Department secretary vs senior secretary

The differences between department secretaries and senior secretaries can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a department secretary, becoming a senior secretary takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a department secretary has an average salary of $35,473, which is higher than the $33,120 average annual salary of a senior secretary.

The top three skills for a department secretary include patients, customer service and data entry. The most important skills for a senior secretary are patients, routine correspondence, and data entry.

Department secretary vs senior secretary overview

	Department Secretary	Senior Secretary
Yearly salary	$35,473	$33,120
Hourly rate	$17.05	$15.92
Growth rate	-8%	-8%
Number of jobs	80,303	37,284
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 39%	Bachelor's Degree, 40%
Average age	50	49
Years of experience	2	4

What does a department secretary do?

A department secretary is responsible for providing administrative and clerical support to a specific department, ensuring smooth operations to maintain high-quality services to the customers and business partners. Department secretaries should have excellent knowledge of office management principles, especially on data processing procedures and customer service processes. They handle the scheduling of meetings and conferences, responding to customers' inquiries and concerns, directing visitors to the appropriate personnel and department, sorting files, and submitting business transactions and financial reports. A department secretary also recommends strategic procedures to generate more revenues and increase the company's profitability.

What does a senior secretary do?

A Senior Secretary is responsible for maintaining office records, receiving and directing telephone calls, and writing various reports for managers. They also schedule appointments and meetings for supervisors and assist in the process of new hires.

Department secretary vs senior secretary salary

Department secretaries and senior secretaries have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Department Secretary	Senior Secretary
Average salary	$35,473	$33,120
Salary range	Between $26,000 And $47,000	Between $26,000 And $40,000
Highest paying City	Oakland, CA	Santa Rosa, CA
Highest paying state	California	Hawaii
Best paying company	Brigham and Women's Hospital	Columbia University in the City of New York
Best paying industry	Government	Pharmaceutical

Differences between department secretary and senior secretary education

There are a few differences between a department secretary and a senior secretary in terms of educational background:

	Department Secretary	Senior Secretary
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 39%	Bachelor's Degree, 40%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	Stanford University	Western Carolina University

Department secretary vs senior secretary demographics

Here are the differences between department secretaries' and senior secretaries' demographics:

	Department Secretary	Senior Secretary
Average age	50	49
Gender ratio	Male, 7.0% Female, 93.0%	Male, 5.9% Female, 94.1%
Race ratio	Black 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, 7.6% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 11.2% Asian, 5.0% White, 71.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage	6%	10%

Differences between department secretary and senior secretary duties and responsibilities

Department secretary example responsibilities.

Lead DoD team that assist Pakistan in gaining military capabilities to conduct counter-terrorism operations against the Taliban.
Volunteer for ISO auditor duties to ensure ISO procedures are followed for certification.
Perform payroll functions, including maintaining timekeeping information and processing and submitting payroll.
Prepare materials for monthly board of directors meetings including PowerPoint presentations, agendas and minutes.
Complete all payroll documentation, enter all payroll documentation into computer program, and submit to payroll department.
Create PowerPoint presentations used for business development, organize files and develop spreadsheets, fax reports and scan documents.

Senior secretary example responsibilities.

Manage high volume of requests and correspondence from executives and colleagues, pharmaceutical representatives, patients and outside physicians.
Prepare PowerPoint presentations, complete statistical reports, and convert reports to various formats.
Maintain confidentiality of all payroll documents and office files.
Compile and distribute customer updates for payroll software programs and telecommunications networks.
Maintain databases, prepare PowerPoint presentations, maintain inventory and requisition supplies for the department.
Demonstrate professional integrity and tactful handling of confidential and protect health information according to HIPAA and administrative policy guidelines.

Department secretary vs senior secretary skills

Common department secretary skills

Patients, 22%
Customer Service, 10%
Data Entry, 7%
Medical Terminology, 7%
Patient Care, 4%
Word Processing, 4%

Common senior secretary skills

Patients, 12%
Routine Correspondence, 11%
Data Entry, 8%
Telephone Calls, 6%
Office Equipment, 6%
Payroll, 5%

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Office and Administrative Industry
Department Secretary
Department Secretary vs Senior Secretary

Updated January 8, 2025

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