaknesses, how does it impact your work, and what are you doing to improve it?

7. What is your greatest technical strength and how do you use it while managing an organization's network infrastructure?

8. What have you done in the past year to become a better Network Administrator?

9. What do you think sets our company apart from our competitors?

10. What do you know about the network topology our company uses?

11. Why are you the best candidate for us?

12. Tell us about a time when you influenced the outcome of a project by taking a leadership role.

13. Some people work best as part of a group - others prefer the role of an individual contributor. How would you describe yourself?

14. What have you done in past situations to contribute to a teamwork environment?

15. Tell me about a difficult challenge you faced as a network admin.

16. What experiences do you have working with other IT professionals?

17. How does subnetting add security to a network?

18. What monitoring tools are you most familiar with?

19. What types of networks are you experienced working with?

20. It is critical our network remain online all the time; how will you test and troubleshoot the network to make sure this happens?

21. Why did you choose a career in network administration?

22. During downtime, how do you keep busy as a network admin?

23. How do you keep up with new network technologies?

24. Why do you want to work for us?

25. Have you ever experienced a network crash? How did your team restore the network?

26. What experience do you have implementing security features in a network?

27. What do you know about our organization?

28. Have you ever had a problem at your last job that you couldn't solve yourself? How did you go about solving it?