How to hire an administrative project assistant

How to hire an administrative project assistant, step by step

Here's a step-by-step administrative project assistant hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write an administrative project assistant job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new administrative project assistant
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does an administrative project assistant do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the administrative project assistant you need to hire. Certain administrative project assistant roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   An administrative project assistant's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, administrative project assistants from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   This list shows salaries for various types of administrative project assistants.

   Type of Administrative Project Assistant	Description	Hourly rate
   Administrative Project Assistant	Secretaries and administrative assistants perform clerical and administrative duties. They organize files, prepare documents, schedule appointments, and support other staff.	$14-26
   Administrative Support	Administrative support specialists provide different types of governmental assistance. They carry out varied clerical duties in almost all industries... Show more	$12-25

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Customer Service
   • Data Entry
   • PowerPoint
   • Project Management
   • Meeting Minutes
   • Office Equipment
   • Purchase Orders
   • Travel Arrangements
   • SharePoint
   • Expense Reports
   • Proofreading
   • Clerical Support
   • Administrative Tasks
   • HR

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage quality assurance checks for FDA and internal audits which result in no documentation/information error and successful completion of the audits.
   • Create and maintain project-related SharePoint sites and pages, including updating graphics, uploading resource documents and adding new users.
   • Prepare presentation materials for meetings, utilizing Microsoft PowerPoint.
   • Develop creative PowerPoint presentations for company to be present for conferences/conventions.
   • Eliminate potential errors by establishing an alternate payroll template and process.
   • Coordinate certified payroll, credit card reconciliation, and travel expense reimbursements.

   More administrative project assistant duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the administrative project assistant job description is a good way to get more applicants. An administrative project assistant salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for an administrative project assistant in South Dakota may be lower than in California, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level administrative project assistant. Additionally, an administrative project assistant with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average administrative project assistant salary

   $41,668yearly

   $20.03 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level administrative project assistant salary

   $31,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 16, 2025

   Average administrative project assistant salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	District of Columbia	$61,250	$29
   2	California	$52,197	$25
   3	Rhode Island	$49,966	$24
   4	Massachusetts	$49,795	$24
   5	New York	$46,231	$22
   6	Minnesota	$45,281	$22
   7	Colorado	$44,343	$21
   8	Maryland	$44,044	$21
   9	Oregon	$42,441	$20
   10	Illinois	$42,113	$20
   11	Alabama	$40,692	$20
   12	Virginia	$40,604	$20
   13	Wisconsin	$40,392	$19
   14	Nevada	$40,013	$19
   15	North Carolina	$38,849	$19
   16	Tennessee	$38,805	$19
   17	Louisiana	$38,286	$18
   18	Georgia	$38,084	$18
   19	Texas	$36,384	$17
   20	New Mexico	$35,525	$17

   Average administrative project assistant salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Jacobs Engineering Group	$62,816	$30.20
   2	Moss & Associates	$61,282	$29.46	1
   3	Huitt-Zollars	$59,523	$28.62	1
   4	Kiewit	$54,929	$26.41	4
   5	Alameda Health System	$54,681	$26.29	2
   6	Highland General Hospital	$54,610	$26.25
   7	Massachusetts Institute of Technology	$53,516	$25.73	7
   8	Washington State University	$53,093	$25.53	4
   9	Mortenson	$52,698	$25.34	9
   10	Bechtel Corporation	$52,240	$25.12	2
   11	Gilbane Building Company	$51,731	$24.87	3
   12	Tilden-Coil Constructors	$51,564	$24.79
   13	CDI	$51,204	$24.62	1
   14	Brasfield & Gorrie	$49,459	$23.78	1
   15	OSF HealthCare	$49,184	$23.65	3
   16	Pentair	$49,152	$23.63
   17	Woodard & Curran	$48,615	$23.37
   18	EMCOR Group	$47,357	$22.77	38
   19	Ormat Technologies	$46,653	$22.43
   20	New England Construction	$46,327	$22.27

4. Writing an administrative project assistant job description

   A job description for an administrative project assistant role includes a summary of the job's main responsibilities, required skills, and preferred background experience. Including a salary range can also go a long way in attracting more candidates to apply, and showing the first name of the hiring manager can also make applicants more comfortable. As an example, here's an administrative project assistant job description:

   Administrative project assistant job description example

   no duplicate resumes
   
   Will be responsible for the planning, directing and coordinating activities of a designated project to ensure goals, objectives and tasks are completed within a prescribed time frame. May be responsible for the tracking and reporting of processes and making recommendations to improve procedures. General offices duties include: Filing, faxing, photocopying, scheduling of meetings/telecoms, type minutes etc. Qualifications: Ability to work under pressure. Shows attention to detail. Experienced with planning, directing, and coordinating projects. Excellent Data Entry skills. Proficiency with Microsoft applications (Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Outlook). Demonstrated strength in facilitating projects, multiple tasks and priority setting. Requirements/Skill Level: (Basic) - May require a bachelor's degree as specified and 2-4 years of experience in the field or in a related area. Familiar with a variety of the field's concepts, practices, and procedures. Relies on limited experience and judgment to plan and accomplish goals. Performs a variety of tasks. Leads and directs the work of others. A wide degree of creativity and latitude is expected. Typically reports to a manager or head of a unit/department. (Intermediate) - May require a bachelor's degree as specified and 4-7 years of experience in the field or in a related area. Familiar with a variety of the field's concepts, practices, and procedures. Relies on extensive experience and judgment to plan and accomplish goals. Performs a variety of tasks. Leads and directs the work of others. A wide degree of creativity and latitude is expected. Typically reports to a manager or head of a unit/department. (Advanced) - May require a bachelor's degree as specified and at least 7 years of experience in the field or in a related area. Familiar with a variety of the field's concepts, practices, and procedures. Relies on extensive experience and judgment to plan and accomplish goals. Performs a variety of tasks. Leads and directs the work of others. A wide degree of creativity and latitude is expected. Typically reports to a manager or head of a unit/department.
   
   notes:
   -Experience with Digital Projects specifically Agile project methodology. But if they have Project experience, the team is willing to train on Agile.
   -Current need for this position is Digital Projects not moving along, confusion understanding projects timelines, etc.
   -This position will be reporting status of projects, make sure everything is on time, account for what is happening now and next.
   -This position will focus on project implementation. manage project schedules. raise the red flags. need to field project problems, troubleshoot, etc.
   -Develop project charter elements (Purpose/Project scope) > Project plan> Project Dashboard (status, timelines, on or off track, live and next)
   -Charter: in scope/ out of scope, benefit of the project, group of interest is providing what they agreed to, high-level duration etc.
   -NOT revising SOP but make sure work is getting done.
   - This candidate needs to understand how a project plan is put together. coordinate with a PM and help keep things moving along.
   -Project experience is open to other industries but Pharma would be helpful.
   - Start with 4-5 projects, but team is continuing to grow.
   - Doesn't have to be senior but MUST jump right in. MUST be organized. Proactive, be able to plan ahead.
   
   -Systems: SharePoint experience or similar is a must. MS Project or similar is a must. MS PP.
   Position Comments visible to MSP and Supplier: -Agile project methodology experience preferred
   - Hybrid model onsite in Andover
   - must follow return policy
   - virtual interviews: 1 on 1, 3 rounds about
   - 12 month duration

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right administrative project assistant for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your administrative project assistant job on Zippia to find and recruit administrative project assistant candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit administrative project assistants, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   Remember to include a few questions that allow candidates to expand on their strengths in their own words. Asking about their unique skills might reveal things you'd miss otherwise. At this point, good candidates can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new administrative project assistant

   Once you have selected a candidate for the administrative project assistant position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   It's also important to follow up with applicants who do not get the job with an email letting them know that the position is filled.

   To prepare for the new employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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