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What does a program and administrative assistant do?

Updated January 8, 2025
7 min read
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.

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Program and administrative assistant responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real program and administrative assistant resumes:

  • 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.
  • Review process Medicaid applications and renewals by coordinating the start of service date with the Medicaid eligibility data.

Program and administrative assistant skills and personality traits

We calculated that 9% of Program And Administrative Assistants are proficient in Data Entry, Database Management, and PowerPoint. They’re also known for soft skills such as Interpersonal skills, Organizational skills, and Writing skills.

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

  • Data Entry, 9%

    Screened clients for program eligibility, processed accounts receivable/payable (data entry), coordinated program procedures/guidelines with subcontractors.

  • Database Management, 7%

    Demonstrated proficiency with the use of standard business productivity, computer database management and Internet applications on personal computers.

  • PowerPoint, 7%

    Ensured that written correspondences including PowerPoint presentations adhere to procedural compliance, style composition, typing and grammatical accuracy.

  • Routine Correspondence, 7%

    Composed confidential, routine and non-routine correspondence/presentations/reports and responded to all operational inquiries in a timely, confidential and appropriate manner.

  • Provides Administrative Support, 7%

    Manage Executive member of management schedule and provides administrative support to alternate management as well as clients.

  • Travel Arrangements, 5%

    Coordinated office activities, maintain appointment calendars, screen incoming calls, verify security clearances and prepare travel arrangements.

Most program and administrative assistants use their skills in "data entry," "database management," and "powerpoint" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential program and administrative assistant responsibilities here:

Interpersonal skills. One of the key soft skills for a program and administrative assistant to have is interpersonal skills. You can see how this relates to what program and administrative assistants do because "secretaries and administrative assistants interact with clients, customers, or staff." Additionally, a program and administrative assistant resume shows how program and administrative assistants use interpersonal skills: "commended for strong interpersonal skills and client relations skills; often served as a liaison between our human resources department. "

Organizational skills. Many program and administrative assistant duties rely on organizational skills. "secretaries and administrative assistants keep files, folders, and schedules in order so that an office runs efficiently.," so a program and administrative assistant will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways program and administrative assistant responsibilities rely on organizational skills: "prepared meeting minutes and memorandums for organizational support. "

Writing skills. This is an important skill for program and administrative assistants to perform their duties. For an example of how program and administrative assistant responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "secretaries and administrative assistants write memos and emails when communicating with managers, employees, and customers." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of a program and administrative assistant: "grant writing to recapitalize loan program payroll clerk and assistant to fiscal officer".

Most common program and administrative assistant skills

Choose from 10+ customizable program and administrative assistant resume templates

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Program And Administrative Assistant Resume
Program And Administrative Assistant Resume
Program And Administrative Assistant Resume
Program And Administrative Assistant Resume
Program And Administrative Assistant Resume
Program And Administrative Assistant Resume
Program And Administrative Assistant Resume
Program And Administrative Assistant Resume
Program And Administrative Assistant Resume
Program And Administrative Assistant Resume
Program And Administrative Assistant Resume
Program And Administrative Assistant Resume
Program And Administrative Assistant Resume
Program And Administrative Assistant Resume
Program And Administrative Assistant Resume
Program And Administrative Assistant Resume

Compare different program and administrative assistants

Program and administrative assistant vs. Staff assistant

A staff assistant is a company employee who is tasked to support and help staff members to adequately fill their roles and assuring that the organization is running efficiently. Working under an administrative supervisor, an assistant's tasks include answering phone calls, scheduling meetings or appointments, and booking the necessary travels. Moreover, an assistant should have excellent skills in written and verbal communication and is highly organized with minimal supervision. An assistant may be able to work in a wide variety of settings, which includes healthcare facilities and government offices.

The annual salary of staff assistants is $6,147 higher than the average salary of program and administrative assistants.Even though program and administrative assistants and staff assistants are distinct careers, a few of the skills required for both jobs are similar. For example, both careers require data entry, powerpoint, and provides administrative support in the day-to-day roles and responsibilities.

There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, program and administrative assistant responsibilities require skills like "database management," "routine correspondence," "purchase orders," and "program support." Meanwhile a typical staff assistant has skills in areas such as "customer service," "patients," "office procedures," and "veterans." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.

Staff assistants tend to make the most money working in the professional industry, where they earn an average salary of $50,475. In contrast, program and administrative assistants make the biggest average salary, $34,661, in the education industry.staff assistants tend to reach similar levels of education than program and administrative assistants. In fact, staff assistants are 0.0% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.7% more likely to have a Doctoral Degree.

Program and administrative assistant vs. Administrative support

Administrative support specialists provide different types of governmental assistance. They carry out varied clerical duties in almost all industries. Most of these duties revolve around supervising and distributing information within an organization. This typically includes taking memos, answering phone calls, and managing, storing, and organizing files. They are also responsible for receiving and sending correspondence and greeting customers and clients. Some administrative support may be required to have vast professional knowledge as their duties are more specialized than the others.

Administrative support positions earn higher pay than program and administrative assistant roles. They earn a $2,061 higher salary than program and administrative assistants per year.A few skills overlap for program and administrative assistants and administrative supports. Resumes from both professions show that the duties of each career rely on skills like "data entry," "database management," and "powerpoint. "

In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, program and administrative assistant responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "routine correspondence," "administrative assistance," "program support," and "data collection." Meanwhile, an administrative support has duties that require skills in areas such as "customer service," "phone calls," "patients," and "excellent organizational." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.

Administrative supports earn a higher average salary than program and administrative assistants. But administrative supports earn the highest pay in the technology industry, with an average salary of $40,623. Additionally, program and administrative assistants earn the highest salaries in the education with average pay of $34,661 annually.administrative supports earn similar levels of education than program and administrative assistants in general. They're 1.6% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.7% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Program and administrative assistant vs. Administrative staff

As the administrative staff, they primarily provide administrative and secretarial support for the department. Typically, they do report-writing, filing and scheduling, and payroll. They plan department weekly meetings, schedule conference calls, and work on solving administrative related concerns and issues. They do a complex task that involves multi-tasking from the preparation of department reports, analyzing data, and finding solutions. It is a requirement to be an experienced, collaborator, and trained cross-functional communicator. Moreover, other duties will include scheduling company-initiated activities, meetings, and events.

On average, administrative staff earn higher salaries than program and administrative assistants, with a $41,470 difference per year.program and administrative assistants and administrative staff both have job responsibilities that require similar skill sets. These similarities include skills such as "powerpoint," "travel arrangements," and "payroll," but they differ when it comes to other required skills.

Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from program and administrative assistant resumes include skills like "data entry," "database management," "routine correspondence," and "provides administrative support," whereas an administrative staff is more likely to list skills in "personnel actions," "resource management," "hard copy," and "human resources. "

Administrative staff earn the highest salary when working in the professional industry, where they receive an average salary of $73,642. Comparatively, program and administrative assistants have the highest earning potential in the education industry, with an average salary of $34,661.When it comes to education, administrative staff tend to earn similar degree levels compared to program and administrative assistants. In fact, they're 1.6% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 1.0% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Program and administrative assistant vs. Administrative assistant/communications

An administrative assistant for communications is responsible for handling administrative duties to ensure that corporate communications and announcements are disseminated across the organization and media platforms appropriately. Administrative assistants for communications review documents and files to check for accuracy and conduct revisions as needed before publication. They also manage media relations, create promotional campaigns, and coordinate with clients for any important updates regarding business performance. An administrative assistant for communications must be highly reliable and organizational to work under minimal supervision and meet strict deadlines.

Administrative assistants/communications typically earn lower pay than program and administrative assistants. On average, administrative assistants/communications earn a $268 lower salary per year.While both program and administrative assistants and administrative assistants/communications complete day-to-day tasks using similar skills like data entry, powerpoint, and provides administrative support, the two careers vary in some skills.

Even though a few skill sets overlap between program and administrative assistants and administrative assistants/communications, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a program and administrative assistant might have more use for skills like "database management," "routine correspondence," "program support," and "background checks." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of administrative assistants/communications require skills like "office management," "calendar management," "windows," and "community outreach. "

The non profits industry tends to pay the highest salaries for administrative assistants/communications, with average annual pay of $39,956. Comparatively, the highest program and administrative assistant annual salary comes from the education industry.The average resume of administrative assistants/communications showed that they earn similar levels of education compared to program and administrative assistants. So much so that theyacirc;euro;trade;re 1.8% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree by 0.2%.

Types of program and administrative assistant

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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