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The differences between secretaries and administrative specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a secretary and an administrative specialist. Additionally, an administrative specialist has an average salary of $38,758, which is higher than the $36,442 average annual salary of a secretary.
The top three skills for a secretary include customer service, telephone calls and payroll. The most important skills for an administrative specialist are customer service, data entry, and powerpoint.
| Secretary | Administrative Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $36,442 | $38,758 |
| Hourly rate | $17.52 | $18.63 |
| Growth rate | -8% | -8% |
| Number of jobs | 69,315 | 71,227 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 38% | Bachelor's Degree, 48% |
| Average age | 50 | 50 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
Secretaries are employees who are responsible for many of the administrative needs of the office. They are usually assigned to executives or to a specific department. They manage schedules and appointments, often handling the calendar in the office. They are also responsible for keeping files organized, whether physical or digital copies. During office meetings, secretaries are in charge of documenting the minutes of the meeting and highlighting the action steps that need to be taken. They may also be assigned to check on concerned departments who need to present deliverables in the next office meeting.
An administrative specialist is in charge of various clerical tasks to support supervisors and management staff. Their responsibility is to act as the main point of contact among clients through answering calls and responding to inquiries, managing schedules, arranging appointments and travel, addressing complaints and resolving internal issues, managing payroll, and keeping an organized database. Furthermore, an administrative specialist can also conduct research and analysis, prepare reports and other forms of documentation, and coordinate workflow in a particular area.
Secretaries and administrative specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Secretary | Administrative Specialist | |
| Average salary | $36,442 | $38,758 |
| Salary range | Between $26,000 And $51,000 | Between $25,000 And $58,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Government | Technology |
There are a few differences between a secretary and an administrative specialist in terms of educational background:
| Secretary | Administrative Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 38% | Bachelor's Degree, 48% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | Western Carolina University |
Here are the differences between secretaries' and administrative specialists' demographics:
| Secretary | Administrative Specialist | |
| Average age | 50 | 50 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 10.1% Female, 89.9% | Male, 24.4% Female, 75.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.5% Asian, 3.9% White, 65.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 9.3% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.3% Asian, 3.8% White, 65.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |