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Program and administrative assistant vs program assistant

The differences between program and administrative assistants and program assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a program and administrative assistant, becoming a program assistant takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a program and administrative assistant has an average salary of $35,631, which is higher than the $35,193 average annual salary of a program assistant.

The top three skills for a program and administrative assistant include data entry, database management and powerpoint. The most important skills for a program assistant are patients, customer service, and data entry.

Program and administrative assistant vs program assistant overview

Program And Administrative AssistantProgram Assistant
Yearly salary$35,631$35,193
Hourly rate$17.13$16.92
Growth rate-8%12%
Number of jobs119,53396,901
Job satisfaction-4
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 57%Bachelor's Degree, 62%
Average age5043
Years of experience212

What does a program and administrative assistant do?

The Program and Administrative assistant work alongside a company's admin to manage all administrative tasks and activities. The program and administrative assistant work in both clerical duties and organizing files and storage. Included are making and receiving calls, setting, reminding, and following-up appointments, meetings, and events. The program and administrative assistant acts as the primary contact person of the administration and may be tasked to do a lot of clerical work. If you are interested in this position, you can start now.

What does a program assistant do?

Program assistants are usually entry-level or junior employees assigned to a department that handles a specific program in the organization. They assist the team they are assigned to in the implementation of the programs. They usually take care of administrative or clerical activities while also getting exposure to actual program management. Program assistants get trained to handle agendas from inception, to sourcing, to implementation, to evaluation. They may also handle documentary support for business cases or other presentation materials that the team may need for a specific part of the program management cycle.

Program and administrative assistant vs program assistant salary

Program and administrative assistants and program assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.

Program And Administrative AssistantProgram Assistant
Average salary$35,631$35,193
Salary rangeBetween $27,000 And $46,000Between $27,000 And $45,000
Highest paying CityWashington, DCWashington, DC
Highest paying stateConnecticutConnecticut
Best paying companyUC Santa BarbaraThe Aspen Institute
Best paying industryEducationGovernment

Differences between program and administrative assistant and program assistant education

There are a few differences between a program and administrative assistant and a program assistant in terms of educational background:

Program And Administrative AssistantProgram Assistant
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 57%Bachelor's Degree, 62%
Most common majorBusinessBusiness
Most common collegeWestern Carolina UniversityNorthwestern University

Program and administrative assistant vs program assistant demographics

Here are the differences between program and administrative assistants' and program assistants' demographics:

Program And Administrative AssistantProgram Assistant
Average age5043
Gender ratioMale, 15.7% Female, 84.3%Male, 24.8% Female, 75.2%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.0% Asian, 3.8% White, 66.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%Black or African American, 13.8% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 19.0% Asian, 6.7% White, 53.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.2%
LGBT Percentage6%11%

Differences between program and administrative assistant and program assistant duties and responsibilities

Program and administrative assistant example responsibilities.

  • Participate in committee meetings by preparing minutes and presentation summaries, planning meeting agendas, and organizing and managing meeting logistics.
  • Work hand-in-hand with payroll director and maintain personnel and statistical reports for monthly review by regional director.
  • Perform business office duties, such as payroll, accounts payable and accounts receivable, and balance all accounts monthly.
  • Archive and organize program documents using SharePoint.
  • Ensure that written correspondences including PowerPoint presentations adhere to procedural compliance, style composition, typing and grammatical accuracy.
  • Participate in committee meetings by preparing minutes and presentation summaries, planning meeting agendas, and organizing and managing meeting logistics.
  • Show more

Program assistant example responsibilities.

  • Lead classes in anatomy/physiology, medical terminology, transcription.
  • Manage oversight of budget/finance, personnel and continuous program improvement.
  • Assist in achieving and maintaining DoD certification and national accreditation where applicable.
  • Instruct students in C++ and Java programming, robot design and construction.
  • Introduce students to various computer pro- gramming languages (HTML, CSS, JavaScript).
  • Present information about RSVP to community organizations.
  • Show more

Program and administrative assistant vs program assistant skills

Common program and administrative assistant skills
  • Data Entry, 9%
  • Database Management, 7%
  • PowerPoint, 7%
  • Routine Correspondence, 7%
  • Provides Administrative Support, 7%
  • Travel Arrangements, 5%
Common program assistant skills
  • Patients, 12%
  • Customer Service, 9%
  • Data Entry, 8%
  • HR, 6%
  • Excellent Interpersonal, 6%
  • Data Collection, 4%

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