Systems Administrator (ANZSCO 262113) vs Database Administrator (262111): which is yours?

Systems Administrator, ANZSCO 262113

Systems Administrator is ANZSCO code 262113, skill level 1. The ABS describes the role as: plans, develops, installs, troubleshoots, maintains and supports an operating system and associated server hardware, software and databases, ensuring optimum system integrity, security, backup and performance. Skill level 1 means the work is typically at degree level or higher.

Find the full occupation detail at Systems Administrator (262113).

Three infrastructure codes sit close together, and the job titles blur in practice. If your contract says “sysadmin”, “infra engineer”, or “IT support”, the right ANZSCO code depends on what you actually run day to day: the servers, the database, or the network.

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The boundary: servers vs databases vs networks

The clean way to read these three codes is by what you are responsible for.

• Systems Administrator (262113) — the operating system and the servers. You keep the OS, server hardware and the platform layer running: builds, patches, backups, security, virtualisation, performance. The database may sit on your servers, but you administer the platform, not the data model.
• Database Administrator (262111) — the database management system itself. The ABS describes the DBA as planning, developing, configuring, maintaining and supporting an organisation’s database management system, ensuring database integrity, security, backup, reliability and performance. The focus is the data: schema, tables, query performance, the DBMS.
• Network Administrator (263112) — the network. The ABS description centres on installing and maintaining network hardware and software, diagnosing faults, managing passwords and security, and keeping servers, printers and personal computers performing. The emphasis is connectivity and infrastructure, not the OS platform or the database.

The line is about where most of your time goes. Running Active Directory, Linux fleets, server patching and virtualisation reads as 262113. Tuning Oracle or SQL Server, designing schema and managing backups of the data reads as 262111. Configuring routers, switches, firewalls and LAN/WAN reads as 263112.

One thing to flag: in the source record, the task list attached to 262113 is the database-administration task list (designing database architecture, data structures, tables and dictionaries) — the same wording as the DBA record. That looks like a data carry-over. The description is the reliable signal for 262113, and the description is squarely about the operating system and server platform. Treat the boundary above by description, not by the duplicated tasks.

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Classification: same family as the DBA, different from the network role

Placement explains why 262113 and 262111 are so easy to confuse — and why 263112 is a cleaner separation.

• 262113 Systems Administrator and 262111 Database Administrator are siblings. Both sit in Major Group 2 (Professionals) → Sub-major 26 (ICT Professionals) → Minor Group 262 (Database and Systems Administrators, and ICT Security Specialists) → Unit Group 2621. Same unit group, adjacent codes.
• 263112 Network Administrator sits one branch over: Minor Group 263 (ICT Network and Support Professionals) → Unit Group 2631 (Computer Network Professionals). Different minor group, different unit group.

All three are skill level 1.

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Who assesses it

To use any of these codes for a skills assessment in Australia, you need the assessing authority that covers it. That authority is not confirmed in this record for 262113, 262111 or 263112. The Systems Administrator (262113) occupation page carries the current authority name and a direct link to apply; the Database Administrator (262111) page does the same for the DBA. Check the page before you start an assessment application, as authorities and their scope can change.

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Which lists they sit on

Core Skills Occupation List (CSOL). All three — 262113, 262111 and 263112 — are on the CSOL, the list the Australian Department of Home Affairs maintains for the Skills in Demand (subclass 482) Core Skills stream and the ENS subclass 186 Direct Entry pathway. The three records also show membership of the STSOL, which supports state-nominated subclasses such as 190 and the regional 491. The current skill occupation list shows which visa subclasses each list supports. List membership is reviewed and can change, so check the live page before relying on it.

NZ Green List. A real divergence here: 262113 and 262111 are on New Zealand’s Green List at Tier 1 (Straight to Residence) in the source records, while 263112 Network Administrator is not in the record. If New Zealand is in scope, the systems/database codes and the network code are not interchangeable.

Occupation Shortage List. In the latest Jobs and Skills Australia Occupation Shortage List, all three are rated no shortage nationally. For 262113 there is one regional exception in the record: the Northern Territory shows a shortage rating, while every other state and territory shows none. Note the distinction: CSOL membership opens a skilled-migration pathway, while the shortage rating is a separate, point-in-time labour-market read. The two are related but not the same. The current rating is on the occupation page.

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Find your code

Browse all ANZSCO 2022 occupations at /en/anzsco/2022/. If you are unsure whether your background reads as Systems Administrator, Database Administrator, or Network Administrator, the CV matcher at app.anzscofinder.com matches your CV to the closest codes and shows its working.

For advice on which visa to apply for, speak to a registered migration agent. We find codes and show sources. We do not give migration advice.