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The differences between office assistants and office secretaries can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both an office assistant and an office secretary. Additionally, an office secretary has an average salary of $33,118, which is higher than the $31,517 average annual salary of an office assistant.
The top three skills for an office assistant include data entry, patients and customer service. The most important skills for an office secretary are data entry, phone calls, and telephone calls.
| Office Assistant | Office Secretary | |
| Yearly salary | $31,517 | $33,118 |
| Hourly rate | $15.15 | $15.92 |
| Growth rate | -5% | -8% |
| Number of jobs | 103,293 | 87,771 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 42% | Bachelor's Degree, 42% |
| Average age | 47 | 50 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
Office assistants perform various tasks to ensure that the business runs organized and efficient. An office assistant must possess excellent communication and multi-tasking skills to handle essential duties such as scheduling meetings, monitoring office supplies, storing documents and necessary paperwork, handling customer inquiries and appointments, coordinating in company events, and accomplishing other clerical tasks and administrative support. Office assistants are also required to communicate any observation that would possibly make an impact on the company's performance.
An office secretary is responsible for performing administrative and clerical duties to ensure the smooth flow of operations and prevent delays with project deliverables. Office secretaries also welcome guests, respond to their inquiries and concerns, and direct them to the appropriate department or personnel for their appointments. They schedule meetings, sort documents, handle incoming and outgoing mail, as well as manage inventories for the adequacy of office supplies. An office secretary must have excellent time-management and multitasking skills to conduct tasks within a strict deadline and minimal supervision.
Office assistants and office secretaries have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Office Assistant | Office Secretary | |
| Average salary | $31,517 | $33,118 |
| Salary range | Between $24,000 And $41,000 | Between $25,000 And $42,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | Santa Rosa, CA |
| Highest paying state | Vermont | Hawaii |
| Best paying company | Analysis Group | Guidehouse |
| Best paying industry | Government | Telecommunication |
There are a few differences between an office assistant and an office secretary in terms of educational background:
| Office Assistant | Office Secretary | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 42% | Bachelor's Degree, 42% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Western Carolina University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between office assistants' and office secretaries' demographics:
| Office Assistant | Office Secretary | |
| Average age | 47 | 50 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 17.3% Female, 82.7% | Male, 14.7% Female, 85.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.1% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 21.0% Asian, 8.3% White, 54.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1% | Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.1% Asian, 3.8% White, 66.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |