Purchasing administrative assistant vs contract administrative assistant

The differences between purchasing administrative assistants and contract administrative assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a purchasing administrative assistant and a contract administrative assistant. Additionally, a contract administrative assistant has an average salary of $39,073, which is higher than the $37,889 average annual salary of a purchasing administrative assistant.

The top three skills for a purchasing administrative assistant include purchase orders, data entry and customer service. The most important skills for a contract administrative assistant are data entry, purchase orders, and powerpoint.

Purchasing administrative assistant vs contract administrative assistant overview

	Purchasing Administrative Assistant	Contract Administrative Assistant
Yearly salary	$37,889	$39,073
Hourly rate	$18.22	$18.79
Growth rate	-8%	-8%
Number of jobs	48,872	64,677
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 40%	Bachelor's Degree, 51%
Average age	50	50
Years of experience	2	2

What does a purchasing administrative assistant do?

Purchasing Administrative Assistants will require a high school diploma or GED, but an associate degree or higher is preferred, as well as three or more years in a purchasing role. This career will require skills in communication and negotiation, as well as a proven history of good supply management and the ability to create and administer task priority lists based on the needs of the respective company. Paying an average salary of $42K per year, but ranging between $37K and $49K, this career choice will demand the provision of support to the purchasing process and department staff, processing documents and materials and responding to inquiries, as well as maintaining information and inventories about vendors and sources.

What does a contract administrative assistant do?

A contract administrative assistant works on a contractual basis at offices where they are in charge of performing support tasks. Among their responsibilities include answering calls and correspondence, filing and organizing documents, coordinating with different departments, arranging appointments and schedules, preparing and processing files, and running errands as needed. They may also monitor the inventory of office supplies, processing procurement requests when necessary. Furthermore, a contract administrative assistant must maintain an active communication line with staff for a smooth and efficient workflow.

Purchasing administrative assistant vs contract administrative assistant salary

Purchasing administrative assistants and contract administrative assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Purchasing Administrative Assistant	Contract Administrative Assistant
Average salary	$37,889	$39,073
Salary range	Between $29,000 And $48,000	Between $31,000 And $48,000
Highest paying City	Milpitas, CA	Washington, DC
Highest paying state	New Jersey	Connecticut
Best paying company	Aspen Snowmass	Minnesota State Fair
Best paying industry	Construction	Pharmaceutical

Differences between purchasing administrative assistant and contract administrative assistant education

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

	Purchasing Administrative Assistant	Contract Administrative Assistant
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 40%	Bachelor's Degree, 51%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	Western Carolina University	Western Carolina University

Purchasing administrative assistant vs contract administrative assistant demographics

Here are the differences between purchasing administrative assistants' and contract administrative assistants' demographics:

	Purchasing Administrative Assistant	Contract Administrative Assistant
Average age	50	50
Gender ratio	Male, 8.3% Female, 91.7%	Male, 10.2% Female, 89.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.4% Asian, 3.8% White, 65.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 9.3% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.4% Asian, 3.8% White, 65.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between purchasing administrative assistant and contract administrative assistant duties and responsibilities

Purchasing administrative assistant example responsibilities.

Support medical doctors, manage sensitive and confidential records pertaining to high risk patients with emphasis on accuracy.
Prepare purchase orders, review requisitions, supply requests and MRP purchase reports.
Assess and close A/P, A/R monthly.
Support A/P by resolving invoice problems.
Verify shipments and check into ERP system.
Certify to internally audit group for ISO compliance.

Contract administrative assistant example responsibilities.

Manage and develop the daily clinical schedule for the in-patient rehabilitation staff taking into consideration Medicare guidelines and staffing ratios.
Orchestrate and design all RFP and RFQ proposals.
Issue RFQ's for subcontracts, evaluate proposals, award contracts and oversee through closeout.
Streamline staff scheduling through team management software (SharePoint) by coordinating schedules, meetings, and travel arrangements.
Transfer payroll and accounting paperwork to electronic form and index for future reference.
Assist in the creation and distribution of PowerPoint presentations for company executives and outside affiliates.

Purchasing administrative assistant vs contract administrative assistant skills

Common purchasing administrative assistant skills

Purchase Orders, 33%
Data Entry, 9%
Customer Service, 9%
Provides Administrative Support, 4%
Office Equipment, 4%
Travel Arrangements, 3%

Common contract administrative assistant skills

Data Entry, 16%
Purchase Orders, 9%
PowerPoint, 9%
Expense Reports, 5%
SharePoint, 4%
Financial Reports, 4%

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Purchasing Administrative Assistant
Purchasing Administrative Assistant vs Contract Administrative Assistant

Updated January 8, 2025

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