Administrative specialist vs administrative officer

The differences between administrative specialists and administrative officers 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 specialist and an administrative officer. Additionally, an administrative officer has an average salary of $64,338, which is higher than the $38,758 average annual salary of an administrative specialist.

The top three skills for an administrative specialist include customer service, data entry and powerpoint. The most important skills for an administrative officer are veterans, human resources, and rehabilitation.

Administrative specialist vs administrative officer overview

	Administrative Specialist	Administrative Officer
Yearly salary	$38,758	$64,338
Hourly rate	$18.63	$30.93
Growth rate	-8%	-8%
Number of jobs	71,227	98,238
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 48%	Bachelor's Degree, 59%
Average age	50	50
Years of experience	2	2

What does an administrative specialist do?

An administrative specialist is in charge of various clerical tasks to support supervisors and management staff. Their responsibility is to act as the main point of contact among clients through answering calls and responding to inquiries, managing schedules, arranging appointments and travel, addressing complaints and resolving internal issues, managing payroll, and keeping an organized database. Furthermore, an administrative specialist can also conduct research and analysis, prepare reports and other forms of documentation, and coordinate workflow in a particular area.

What does an administrative officer do?

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.

Administrative specialist vs administrative officer salary

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

	Administrative Specialist	Administrative Officer
Average salary	$38,758	$64,338
Salary range	Between $25,000 And $58,000	Between $40,000 And $103,000
Highest paying City	Washington, DC	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	California	Oregon
Best paying company	Meta	UBS
Best paying industry	Technology	Finance

Differences between administrative specialist and administrative officer education

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

	Administrative Specialist	Administrative Officer
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 48%	Bachelor's Degree, 59%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	Western Carolina University	Western Carolina University

Administrative specialist vs administrative officer demographics

Here are the differences between administrative specialists' and administrative officers' demographics:

	Administrative Specialist	Administrative Officer
Average age	50	50
Gender ratio	Male, 24.4% Female, 75.6%	Male, 42.8% Female, 57.2%
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, 9.3% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.3% Asian, 3.8% White, 65.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between administrative specialist and administrative officer duties and responsibilities

Administrative specialist example responsibilities.

Participate in committee meetings by preparing minutes and presentation summaries, planning meeting agendas, and organizing and managing meeting logistics.
Process incoming and outgoing medical records with newly implement HIPAA requirements.
Maintain personnel records, electronic databases, oversee and administer department SharePoint website.
Redesign and reformat PowerPoint presentations, customize individual client presentations for specific look & feel.
Create and successfully implement a new faculty form to collect necessary information for payroll forms.
Conduct training of new personnel using spreadsheets & PowerPoint presentations to ensure compliance of organizational policies & procedures.

Administrative officer example responsibilities.

Orchestrate special events and reservations; manage customer relations and provide exemplary service to all customers.
Assist veterans during registration and authentication processes.
Develop agendas and PowerPoint presentations for c-level executives.
Interview patients before surgery/examinations and inform patients of necessary requirements before procedures.
Schedule appointments and meetings and oversee all travel logistics for senior management.
Communicate with outside vendors for probationer's drug rehabilitation, domestic violence, and education.

Administrative specialist vs administrative officer skills

Common administrative specialist skills

Customer Service, 14%
Data Entry, 6%
PowerPoint, 6%
Office Procedures, 5%
Patients, 5%
Payroll, 4%

Common administrative officer skills

Veterans, 9%
Human Resources, 9%
Rehabilitation, 5%
Personnel Actions, 5%
Financial Management, 5%
Patients, 5%

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Administrative Specialist
Administrative Specialist vs Administrative Officer

Updated January 8, 2025

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