Administrative support specialist vs office support specialist

The differences between administrative support specialists and office support 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 support specialist and an office support specialist. Additionally, an administrative support specialist has an average salary of $38,244, which is higher than the $36,549 average annual salary of an office support specialist.

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

Administrative support specialist vs office support specialist overview

	Administrative Support Specialist	Office Support Specialist
Yearly salary	$38,244	$36,549
Hourly rate	$18.39	$17.57
Growth rate	-8%	-5%
Number of jobs	139,654	130,301
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 48%	Bachelor's Degree, 45%
Average age	50	47
Years of experience	2	2

What does an administrative support specialist do?

An administrative support specialist is an individual who is involved in the office management, clerical tasks, and back-office duties of an organization. To run the office smoothly, administrative support specialists must manage the purchasing and inventory of office supplies as well as schedule the maintenance of office equipment. They serve as a liaison for executives by screening incoming calls and emails, sorting mails, and setting appointments with employees, customers, and vendors. Administrative support specialists must also be able to draft memos and edit report proposals and other business documents.

What does an office support specialist do?

An office support specialist is in charge of performing clerical tasks to help offices maintain a smooth workflow. Among their responsibilities include preparing and processing documents, answering calls and correspondence, disseminating and organizing files, monitoring the inventory of office supplies, and processing procurement requests should there be any. They may also assist staff with projects and programs, greet visitors, and coordinate with different company departments. Furthermore, an office support specialist must enforce the company's policies and regulations.

Administrative support specialist vs office support specialist salary

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

	Administrative Support Specialist	Office Support Specialist
Average salary	$38,244	$36,549
Salary range	Between $29,000 And $49,000	Between $29,000 And $45,000
Highest paying City	Washington, DC	Billerica, MA
Highest paying state	Connecticut	Massachusetts
Best paying company	King County	Anne Arundel County Public Schools
Best paying industry	Government	Finance

Differences between administrative support specialist and office support specialist education

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

	Administrative Support Specialist	Office Support Specialist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 48%	Bachelor's Degree, 45%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	Western Carolina University	Western Carolina University

Administrative support specialist vs office support specialist demographics

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

	Administrative Support Specialist	Office Support Specialist
Average age	50	47
Gender ratio	Male, 20.5% Female, 79.5%	Male, 17.8% Female, 82.2%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.4% Asian, 3.8% White, 65.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 10.2% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 18.3% Asian, 6.8% White, 59.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between administrative support specialist and office support specialist duties and responsibilities

Administrative support specialist example responsibilities.

Create PowerPoint presentations, manage spreadsheet information/graphs and provide reports as necessary.
Participate in committee meetings by preparing minutes and presentation summaries, planning meeting agendas, and organizing and managing meeting logistics.
Assist SharePoint intranet creation and documentation.
Generate PowerPoint presentations for meetings and training.
Maintain and post unit documents utilizing SharePoint.
Maintain files on all division civilian personnel, submit accurate payroll sheets for assign civilian personnel.

Office support specialist example responsibilities.

Manage and maintain patients' medical records by utilizing computer applications management database processing system to ensure county compliance.
Create PowerPoint presentations to train employees on new software.
Add new documents and update calendars to the SharePoint website for team collaboration.
Conduct payroll accountability & evaluate for accuracy.
Process bi-weekly payroll for part-time civil service personnel.
Update SharePoint website regularly with new employee information.

Administrative support specialist vs office support specialist skills

Common administrative support specialist skills

Customer Service, 16%
Data Entry, 8%
Patients, 6%
PowerPoint, 5%
Administrative Functions, 4%
Office Equipment, 4%

Common office support specialist skills

Customer Service, 18%
Data Entry, 10%
Phone Calls, 7%
Office Equipment, 6%
Human Resources, 5%
Word Processing, 5%

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Administrative Support Specialist
Administrative Support Specialist vs Office Support Specialist

Updated January 8, 2025

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