Administrative support workers, sometimes called administrative support specialists, take care of clerical tasks in an office that helps their employer serve the public. Most administrative support workers work for government offices, although they can also work for private companies. They handle tasks that help organize the office such as storing files and inputting data into the payroll system. Administrative support workers need to be strong communicators because they handle internal communications, for example by scheduling meetings, and communicate with the public via phone and email. Administrative support workers are often highly knowledgeable about procedures in the office they work for so they can help customers and coworkers with their questions.

There are a few different ways to become an administrative support worker. About half have a bachelor's degree in business or administration. However, many do this job with only a high school diploma.

Administrative support workers usually need a few years of administrative experience, for example as assistants. Only then can they apply for an administrative support position, which usually pays around $33,023 a year.

What Does an Administrative Support Do

There are certain skills that many administrative supports have in order to accomplish their responsibilities. By taking a look through resumes, we were able to narrow down the most common skills for a person in this position. We discovered that a lot of resumes listed interpersonal skills, writing skills and organizational skills.

Learn more about what an Administrative Support does

How To Become an Administrative Support

If you're interested in becoming an administrative support, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 49.2% of administrative supports have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 6.2% of administrative supports have master's degrees. Even though most administrative supports have a college degree, it's possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.

Learn More About How To Become an Administrative Support

Administrative Support Career Paths

Average Salary for an Administrative Support

Administrative Supports in America make an average salary of $37,692 per year or $18 per hour. The top 10 percent makes over $53,000 per year, while the bottom 10 percent under $26,000 per year.
Average Administrative Support Salary
$37,692 Yearly
$18.12 hourly

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Roles and Types of Administrative Support

The role of an administrative support includes a wide range of responsibilities. These responsibilities can vary based on an individual's specific job, company, or industry.Here are some general administrative support responsibilities:

  • Volunteer project coordination, recruitment and event planning communicating volunteering opportunities to employees
  • Support specialist works as part of the data team, under the direction of e discovery coordinators with coordination
  • Preparing work order documentation, sketches, and stores transactions for routine maintenance

There are several types of administrative support, including:

Office Administrator

Role:

As office administrator, you've got to lay down the law for your team. Sure, no one likes a tough boss, but they need to know what goals they're aiming for, and that's where you come in. You'll need to divide and conquer on some tasks, so the team doesn't feel overwhelmed.

The biggest, and probably toughest, part of your job is making sure your team is consistantly performing. You have to find a nice balance for employees so they don't get burned out on work, while also making sure they're not playing Solitaire on their computer.

Office administrators typically work somewhere between 35-40 hours a week. Generally, they won't work more than that. This means you might get to go home a little early some days. Our fingers are crossed that you get off a little early on Friday, so you can kickstart your weekend on a high note.

  • Average Salary: $37,423
  • Degree: Bachelor's Degree

Administrative Coordinator

Role:

Administrative coordinators help the company to handle the general administration of the company. You will handle the basic administrative duties like answering incoming calls, interacting with the clients, and giving solutions when needed to their issues.

You will also be responsible for maintaining and making the office organized. Similarly, you will welcome visitors and direct them to the appropriate department. You will provide administrative support to the management. As a result, you will monitor and coordinate the accounting activities which you will prepare internal reports for management.

Good knowledge of finance and accounting to help you prepare internal reports for management is required. An administrative coordinator must have good interpersonal skills to be able to relate with clients and good communication skills. Similarly, you must be able to compose and edit written materials. You will make an average of $19.77 an hour or $41,129 yearly.

  • Average Salary: $40,599
  • Degree: Bachelor's Degree

Administrative Clerk

Role:

An administrative clerk performs tasks such as data entry, typing, organizing documents, answering emails and phones, and typically any basic clerical task you can imagine needs to be done in an office.

Following the lead of an office manager, administrative clerks make the most of their computer skills, their ability to multitask, and their independent spirit. They know how to manage their time and organize the world around them. They know how to communicate efficiently, and they probably dabble a little in bookkeeping as well.

As corporate culture is flourishing, administrative clerks are being assigned responsibilities regarding the cultural and social engagement of employees as well, such as planning off-site activities or making the office a cozier place with snacks and other niceties.

  • Average Salary: $32,327
  • Degree: Bachelor's Degree

States With The Most Administrative Support Jobs

Mouse over a state to see the number of active administrative support jobs in each state. The darker areas on the map show where administrative supports earn the highest salaries across all 50 states.

Average Salary: Job Openings:

Number Of Administrative Support Jobs By State

RankStateNumber of JobsAverage Salary
1California6,222$46,801
2New York2,135$43,737
3Texas2,113$37,037
4Florida1,982$33,332
5Michigan1,646$39,241
6Washington1,643$46,759
7Pennsylvania1,315$38,616
8Massachusetts1,264$49,087
9Ohio1,202$35,612
10Missouri1,148$35,343
11Illinois1,098$36,658
12Virginia1,080$37,507
13Georgia970$27,204
14South Carolina890$33,955
15North Carolina885$40,392
16New Jersey811$44,238
17Maryland778$47,963
18Minnesota701$45,928
19Colorado677$37,052
20Arizona638$43,001
21Kansas621$29,201
22Wisconsin620$39,562
23Alabama610$33,009
24Tennessee552$34,026
25Indiana542$35,653
26Oklahoma519$32,417
27Louisiana512$37,124
28Oregon493$41,989
29Arkansas491$25,789
30Nevada448$40,872
31Connecticut399$48,584
32Mississippi392$32,602
33Utah387$31,794
34New Mexico364$41,461
35Iowa357$35,366
36Kentucky288$32,467
37Idaho219$32,803
38Nebraska204$32,566
39South Dakota203$32,296
40Montana178$39,276
41New Hampshire167$42,748
42Maine149$39,688
43Alaska142$36,825
44Delaware122$33,813
45Rhode Island121$50,318
46Hawaii111$46,842
47West Virginia111$36,239
48North Dakota91$35,778
49Wyoming82$33,532
50Vermont63$46,147

Administrative Support Education

Administrative Support Majors

33.9 %

Administrative Support Degrees

Bachelors

49.2 %

Associate

24.4 %

High School Diploma

12.1 %

Top Colleges for Administrative Supports

1. Western Carolina University

Cullowhee, NC • Private

In-State Tuition

$3,926

Enrollment

9,835

2. Stanford University

Stanford, CA • Private

In-State Tuition

$51,354

Enrollment

7,083

3. Ball State University

Muncie, IN • Private

In-State Tuition

$9,896

Enrollment

15,529

4. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

In-State Tuition

$55,584

Enrollment

10,764

5. Bowling Green State University

Bowling Green, OH • Private

In-State Tuition

$11,105

Enrollment

13,729

6. Cedar Crest College

Allentown, PA • Private

In-State Tuition

$39,216

Enrollment

1,303

7. Morgan State University

Baltimore, MD • Private

In-State Tuition

$7,900

Enrollment

6,404

8. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

In-State Tuition

$54,568

Enrollment

8,451

9. Siena Heights University

Adrian, MI • Private

In-State Tuition

$27,124

Enrollment

2,035

10. University of Akron

Akron, OH • Private

In-State Tuition

$11,463

Enrollment

13,676

Top Skills For an Administrative Support

The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 18.1% of administrative supports listed customer service on their resume, but soft skills such as interpersonal skills and writing skills are important as well.

Choose From 10+ Customizable Administrative Support Resume templates

Zippia allows you to choose from different easy-to-use Administrative Support templates, and provides you with expert advice. Using the templates, you can rest assured that the structure and format of your Administrative Support resume is top notch. Choose a template with the colors, fonts & text sizes that are appropriate for your industry.

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Administrative Support diversity

Administrative Support Gender Distribution

Female
Female
80%
Male
Male
20%

After extensive research and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:

  • Among administrative supports, 79.6% of them are women, while 20.4% are men.

  • The most common race/ethnicity among administrative supports is White, which makes up 66.6% of all administrative supports.

  • The most common foreign language among administrative supports is Spanish at 61.8%.

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Best States For an Administrative Support

Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as an administrative support. The best states for people in this position are Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Maryland. Administrative supports make the most in Rhode Island with an average salary of $50,318. Whereas in Massachusetts and Connecticut, they would average $49,087 and $48,584, respectively. While administrative supports would only make an average of $47,963 in Maryland, you would still make more there than in the rest of the country. We determined these as the best states based on job availability and pay. By finding the median salary, cost of living, and using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Location Quotient, we narrowed down our list of states to these four.

1. Washington

Total Administrative Support Jobs: 1,643
Highest 10% Earn:
$68,000
Location Quotient:
1.64

2. District of Columbia

Total Administrative Support Jobs: 305
Highest 10% Earn:
$81,000
Location Quotient:
1.33

3. Massachusetts

Total Administrative Support Jobs: 1,264
Highest 10% Earn:
$74,000
Location Quotient:
1.01
Full List Of Best States For Administrative Supports

How Do Administrative Supports Rate Their Jobs?

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Top Administrative Support Employers

Most Common Employers For Administrative Support

RankCompanyAverage SalaryHourly RateJob Openings
1IBM$81,958$39.4044
2AT&T$42,521$20.4453
3Lockheed Martin$42,386$20.3839
4Amazon$41,371$19.8945
5FedEx$39,507$18.9932
6Bank of America$37,937$18.2434
7Kelly Services$37,159$17.8666
8Hewlett Packard Enterprise$37,056$17.8242
9Kroger$36,918$17.7588
10Robert Half$36,873$17.73137

Becoming an Administrative Support FAQs

How Do I Start A Career In Administration?

You start a career in administration with a two or four-year college degree. While there are several ways to enter into business administration, a college degree or certification is required.

What Are Administrative Support Skills?

Administrative support skills are technological savvy, written and verbal communication, organization, time management, strategic planning, resourcefulness, and detail-oriented.

Someone in an administrative support role should have the technical skills to perform common duties such as data entry, which requires a keen eye for detail to catch any mistakes.

What Is The Highest-paying Administrative Job?

The highest-paying administrative job is a hospital administrator. Administrative responsibilities will vary with the specific type of company or work being done.

The annual average salary for a hospital administrator is approximately $111,000. This salary reflects the administrator's responsibility to operate all areas of a hospital efficiently. Similarly, the average salary of a city administrator is approximately $94,000 annually. Both positions represent large operations with many departments that must work effectively.

What Is The Role Of Admin Support?

The role of admin support is to assist with clerical and administrative processes. Admin support can work in various industries and levels within a company.

Admin support positions assist management and visitors to the company by handling office tasks, providing polite and professional assistance via phone, mail, and e-mail, making reservations or travel arrangements, and generally being a helpful and positive presence in the workplace.

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