Administrative clerk vs administrative support specialist

The differences between administrative clerks and administrative support specialists 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 support specialist. Additionally, an administrative support specialist has an average salary of $38,244, which is higher than the $32,327 average annual salary of an administrative clerk.

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

Administrative clerk vs administrative support specialist overview

	Administrative Clerk	Administrative Support Specialist
Yearly salary	$32,327	$38,244
Hourly rate	$15.54	$18.39
Growth rate	-5%	-8%
Number of jobs	137,639	139,654
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 37%	Bachelor's Degree, 48%
Average age	47	50
Years of experience	2	2

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 support specialist do?

An administrative support specialist is an individual who is involved in the office management, clerical tasks, and back-office duties of an organization. To run the office smoothly, administrative support specialists must manage the purchasing and inventory of office supplies as well as schedule the maintenance of office equipment. They serve as a liaison for executives by screening incoming calls and emails, sorting mails, and setting appointments with employees, customers, and vendors. Administrative support specialists must also be able to draft memos and edit report proposals and other business documents.

Administrative clerk vs administrative support specialist salary

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

	Administrative Clerk	Administrative Support Specialist
Average salary	$32,327	$38,244
Salary range	Between $25,000 And $40,000	Between $29,000 And $49,000
Highest paying City	Seattle, WA	Washington, DC
Highest paying state	Washington	Connecticut
Best paying company	Columbia University in the City of New York	King County
Best paying industry	Finance	Government

Differences between administrative clerk and administrative support specialist education

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

	Administrative Clerk	Administrative Support Specialist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 37%	Bachelor's Degree, 48%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	Western Carolina University	Western Carolina University

Administrative clerk vs administrative support specialist demographics

Here are the differences between administrative clerks' and administrative support specialists' demographics:

	Administrative Clerk	Administrative Support Specialist
Average age	47	50
Gender ratio	Male, 27.9% Female, 72.1%	Male, 20.5% Female, 79.5%
Race ratio	Black 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 Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between administrative clerk and administrative support specialist 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.

Administrative support specialist example responsibilities.

Create PowerPoint presentations, manage spreadsheet information/graphs and provide reports as necessary.
Participate in committee meetings by preparing minutes and presentation summaries, planning meeting agendas, and organizing and managing meeting logistics.
Assist SharePoint intranet creation and documentation.
Generate PowerPoint presentations for meetings and training.
Maintain and post unit documents utilizing SharePoint.
Maintain files on all division civilian personnel, submit accurate payroll sheets for assign civilian personnel.

Administrative clerk vs administrative support specialist skills

Common administrative clerk skills

Customer Service, 17%
Data Entry, 16%
Patients, 9%
Word Processing, 6%
Payroll Data, 5%
Database Systems, 4%

Common administrative support specialist skills

Customer Service, 16%
Data Entry, 8%
Patients, 6%
PowerPoint, 5%
Administrative Functions, 4%
Office Equipment, 4%

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Administrative Clerk
Administrative Clerk vs Administrative Support Specialist

Updated January 8, 2025

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