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The differences between accounting and administrative assistants and contract administrative assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both an accounting and administrative assistant and a contract administrative assistant. Additionally, a contract administrative assistant has an average salary of $39,073, which is higher than the $38,192 average annual salary of an accounting and administrative assistant.
The top three skills for an accounting and administrative assistant include data entry, customer service and financial statements. The most important skills for a contract administrative assistant are data entry, purchase orders, and powerpoint.
| Accounting And Administrative Assistant | Contract Administrative Assistant | |
| Yearly salary | $38,192 | $39,073 |
| Hourly rate | $18.36 | $18.79 |
| Growth rate | -8% | -8% |
| Number of jobs | 73,060 | 64,677 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 48% | Bachelor's Degree, 51% |
| Average age | 50 | 50 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
An accounting administrative assistant is responsible for supporting the operations of the accounting department of an organization by performing administrative duties to maintain efficient and accurate services. Accounting administrative assistants conduct bookkeeping functions, as well as creating financial reports, analyzing account statements, updating account information on the database, processing invoices, and managing account receivables. They must have basic knowledge of the accounting disciplines, as well as excellent analytical and communication skills, especially on receiving clients' inquiries and concerns and administering payment procedures.
A contract administrative assistant works on a contractual basis at offices where they are in charge of performing support tasks. Among their responsibilities include answering calls and correspondence, filing and organizing documents, coordinating with different departments, arranging appointments and schedules, preparing and processing files, and running errands as needed. They may also monitor the inventory of office supplies, processing procurement requests when necessary. Furthermore, a contract administrative assistant must maintain an active communication line with staff for a smooth and efficient workflow.
Accounting and administrative assistants and contract administrative assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Accounting And Administrative Assistant | Contract Administrative Assistant | |
| Average salary | $38,192 | $39,073 |
| Salary range | Between $29,000 And $48,000 | Between $31,000 And $48,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | Hawaii | Connecticut |
| Best paying company | Ernst & Young | Minnesota State Fair |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Pharmaceutical |
There are a few differences between an accounting and administrative assistant and a contract administrative assistant in terms of educational background:
| Accounting And Administrative Assistant | Contract Administrative Assistant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 48% | Bachelor's Degree, 51% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | Western Carolina University |
Here are the differences between accounting and administrative assistants' and contract administrative assistants' demographics:
| Accounting And Administrative Assistant | Contract Administrative Assistant | |
| Average age | 50 | 50 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 10.0% Female, 90.0% | Male, 10.2% Female, 89.8% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.5% Asian, 3.9% White, 65.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 9.3% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.4% Asian, 3.8% White, 65.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |