An office associate is responsible for handling incoming calls and managing filing systems. They record information and greet clients and visitors as needed. Updating paperwork, maintaining documents and word processing, and helping organize and maintain common office areas are part of their jurisdiction. They also perform general office clerk duties and errands, organizing travel by booking accommodations and reservations as required and coordinating events as necessary.
They maintain supply inventory and office equipment as needed, aid with client reception as needed, work as a virtual assistant, and creating, maintaining, and entering information into databases. Some coveted skills include; ability to write clearly and help with word processing when necessary, have a warm personality with good communication skills, and have the ability to work well under limited supervision.
They need a high school diploma or GED with relevant experience or an associate's degree. They typically earn $39,492 per year, which translates to $18.99 per hour. This job is in decline, dropping by 4%, and will lose 110,600 jobs by 2028.
What is an Office Associate?
What Does an Office Associate Do
There are certain skills that many office associates have in order to accomplish their responsibilities. By taking a look through resumes, we were able to narrow down the most common skills for a person in this position. We discovered that a lot of resumes listed customer-service skills, detail oriented and organizational skills.
How To Become an Office Associate
If you're interested in becoming an office associate, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 44.9% of office associates have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 4.9% of office associates have master's degrees. Even though most office associates have a college degree, it's possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.
Office Associate Career Paths
In addition to switching up your job search, it might prove helpful to look at a career path for your specific job. Now, what's a career path you ask? Well, it's practically a map that shows how you might advance from one job title to another. Our career paths are especially detailed with salary changes. So, for example, if you started out with the role of teller you might progress to a role such as specialist eventually. Later on in your career, you could end up with the title operations manager.
Average Salary for an Office Associate
What Am I Worth?
States With The Most Office Associate Jobs
Number Of Office Associate Jobs By State
| Rank | State | Number of Jobs | Average Salary |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | 4,348 | $37,223 |
| 2 | Florida | 3,182 | $25,103 |
| 3 | Texas | 2,982 | $24,862 |
| 4 | New York | 2,804 | $35,011 |
| 5 | Pennsylvania | 2,074 | $31,294 |
| 6 | Illinois | 1,778 | $32,983 |
| 7 | Ohio | 1,605 | $30,401 |
| 8 | New Jersey | 1,587 | $33,751 |
| 9 | Georgia | 1,398 | $26,203 |
| 10 | Massachusetts | 1,351 | $32,615 |
| 11 | Michigan | 1,314 | $31,391 |
| 12 | North Carolina | 1,307 | $26,657 |
| 13 | Virginia | 1,216 | $29,157 |
| 14 | Minnesota | 1,056 | $30,066 |
| 15 | Washington | 1,052 | $39,636 |
| 16 | Arizona | 1,043 | $27,918 |
| 17 | Indiana | 1,023 | $29,197 |
| 18 | Tennessee | 930 | $24,906 |
| 19 | Maryland | 897 | $30,921 |
| 20 | Wisconsin | 869 | $32,267 |
| 21 | Colorado | 865 | $35,405 |
| 22 | Missouri | 818 | $26,783 |
| 23 | Iowa | 697 | $28,094 |
| 24 | Oregon | 617 | $35,005 |
| 25 | South Carolina | 591 | $23,323 |
| 26 | Connecticut | 535 | $35,613 |
| 27 | Kentucky | 497 | $25,084 |
| 28 | Utah | 467 | $28,364 |
| 29 | Alabama | 465 | $21,846 |
| 30 | Kansas | 361 | $21,298 |
| 31 | Oklahoma | 355 | $23,724 |
| 32 | Louisiana | 350 | $22,220 |
| 33 | Nevada | 331 | $32,138 |
| 34 | Nebraska | 308 | $30,359 |
| 35 | Arkansas | 251 | $27,638 |
| 36 | New Mexico | 248 | $19,974 |
| 37 | New Hampshire | 226 | $31,251 |
| 38 | Mississippi | 222 | $25,320 |
| 39 | Idaho | 206 | $28,059 |
| 40 | Montana | 201 | $30,125 |
| 41 | Maine | 191 | $30,478 |
| 42 | Delaware | 168 | $28,808 |
| 43 | West Virginia | 166 | $26,601 |
| 44 | Alaska | 146 | $52,197 |
| 45 | Rhode Island | 146 | $33,610 |
| 46 | South Dakota | 143 | $24,232 |
| 47 | North Dakota | 129 | $30,856 |
| 48 | Wyoming | 101 | $30,505 |
| 49 | Hawaii | 92 | $36,272 |
| 50 | Vermont | 80 | $32,441 |
Top Colleges for Office Associates
1. Western Carolina University
Cullowhee, NC • Private
2. Stanford University
Stanford, CA • Private
3. Ball State University
Muncie, IN • Private
4. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
5. Bowling Green State University
Bowling Green, OH • Private
6. Cedar Crest College
Allentown, PA • Private
7. Morgan State University
Baltimore, MD • Private
8. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
9. Siena Heights University
Adrian, MI • Private
10. University of Akron
Akron, OH • Private
Top Skills For an Office Associate
The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 22.0% of office associates listed customer service on their resume, but soft skills such as customer-service skills and detail oriented are important as well.
Choose From 10+ Customizable Office Associate Resume templates
Zippia allows you to choose from different easy-to-use Office Associate templates, and provides you with expert advice. Using the templates, you can rest assured that the structure and format of your Office Associate resume is top notch. Choose a template with the colors, fonts & text sizes that are appropriate for your industry.
Office Associate Demographics
Office Associate Gender Distribution
After extensive research and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:
- Among office associates, 75.1% of them are women, while 24.9% are men.
- The most common race/ethnicity among office associates is White, which makes up 60.2% of all office associates.
- The most common foreign language among office associates is Spanish at 58.1%.
Work Experience Programs For Office Associates
Virtual work experience programs replicate work at top companies and help you gain the skills to be successful when applying and working there. In only a few hours, learn the relevant tools necessary to complete a typical work day at that company. Virtual work experience programs are 100% free, open-access, and self-paced. No experience or application is required!
Company: Herbert Smith Freehills
Cost: Free
Duration: 5-6.5 hours
Company: Standard Bank
Cost: Free
Duration: 5.5 hours
Online Courses For Office Associate That You May Like
Learn the audit process from planning to audit report form a Certified Public Accountant (CPA)...
Learn basic to advanced Microsoft Office skills in this 9-course bundle for Office 365 or Office 2019...
Learn the essentials of Microsoft Office in this 3-course bundle for Office 365 or Office 2019 users...
Best States For an Office Associate
Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as an office associate. The best states for people in this position are Alaska, Washington, California, and Hawaii. Office associates make the most in Alaska with an average salary of $52,197. Whereas in Washington and California, they would average $39,636 and $37,223, respectively. While office associates would only make an average of $36,272 in Hawaii, you would still make more there than in the rest of the country. We determined these as the best states based on job availability and pay. By finding the median salary, cost of living, and using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Location Quotient, we narrowed down our list of states to these four.
1. Alaska
$52,197
Avg. Salary
2. Washington
$39,636
Avg. Salary
3. Connecticut
$35,613
Avg. Salary
How Do Office Associate Rate Their Jobs?
Top Office Associate Employers
Most Common Employers For Office Associate
| Rank | Company | Average Salary | Hourly Rate | Job Openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bob's Discount Furniture | $39,082 | $18.79 | 141 |
| 2 | Havertys Furniture | $36,992 | $17.78 | 57 |
| 3 | State Farm Insurance Agency | $36,324 | $17.46 | 89 |
| 4 | Carilion Clinic | $36,033 | $17.32 | 70 |
| 5 | Staples | $35,375 | $17.01 | 633 |
| 6 | The University of Alabama | $35,301 | $16.97 | 134 |
| 7 | Value City Furniture | $34,974 | $16.81 | 62 |
| 8 | State Farm | $34,708 | $16.69 | 76 |
| 9 | University of Nebraska Medical Center | $34,394 | $16.54 | 57 |
| 10 | FedEx | $33,141 | $15.93 | 79 |