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The differences between administrative officers and secretaries 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 officer and a secretary. Additionally, an administrative officer has an average salary of $64,338, which is higher than the $36,442 average annual salary of a secretary.
The top three skills for an administrative officer include veterans, human resources and rehabilitation. The most important skills for a secretary are customer service, telephone calls, and payroll.
| Administrative Officer | Secretary | |
| Yearly salary | $64,338 | $36,442 |
| Hourly rate | $30.93 | $17.52 |
| Growth rate | -8% | -8% |
| Number of jobs | 98,238 | 69,315 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 59% | Bachelor's Degree, 38% |
| Average age | 50 | 50 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
An administrative officer is responsible for performing administrative and clerical duties to support the company's operations and maintain efficient production. Administrative officers should have excellent office management principles, handling various tasks under minimal supervision and strict deadline. They must be detail-oriented, especially on data processing systems, to encode information and update the company's documents. An administrative officer should be highly-communicative to respond to customers' inquiries and concerns, negotiate with suppliers and third-party vendors, scheduling meetings, and creating business transaction reports.
Secretaries are employees who are responsible for many of the administrative needs of the office. They are usually assigned to executives or to a specific department. They manage schedules and appointments, often handling the calendar in the office. They are also responsible for keeping files organized, whether physical or digital copies. During office meetings, secretaries are in charge of documenting the minutes of the meeting and highlighting the action steps that need to be taken. They may also be assigned to check on concerned departments who need to present deliverables in the next office meeting.
Administrative officers and secretaries have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Administrative Officer | Secretary | |
| Average salary | $64,338 | $36,442 |
| Salary range | Between $40,000 And $103,000 | Between $26,000 And $51,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Oregon | California |
| Best paying company | UBS | Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Government |
There are a few differences between an administrative officer and a secretary in terms of educational background:
| Administrative Officer | Secretary | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 59% | Bachelor's Degree, 38% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Western Carolina University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between administrative officers' and secretaries' demographics:
| Administrative Officer | Secretary | |
| Average age | 50 | 50 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 42.8% Female, 57.2% | Male, 10.1% Female, 89.9% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.3% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.3% Asian, 3.8% White, 65.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | 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% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |