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What does a Program Administrator do?

Updated January 8, 2025
8 min read
Quoted Expert
Dr. Sheying Chen Ph.D.
What does a Program Administrator do

Program administrators are responsible for planning, directing, and coordinating their organization's program or service. Their duties and responsibilities may vary depending on the industry they work at, such as educational, community, and social services. Among these duties are selecting and supervising the staff to manage a certain program or project, managing the program's budget, and evaluating the success of a program. To become successful in this role, a program administrator must have in-depth knowledge of project management disciplines, leadership skills, and decision-making and problem-solving skills.

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Program administrator responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real program administrator resumes:

  • Manage monetary, laptop and training supports for members living with HIV.
  • Manage overall document inventory and wiki updates via SharePoint.
  • Manage CRM and SharePoint systems for online recruiting technology company.
  • Manage co-op vendor and provide overall program direction for Toyota dealers and regional offices nationwide.
  • Develop and implement administrative procedures for new mental health management unit providing day services to elderly patients.
  • Invoice clients using QuickBooks software.
  • Organize on-campus events involving current and prospective students, alumni, staff and faculty.
  • Re-Engineer PMO portfolio reports, KPI status reports, lessons learned, and scorecard templates.
  • Identify and use error trends to identify training needs and facilitate delivery to all CSS staff.
  • Develop solutions in the service-now platform that are ITIL V3compliant and define business solutions for ITIL users.
  • Develop custom probes and sensors to populate CMDB with pertinent asset data via JavaScript, Perl and PowerShell.
  • Develop the presentation layer using JSP, AJAX, HTML, XHTML, CSS and client validations using JavaScript.
  • Coordinate seasonal field crew logistics and on-site training activities.
  • Establish and maintain document management through aSharePoint base PMO collaboration website.
  • Provide desktop and system administration support using VMware across different networks.

Program administrator skills and personality traits

We calculated that 7% of Program Administrators are proficient in Customer Service, Oversight, and Patients. They’re also known for soft skills such as Multitasking skills, Analytical skills, and Problem-solving skills.

We break down the percentage of Program Administrators that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Customer Service, 7%

    Provided leadership through national forums that redesigned and implemented outstanding strategies, policies and procedures in customer service programs.

  • Oversight, 7%

    Provided implementation and oversight of multiple tracking systems for safety regulation adherence, record maintenance, and internal and external interactions.

  • Patients, 6%

    Assumed administrative responsibilities for the daily operation of a Partial Psychiatric Program for acutely ill adult and geriatric patients.

  • Project Management, 6%

    Invested time in professional development classes to enhance project management and communication skills.

  • PowerPoint, 4%

    Developed needs assessments and PowerPoint presentations detailing program concepts, benefits and earned across-the-board praise for program quality.

  • Client Facing, 4%

    Administered implementation and compliance of external client facing programs.

"customer service," "oversight," and "patients" are among the most common skills that program administrators use at work. You can find even more program administrator responsibilities below, including:

Multitasking skills. The most essential soft skill for a program administrator to carry out their responsibilities is multitasking skills. This skill is important for the role because "administrators may have to work on many problems and tasks at the same time." Additionally, a program administrator resume shows how their duties depend on multitasking skills: "supervised small staff of employees, experience in the area of program administration, program development and multitasking. "

Analytical skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling program administrator duties is analytical skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "administrators need to evaluate networks and systems to make sure that they perform reliably and to anticipate new requirements as customers’ needs change." According to a program administrator resume, here's how program administrators can utilize analytical skills in their job responsibilities: "analyzed programmatic needs on a continuing basis and advised cmrp program management regarding deficiencies and areas of improvement. "

Problem-solving skills. program administrators are also known for problem-solving skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to program administrator responsibilities, because "administrators must quickly resolve problems that arise with computer networks." A program administrator resume example shows how problem-solving skills is used in the workplace: "pioneered electronic records management solutions for the command and management of records on sharepoint. "

Communication skills. A big part of what program administrators do relies on "communication skills." You can see how essential it is to program administrator responsibilities because "administrators must describe problems and their solutions to non-it workers." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical program administrator tasks: "demonstrated thorough knowledge of budget oversight and preparation of materials for written and oral communication. "

Most common program administrator skills

The three companies that hire the most program administrators are:

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Compare different program administrators

Program administrator vs. Program officer

A program officer is an essential part of a foundation or charitable organization. It is up to program officers to supervise program progress and proposals, seek grants, manage projects, and oversee budgets. They generally guarantee that an organization's activities and programs are met with the vision and mission statements of that foundation. It is the program officer's responsibility to complete various tasks in completing the demands of this position. Moreover, their job includes developing their staff, implementation, and daily management of activities.

If we compare the average program administrator annual salary with that of a program officer, we find that program officers typically earn a $28,838 higher salary than program administrators make annually.While their salaries may differ, the common ground between program administrators and program officers are a few of the skills required in each roleacirc;euro;trade;s responsibilities. In both careers, employee duties involve skills like project management, powerpoint, and program management.

These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a program administrator are more likely to require skills like "customer service," "oversight," "patients," and "client facing." On the other hand, a job as a program officer requires skills like "public health," "private sector," "logistics," and "capacity building." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.

Program officers tend to make the most money working in the finance industry, where they earn an average salary of $87,517. In contrast, program administrators make the biggest average salary, $60,280, in the government industry.The education levels that program officers earn slightly differ from program administrators. In particular, program officers are 8.7% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a program administrator. Additionally, they're 1.5% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Program administrator vs. Assistant systems administrator

Assistant systems administrators are responsible for supporting a team with their day-to-day operations of a company's computer systems and networks. They perform varied tasks, including monitoring, maintaining, and testing internet performance, ensuring the availability of computer networks for all users, and troubleshooting system failures and computer hardware and software issues. Assistant systems administrators may conduct training and support other network users within the organization. Additional tasks also include monitoring and evaluating the efficiency of operations and preparing systems and software documentation.

A career as a assistant systems administrator brings a lower average salary when compared to the average annual salary of a program administrator. In fact, assistant systems administrators salary is $9,938 lower than the salary of program administrators per year.While the salary may differ for these jobs, they share a few skills needed to perform their duties. Based on resume data, both program administrators and assistant systems administrators have skills such as "customer service," "oversight," and "patients. "

In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, program administrator responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "project management," "client facing," "data entry," and "program management." Meanwhile, an assistant systems administrator has duties that require skills in areas such as "bed facility," "patient care," "financial statements," and "quality care." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.

Assistant systems administrators earn a lower average salary than program administrators. But assistant systems administrators earn the highest pay in the health care industry, with an average salary of $46,025. Additionally, program administrators earn the highest salaries in the government with average pay of $60,280 annually.In general, assistant systems administrators achieve similar levels of education than program administrators. They're 4.6% less likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 1.5% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for Program Administrators in the next 3-5 years?

Dr. Sheying Chen Ph.D.Dr. Sheying Chen Ph.D. LinkedIn Profile

Professor of Public Administration/Social Policy, Pace University

The economy will eventually recover, though its structure and job composition may be quite different. Public administration has to adapt to those fundamental changes with retraining, renovation, etc. with more muscular accountability control, particularly for new entrants to the labor force. Experts suggest that the pandemic's primary consequence is to accelerate the timeline of automation and artificial intelligence (AI) we had already anticipated. Policymakers should push for investments in institutions that closely tie worker skills to employers' needs, as the economy recovers after COVID-19.

Program administrator vs. Executive administrator

An executive administrator is responsible for assisting the senior management staff in planning strategies and analyzing business decisions to achieve the company's goals and objectives. Executive administrators schedule meetings and handle appointments, as well as helping with the implementation of training and programs for the employees to reach their maximum operational potential and increase productivity to meet projects' demands and ensure the highest customer satisfaction. They must have exceptional time-management and organizational skills, especially on performing administrative and clerical duties as needed, as well as excellent communication skills to respond to clients' inquiries, concerns, and requests.

On average scale, executive administrators bring in higher salaries than program administrators. In fact, they earn a $2,140 higher salary per year.By looking over several program administrators and executive administrators resumes, we found that both roles require similar skills in their day-to-day duties, such as "customer service," "powerpoint," and "data entry." But beyond that, the careers look very different.

There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a program administrator is likely to be skilled in "oversight," "patients," "project management," and "client facing," while a typical executive administrator is skilled in "office procedures," "financial statements," "calendar management," and "conference calls."

Executive administrators make a very good living in the technology industry with an average annual salary of $58,323. On the other hand, program administrators are paid the highest salary in the government industry, with average annual pay of $60,280.When it comes to education, executive administrators tend to earn lower degree levels compared to program administrators. In fact, they're 7.6% less likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.9% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Program administrator vs. Business administrator

A business administrator is responsible for monitoring the efficiency of daily business functions, ensuring the timely submission of project deliverables, and supervising project management procedures. Business administrators coordinate with existing and potential clients for business offers and updates, negotiating contracts, and identifying business opportunities from the market trends to generate more revenues and increase profitability. They work closely with other department heads to meet clients' demands and public interests, as well as hiring and training new staff to maximize the company's productivity and boost best efforts.

Business administrators average a higher salary than the annual salary of program administrators. The difference is about $21,788 per year.While both program administrators and business administrators complete day-to-day tasks using similar skills like customer service, oversight, and powerpoint, the two careers vary in some skills.While some skills are required in each professionacirc;euro;trade;s responsibilities, there are some differences to note. "patients," "project management," "client facing," and "data entry" are skills that commonly show up on program administrator resumes. On the other hand, business administrators use skills like team support, financial statements, windows, and bi on their resumes.In general, business administrators earn the most working in the finance industry, with an average salary of $94,044. The highest-paying industry for a program administrator is the government industry.In general, business administrators hold lower degree levels compared to program administrators. Business administrators are 6.1% less likely to earn their Master's Degree and 1.1% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Types of program administrator

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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