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The differences between administrative assistants and front desk 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 administrative assistant and a front desk administrative assistant. Additionally, an administrative assistant has an average salary of $34,945, which is higher than the $33,037 average annual salary of a front desk administrative assistant.
The top three skills for an administrative assistant include customer service, data entry and powerpoint. The most important skills for a front desk administrative assistant are customer service, patients, and data entry.
| Administrative Assistant | Front Desk Administrative Assistant | |
| Yearly salary | $34,945 | $33,037 |
| Hourly rate | $16.80 | $15.88 |
| Growth rate | -8% | -8% |
| Number of jobs | 65,769 | 95,732 |
| Job satisfaction | 4.14 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 47% | Bachelor's Degree, 40% |
| Average age | 50 | 50 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
Administrative assistants, or admin assistants, do general clerical and administrative activities. Their duties involve organizing and maintaining files and records, preparing documents, scheduling meetings and appointments, and providing general support in the office. Administrative assistants handle incoming and outgoing official correspondences, take minutes of important meetings and manage calls to the main office number. They also assist executives in providing structure to their day by managing their schedule, drafting e-mails, and other activities that executives may need assistance in. Administrative assistants should have the following skills: organizing, business writing, decision-making, and communication.
A front desk administrative assistant is responsible for performing administrative duties to support daily business functions and operations. Front desk administrative assistants assist guests, respond to their inquiries and concerns, and direct them to the appropriate personnel for their needs. They also monitor office inventories, write purchase requests, and distribute mails across the departments. A front desk administrative assistants review business and financial transactions to generate reports, update information on the company's database, and sort documents for reference.
Administrative assistants and front desk administrative assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Administrative Assistant | Front Desk Administrative Assistant | |
| Average salary | $34,945 | $33,037 |
| Salary range | Between $26,000 And $46,000 | Between $27,000 And $39,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Springfield, MA |
| Highest paying state | California | Connecticut |
| Best paying company | Westfield State University | University of California, Berkeley |
| Best paying industry | - | Professional |
There are a few differences between an administrative assistant and a front desk administrative assistant in terms of educational background:
| Administrative Assistant | Front Desk Administrative Assistant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 47% | Bachelor's Degree, 40% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Western Carolina University | Western Carolina University |
Here are the differences between administrative assistants' and front desk administrative assistants' demographics:
| Administrative Assistant | Front Desk Administrative Assistant | |
| Average age | 50 | 50 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 12.7% Female, 87.3% | Male, 10.0% Female, 90.0% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.0% Asian, 3.8% White, 66.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 9.3% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.2% Asian, 3.8% White, 66.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |