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Administrative specialist vs office specialist

The differences between administrative specialists and office 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 specialist and an office specialist. Additionally, an administrative specialist has an average salary of $38,758, which is higher than the $33,477 average annual salary of an office specialist.

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

Administrative specialist vs office specialist overview

Administrative SpecialistOffice Specialist
Yearly salary$38,758$33,477
Hourly rate$18.63$16.09
Growth rate-8%-5%
Number of jobs71,22798,760
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 48%Bachelor's Degree, 44%
Average age5047
Years of experience22

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 office specialist do?

An office specialist is responsible for performing administrative and clerical duties to support the organization's daily operations. Office specialists must be highly organizational, as well as having excellent time-management skills to handle work units. They have duties including data entry procedures, greeting visitors, responding to customers' inquiries through phone calls and e-mails, and filing and sorting documents. Office specialists are responsible for creating meeting reports, scheduling appointments, evaluating financial statements, coordinating with other staff for event planning, and assisting the senior management with complex functions.

Administrative specialist vs office specialist salary

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

Administrative SpecialistOffice Specialist
Average salary$38,758$33,477
Salary rangeBetween $25,000 And $58,000Between $25,000 And $43,000
Highest paying CityWashington, DCWashington, DC
Highest paying stateCaliforniaMassachusetts
Best paying companyMetaBrookhaven National Laboratory
Best paying industryTechnologyFinance

Differences between administrative specialist and office specialist education

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

Administrative SpecialistOffice Specialist
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 48%Bachelor's Degree, 44%
Most common majorBusinessBusiness
Most common collegeWestern Carolina UniversityWestern Carolina University

Administrative specialist vs office specialist demographics

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

Administrative SpecialistOffice Specialist
Average age5047
Gender ratioMale, 24.4% Female, 75.6%Male, 18.3% Female, 81.7%
Race ratioBlack 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, 8.1% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 19.8% Asian, 8.4% White, 57.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2%
LGBT Percentage6%6%

Differences between administrative specialist and office specialist 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.
  • Show more

Office specialist example responsibilities.

  • Provide support for enrolling patients into health coverage programs and manage sensitive patient information to ensure accuracy and confidentiality.
  • Manage and maintain patients' medical records by utilizing computer applications management database processing system to ensure county compliance.
  • Manage operational FedEx relationship through order fulfillment, shipment tracking, and communication with parties involve in shipment transaction.
  • Provide assistance to office staff including preparing and proofreading memos and grants, transcribing meeting minutes for staff and answering phones.
  • Perform multiple bookkeeping duties including departmental payroll, print financial reports and other financial material as needed.
  • Communicate HIPAA compliance to staff, field and outside agencies.
  • Show more

Administrative specialist vs office specialist skills

Common administrative specialist skills
  • Customer Service, 14%
  • Data Entry, 6%
  • PowerPoint, 6%
  • Office Procedures, 5%
  • Patients, 5%
  • Payroll, 4%
Common office specialist skills
  • Customer Service, 18%
  • Data Entry, 10%
  • Patients, 9%
  • Office Equipment, 6%
  • Phone Calls, 6%
  • Word Processing, 4%

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