How To Become A Department Administrator: What It Is and Career Path

What is a department administrator and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted expert

Bill McGinley

Department administrators are administrative staff that work at the departmental level and correlate with the agency head, principal investigators, and school, department, and central administration personnel to support and provide guidance on the administration of compliance, financial, and personnel.

Typically, you need to possess a high school diploma or a bachelor's degree in business, administration, or a related field. In addition to that, two or more years' office administration experience would be better. Also, it would help if you were skilled in a variety of computer software applications.

The applicants who address this field end up laying claim to annual earnings at $56,397 at the primary level. The current median pay for a department administrator ranges from $53,842 to $65,362 in the U.S. However, this figure can alter significantly depending upon your knowledge, skills, or organization.

What general advice would you give to a department administrator?

Bill McGinley

President & CEO, American College of Health Care Administrators

LTC administrators should have at least a bachelor's degree in business or a healthcare-related field. A well-rounded internship that exposes the future administrator to all aspects of the operation is essential. Needed skills include business, marketing, finance, operations, management and leadership.
Post pandemic opportunities will be nationwide in this field with a greater need in rural areas.
Technology will continue to play a big role in the field. Computerized medical records, census management, and all clinical areas will continue to dominate. Online meetings are liable to continue as well, as employers realize that there is a savings to be gained by not having people travel to meetings and conferences.

ScoreDepartment AdministratorUS Average

Salary

3.9

Avg. Salary $49,768

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

5.7

Growth rate 5%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

3.8

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.31%

Asian 8.78%

Black or African American 8.83%

Hispanic or Latino 12.52%

Unknown 5.08%

White 64.47%

Gender

female 69.74%

male 30.26%

Age - 42

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 42

Stress level

5.7

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

7.2

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

7.1

Work life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a department administrator

Explore department administrator education requirements

Most common department administrator degrees

Bachelor's

54.3 %

Associate

17.6 %

Master's

14.8 %

Start to develop specific department administrator skills

Skills	Percentages
Patient Care	10.49%
Patients	10.06%
Financial Reports	7.26%
Human Resources	5.80%
Payroll	5.53%

Complete relevant department administrator training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 3-6 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New department administrators learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a department administrator based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real department administrator resumes.

Gain additional department administrator certifications

Department administrator certifications can show employers you have a baseline of knowledge expected for the position. Certifications can also make you a more competitive candidate. Even if employers don't require a specific department administrator certification, having one may help you stand out relative to other applicants.

The most common certifications for department administrators include Certified Professional - Human Resource (IPMA-CP) and Certified Management Accountant (CMA).

More About Certifications

Research department administrator duties and responsibilities

Manage calendars, correspondence, logs, reports and maintain documentation in Prolog.
Lead implementation of local area network and upgrade of scheduling, billing and A/R software.
Manage patient records ensuring confidentiality and compliance with all HIPAA regulations.
Initiate and manage the implementation of facilities management oversight of external properties.

Prepare your department administrator resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your department administrator resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a department administrator resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable department administrator resume templates

Build a professional department administrator resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your department administrator resume.