Administrative Assistant Job Overview

Secretary and administrative assistant jobs require consummate office-productivity skills, a knack for organization, a way with people and flexibility under pressure.

Administrative assistant work typically includes a variety of clerical and organizational tasks, including answering phones; scheduling appointments and meetings; booking travel; photocopying and filing; expense accounting; and creating and editing documents, spreadsheets and presentations.

Executive administrative assistant employment is based on the same kinds of skills performed by staff-level admins, but for a smaller group of very demanding employees, mainly high-level executives. An executive assistant may also take on the chief-of-staff function of controlling access to the executive.

Administrative Assistant Education

For office administration jobs, experience is typically more important than formal education or training. But most employers require a high school diploma, and many prefer a college degree. Executive administrative assistant job openings may be more likely to require or prefer candidates with a bachelor's degree.

Administrative assistants almost universally must demonstrate proficiency with office-productivity software, typically Microsoft Office.

Administrative Assistant Job Market

Secretaries and administrative assistants held just over 4 million jobs in 2010, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Secretary and administrative assistant job opportunities are projected to increase by 492,900 by 2020.

Administrative Assistant Salaries

The median admin salary was $31,870 in 2011, according to the BLS. Median salaries for executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants were $45,580.