Office secretary vs department secretary

The differences between office secretaries and department 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 secretary and a department secretary. Additionally, a department secretary has an average salary of $35,473, which is higher than the $33,118 average annual salary of an office secretary.

The top three skills for an office secretary include data entry, phone calls and telephone calls. The most important skills for a department secretary are patients, customer service, and data entry.

Office secretary vs department secretary overview

	Office Secretary	Department Secretary
Yearly salary	$33,118	$35,473
Hourly rate	$15.92	$17.05
Growth rate	-8%	-8%
Number of jobs	87,771	80,303
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 42%	Bachelor's Degree, 39%
Average age	50	50
Years of experience	2	2

What does an office secretary do?

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.

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.

Office secretary vs department secretary salary

Office secretaries and department secretaries have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Office Secretary	Department Secretary
Average salary	$33,118	$35,473
Salary range	Between $25,000 And $42,000	Between $26,000 And $47,000
Highest paying City	Santa Rosa, CA	Oakland, CA
Highest paying state	Hawaii	California
Best paying company	Guidehouse	Brigham and Women's Hospital
Best paying industry	Telecommunication	Government

Differences between office secretary and department secretary education

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

	Office Secretary	Department Secretary
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 42%	Bachelor's Degree, 39%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	Stanford University

Office secretary vs department secretary demographics

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

	Office Secretary	Department Secretary
Average age	50	50
Gender ratio	Male, 14.7% Female, 85.3%	Male, 7.0% Female, 93.0%
Race ratio	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%	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%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between office secretary and department secretary duties and responsibilities

Office secretary example responsibilities.

Lead DoD team that assist Pakistan in gaining military capabilities to conduct counter-terrorism operations against the Taliban.
Research and keep updated on Medicare and Medicaid benefits, qualification requirements, and the legal and financial effects of options.
Determine client eligibility for Medicaid transportation.
Process and submit payroll information and invoices.
Maintain departmental inventory, purchasing/travel paperwork, and process payroll.
Answer customer phone calls-Record daily business transactions-Manage QuickBooks and bank accounts-Enter parts invoices and take inventory

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.

Office secretary vs department secretary skills

Common office secretary skills

Data Entry, 12%
Phone Calls, 11%
Telephone Calls, 8%
Scheduling Appointments, 7%
Office Procedures, 7%
Payroll, 6%

Common department secretary skills

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

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Office and Administrative Industry
Office Secretary
Office Secretary vs Department Secretary

Updated January 8, 2025

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