What does a planning assistant do?
Planning assistants are paid around $38K per year. Individuals need knowledge of drafting, preparing preliminary design layouts, and analyzing information. Those who choose this career will be expected to initiate, prepare, and/or conduct surveys. They must also prepare analytical reports, preliminary designs, development plans, subdivision plans, recreational layouts, or special studies.
Planning assistant responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real planning assistant resumes:
- Maintain expansive parkland data sets using ArcGIS software to attain accountability for government databases.
- Perform financial analysis on various securities to support senior leadership with investment planning.
- Generate MRP reports and update information in order entry system.
- Help meet IEP base goals objective for the school year.
- Keep inventory of all the merchandising that will go to VIP guests
- Greet visitors and determine whether they should be given access to VIP individuals.
- Oversee and process all licensing kits and continuing education applications for securities and insurance exams and renewals.
- Generate detail corridor study reports for municipalities.
- Gain knowledge about the sustainability of this urban design alternative.
- Complete necessary purchasing, manufacturing, and inventory transactions in PeopleSoft MRP system.
- Develop PowerPoint presentations on event strategies, promotional plans, business plans and objectives and event budgets
- Share vast knowledge of team formation, sustainability, productivity, effective communication, diversity among peers and conflict resolution.
- Research previous transportation studies and offer recommendations to improve roadway and corridor design as well as ways to mitigate regulatory delays.
- Provide caregiver relief as part of the plan of care.
- Assist patient and or caregiver in maintaining a clean and safe home.
Planning assistant skills and personality traits
We calculated that 17% of Planning Assistants are proficient in Patients, Social Work, and Financial Reports. They’re also known for soft skills such as Leadership skills, Customer-service skills, and Detail oriented.
We break down the percentage of Planning Assistants that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Patients, 17%
Coordinated with medical/administrative staff to empower patients to self-manage & overcome barriers for receipt of community-based care/support.
- Social Work, 11%
Case management position that took on the duo role of Discharge Planner and Facility Social Worker.
- Financial Reports, 10%
Modified financial reports using internal databases, reducing workload.
- Discharge Planning, 7%
Perform clerical functions related to discharge planning process such as faxing, copying, discharge packets, etc.
- Client Data, 7%
Launched effort to improve efficiency in retrieval of client data by identifying and digitizing key records.
- Logistics, 5%
Negotiated program implementation logistics within the community.
Most planning assistants use their skills in "patients," "social work," and "financial reports" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential planning assistant responsibilities here:
Customer-service skills. Many planning assistant duties rely on customer-service skills. "material recording clerks may interact with customers in order to respond to problems or complaints.," so a planning assistant will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways planning assistant responsibilities rely on customer-service skills: "issued purchase orders to fulfill manufacturing and customer sales orders requirements. "
Detail oriented. planning assistants are also known for detail oriented, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to planning assistant responsibilities, because "material and product inspecting clerks must pay attention to detail when checking items for defects, some of which are small and difficult to spot." A planning assistant resume example shows how detail oriented is used in the workplace: "prepared and delivered monthly financial reports with operating cost detail sent to nutresa headquarter. "
Communication skills. planning assistant responsibilities often require "communication skills." The duties that rely on this skill are shown by the fact that "material recording clerks are frequently in contact with suppliers, vendors, or managers and need to convey their company’s needs effectively." This resume example shows what planning assistants do with communication skills on a typical day: "maintain positive and professional communication with parents, social workers, court staff, and other members of the community. "
Math skills. Another skill commonly found on planning assistant job descriptions is "math skills." It can come up quite often in planning assistant duties, since "material recording clerks may need to calculate shipping costs or take measurements." Here's an example from a resume of how this skill fits into day-to-day planning assistant responsibilities: "prepare building permits; generate monthly statistics and financial reports. "
The three companies that hire the most planning assistants are:
- Trinity Health6 planning assistants jobs
- Hantz Group5 planning assistants jobs
- Advance Auto Parts2 planning assistants jobs
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Planning assistant vs. Planning coordinator
As planning coordinators, there are certain skills that this job requires to accomplish their responsibilities. They mostly work at the non-profits and health care facilities. Working as planning coordinators, it is expected that your communication skills are good, excellent customer service skills, and detail-oriented. Moreover, as a planning coordinator, part of their job is to focus on patient care, treatment plans, and medical records. This job is complex, and it's not limited to patient care but also managing financial statements and providing good customer service throughout.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, planning assistant responsibilities require skills like "social work," "client data," "purchase orders," and "data analysis." Meanwhile a typical planning coordinator has skills in areas such as "insurance benefits," "customer service," "data entry," and "rehabilitation." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
Planning coordinators really shine in the finance industry with an average salary of $54,780. Comparatively, planning assistants tend to make the most money in the finance industry with an average salary of $51,005.On average, planning coordinators reach similar levels of education than planning assistants. Planning coordinators are 1.1% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.3% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Planning assistant vs. Planning internship
When it comes to planning an internship, an intern's duties will depend on the directives of supervising staff or a manager. Typically, an intern's responsibilities will revolve around performing clerical tasks such as processing documents, producing reports and presentations, responding to calls and correspondence, and managing schedules. There are also instances where an intern must share ideas and insights, attend meetings, maintain records, update databases, and assist staff in various tasks while under more experienced colleagues' supervision.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real planning assistant resumes. While planning assistant responsibilities can utilize skills like "patients," "social work," "financial reports," and "discharge planning," planning interns use skills like "arcgis," "project management," "photoshop," and "transportation planning."
Planning interns may earn a lower salary than planning assistants, but planning interns earn the most pay in the professional industry with an average salary of $41,003. On the other hand, planning assistants receive higher pay in the finance industry, where they earn an average salary of $51,005.planning interns earn similar levels of education than planning assistants in general. They're 3.8% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.3% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Planning assistant vs. City planning aide
Planning technicians must have a wide skill set, including knowledge of planning principles and practices, data collection, effective writing techniques, and knowledge of statistics. It also demands an associate degree in urban planning, architecture, construction management, or social sciences, in addition to 2 years' experience in zoning administration. Those who choose this career path will need to respond to questions about planning permission application processes. They also collect, analyze, and record data on planning permission applications.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a planning assistant is likely to be skilled in "patients," "social work," "financial reports," and "discharge planning," while a typical city planning aide is skilled in "nyc," "blowers," "safety hazards," and "restoration projects."
City planning aides typically earn lower educational levels compared to planning assistants. Specifically, they're 6.3% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.5% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Planning assistant vs. Planning technician
Types of planning assistant
Updated January 8, 2025











