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Engineering secretary vs administrative assistant

The differences between engineering secretaries and administrative assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both an engineering secretary and an administrative assistant. Additionally, an administrative assistant has an average salary of $34,945, which is higher than the $34,452 average annual salary of an engineering secretary.

The top three skills for an engineering secretary include purchase orders, travel arrangements and payroll. The most important skills for an administrative assistant are customer service, data entry, and powerpoint.

Engineering secretary vs administrative assistant overview

Engineering SecretaryAdministrative Assistant
Yearly salary$34,452$34,945
Hourly rate$16.56$16.80
Growth rate-8%-8%
Number of jobs60,47365,769
Job satisfaction-4.14
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 36%Bachelor's Degree, 47%
Average age5050
Years of experience22

Engineering secretary vs administrative assistant salary

Engineering secretaries and administrative assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.

Engineering SecretaryAdministrative Assistant
Average salary$34,452$34,945
Salary rangeBetween $25,000 And $46,000Between $26,000 And $46,000
Highest paying City-San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state-California
Best paying company-Westfield State University
Best paying industry--

Differences between engineering secretary and administrative assistant education

There are a few differences between an engineering secretary and an administrative assistant in terms of educational background:

Engineering SecretaryAdministrative Assistant
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 36%Bachelor's Degree, 47%
Most common majorBusinessBusiness
Most common collegeWestern Carolina UniversityWestern Carolina University

Engineering secretary vs administrative assistant demographics

Here are the differences between engineering secretaries' and administrative assistants' demographics:

Engineering SecretaryAdministrative Assistant
Average age5050
Gender ratioMale, 6.3% Female, 93.7%Male, 12.7% Female, 87.3%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.4% Asian, 3.8% White, 65.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.0% Asian, 3.8% White, 66.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage6%6%

Differences between engineering secretary and administrative assistant duties and responsibilities

Engineering secretary example responsibilities.

  • Manage fireworks inventory through QuickBooks and process customer wholesale orders.
  • Handle and process payroll for all 12 staff members, hand writing checks and calculating hours.
  • Prepare shipping documentation for all plant shipments, maintain records of daily shipments to payroll for job closing.
  • Prepare documents, PowerPoint presentations, PDF files, charts, graphs with test results for engineer meetings.
  • Prepare discharges, enter all updates into OASAS system and review patient information to verify patients eligibility to receive transportation reimbursement.
  • Maintain confidential files for individuals requesting arbitration, liaison between labor and management to complete the grievance process.

Administrative assistant example responsibilities.

  • Manage time and attendance using Kronos software for entire department.
  • Participate in national projects, manage new customer conversions to MCI from other carriers.
  • Manage FEDEX delivery requirements ensuring compliance with company policy.
  • Manage and update social media outlets including Facebook and LinkedIn.
  • Manage company finances using QuickBooks software, including monitoring the operating budget and collecting on unpaid invoices.
  • Manage and develop the daily clinical schedule for the in-patient rehabilitation staff taking into consideration Medicare guidelines and staffing ratios.
  • Show more

Engineering secretary vs administrative assistant skills

Common engineering secretary skills
  • Purchase Orders, 14%
  • Travel Arrangements, 9%
  • Payroll, 8%
  • Technical Manuals, 5%
  • Word Processing, 5%
  • Bid Proposals, 5%
Common administrative assistant skills
  • Customer Service, 14%
  • Data Entry, 11%
  • PowerPoint, 6%
  • Travel Arrangements, 5%
  • Database Management, 5%
  • Word Processing, 5%

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