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The differences between clerical/administrative assistants and assistant secretaries can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a clerical/administrative assistant and an assistant secretary. Additionally, an assistant secretary has an average salary of $107,366, which is higher than the $30,983 average annual salary of a clerical/administrative assistant.
The top three skills for a clerical/administrative assistant include data entry, word processing and payroll. The most important skills for an assistant secretary are telephone calls, payroll, and scheduling appointments.
| Clerical/Administrative Assistant | Assistant Secretary | |
| Yearly salary | $30,983 | $107,366 |
| Hourly rate | $14.90 | $51.62 |
| Growth rate | -8% | -8% |
| Number of jobs | 56,261 | 52,165 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 35% | Bachelor's Degree, 47% |
| Average age | 50 | 50 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
An administrative assistant, also known as a secretary or office clerk, is someone who carries out daily clerical and administrative tasks. Admin assistants do a variety of tasks such as answering phone calls, organizing files, maintaining contacts, schedule meetings and appointments, and many more. Their task can be extensive, depending on the needs of operations and higher management. They serve as a gatekeeper of the company, so strong verbal and written communication skills are a must. They should also exhibit great organizational skills and time management since they act as the resource of the company.
An assistant secretary is responsible for performing administrative and clerical duties to support the daily operations of various departments and management personnel and ensure the efficiency of business functions. Assistant secretaries usually assist in business communications, responding to customers' inquiries and concerns, reaching out to existing clients to schedule appointments, welcoming guests on the office, and routing calls to the appropriate department. They also handle data entry procedures, updating customer information on the database, as well as creating reports on business and financial transactions.
Clerical/administrative assistants and assistant secretaries have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Clerical/Administrative Assistant | Assistant Secretary | |
| Average salary | $30,983 | $107,366 |
| Salary range | Between $24,000 And $38,000 | Between $38,000 And $302,000 |
| Highest paying City | Seattle, WA | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | Washington | Rhode Island |
| Best paying company | University of California | Elanco |
| Best paying industry | Government | - |
There are a few differences between a clerical/administrative assistant and an assistant secretary in terms of educational background:
| Clerical/Administrative Assistant | Assistant Secretary | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 35% | Bachelor's Degree, 47% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Western Carolina University | Western Carolina University |
Here are the differences between clerical/administrative assistants' and assistant secretaries' demographics:
| Clerical/Administrative Assistant | Assistant Secretary | |
| Average age | 50 | 50 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 14.5% Female, 85.5% | Male, 21.7% Female, 78.3% |
| 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, 9.2% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.1% Asian, 3.8% White, 66.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |