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Administrative clerk vs administrative receptionist

The differences between administrative clerks and administrative receptionists 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 clerk and an administrative receptionist. Additionally, an administrative clerk has an average salary of $32,327, which is higher than the $31,502 average annual salary of an administrative receptionist.

The top three skills for an administrative clerk include customer service, data entry and patients. The most important skills for an administrative receptionist are customer service, patients, and data entry.

Administrative clerk vs administrative receptionist overview

Administrative ClerkAdministrative Receptionist
Yearly salary$32,327$31,502
Hourly rate$15.54$15.15
Growth rate-5%-8%
Number of jobs137,63991,892
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 37%Bachelor's Degree, 35%
Average age4750
Years of experience22

What does an administrative clerk do?

An administrative clerk provides support to staff and does clerical works. These clerical duties include answering and making phone calls, typing documents, compiling and filing records, and scheduling appointments. The clerks often set up office meetings and invite reliable speakers. Also, they do research and prepare reports or presentations. Candidates for the job must be organized, detail-oriented, and can manage their time well. They must be tech-savvy and have a basic knowledge of bookkeeping. The salary depends on their experience, industry, and location of the job.

What does an administrative receptionist do?

An administrative receptionist is responsible for performing administrative tasks, handling visitors' inquiries and concerns, verifying appointments, and leading them to the appropriate personnel and department, as well as handling and routing calls. Administrative receptionists also keep records of the staff meeting and executive conference, including company and promotional events. They receive packages and mail, sort documents, manage office supply inventories, create incident reports, and report suspicious guests within the premises. An administrative receptionist must have excellent communication and customer service skills, especially on resolving and escalating complaints.

Administrative clerk vs administrative receptionist salary

Administrative clerks and administrative receptionists have different pay scales, as shown below.

Administrative ClerkAdministrative Receptionist
Average salary$32,327$31,502
Salary rangeBetween $25,000 And $40,000Between $25,000 And $38,000
Highest paying CitySeattle, WAOakland, CA
Highest paying stateWashingtonWashington
Best paying companyColumbia University in the City of New YorkBeacon Hill Staffing Group
Best paying industryFinanceTechnology

Differences between administrative clerk and administrative receptionist education

There are a few differences between an administrative clerk and an administrative receptionist in terms of educational background:

Administrative ClerkAdministrative Receptionist
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 37%Bachelor's Degree, 35%
Most common majorBusinessBusiness
Most common collegeWestern Carolina UniversityWestern Carolina University

Administrative clerk vs administrative receptionist demographics

Here are the differences between administrative clerks' and administrative receptionists' demographics:

Administrative ClerkAdministrative Receptionist
Average age4750
Gender ratioMale, 27.9% Female, 72.1%Male, 8.0% Female, 92.0%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 11.4% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 21.9% Asian, 8.3% White, 53.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%Black or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.4% Asian, 3.8% White, 65.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage6%6%

Differences between administrative clerk and administrative receptionist duties and responsibilities

Administrative clerk example responsibilities.

  • Orchestrate special events and reservations; manage customer relations and provide exemplary service to all customers.
  • Assist teachers with GED packets for students.
  • Ship orders via customers freight line request (ex.
  • Schedule and administer the GED exam upon the completion of the inmate's profile.
  • Enter data in spreadsheets for reports, auction items, payroll and monthly utility accounts.
  • Process all DMV registration, titles, title flips and plates using CVR and TriVin programs.
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Administrative receptionist example responsibilities.

  • Manage travel reimbursements, and reconcile process and forward to payroll for assign individuals.
  • Act as primary liaison between patients, physical therapists and physicians while accomplishing miscellaneous duties necessary for maintaining operations.
  • Sort first class mail, FedEx, campus mail and all incoming mail daily.
  • Draft correspondence and other written material, develop PowerPoint slides and graphic presentations for demographic analysts.
  • Issue shipping instructions and provide routing information to ensure that payroll delivery times and locations are coordinate.
  • Greet visitors, and respond to telephone and in-person requests for information for sole-practitioner office serving several hundr patients.
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Administrative clerk vs administrative receptionist skills

Common administrative clerk skills
  • Customer Service, 17%
  • Data Entry, 16%
  • Patients, 9%
  • Word Processing, 6%
  • Payroll Data, 5%
  • Database Systems, 4%
Common administrative receptionist skills
  • Customer Service, 18%
  • Patients, 12%
  • Data Entry, 11%
  • Phone Calls, 8%
  • Front Desk, 6%
  • Word Processing, 4%

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