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The differences between administrative assistants and office 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 an office assistant. Additionally, an administrative assistant has an average salary of $34,945, which is higher than the $31,517 average annual salary of an office assistant.
The top three skills for an administrative assistant include customer service, data entry and powerpoint. The most important skills for an office assistant are data entry, patients, and customer service.
| Administrative Assistant | Office Assistant | |
| Yearly salary | $34,945 | $31,517 |
| Hourly rate | $16.80 | $15.15 |
| Growth rate | -8% | -5% |
| Number of jobs | 65,769 | 103,293 |
| Job satisfaction | 4.14 | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 47% | Bachelor's Degree, 42% |
| Average age | 50 | 47 |
| 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.
Office assistants perform various tasks to ensure that the business runs organized and efficient. An office assistant must possess excellent communication and multi-tasking skills to handle essential duties such as scheduling meetings, monitoring office supplies, storing documents and necessary paperwork, handling customer inquiries and appointments, coordinating in company events, and accomplishing other clerical tasks and administrative support. Office assistants are also required to communicate any observation that would possibly make an impact on the company's performance.
Administrative assistants and office assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Administrative Assistant | Office Assistant | |
| Average salary | $34,945 | $31,517 |
| Salary range | Between $26,000 And $46,000 | Between $24,000 And $41,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | California | Vermont |
| Best paying company | Westfield State University | Analysis Group |
| Best paying industry | - | Government |
There are a few differences between an administrative assistant and an office assistant in terms of educational background:
| Administrative Assistant | Office Assistant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 47% | Bachelor's Degree, 42% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Western Carolina University | Western Carolina University |
Here are the differences between administrative assistants' and office assistants' demographics:
| Administrative Assistant | Office Assistant | |
| Average age | 50 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 12.7% Female, 87.3% | Male, 17.3% Female, 82.7% |
| 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, 10.1% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 21.0% Asian, 8.3% White, 54.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |