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Senior executive secretary education requirements

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read

There are several educational requirements to become a senior executive secretary. Senior executive secretaries usually study business, secretarial and administrative science, or accounting. 46% of senior executive secretaries hold a bachelor's degree, and 31% hold an associate degree. We analyzed 751 real senior executive secretary resumes to see exactly what senior executive secretary education sections show.

The most common colleges for senior executive secretaries are the University of Phoenix and the University of Phoenix.

There are also many online senior executive secretary courses to help get the education required to be a senior executive secretary.

There are certain senior executive secretary certifications that you should consider. These senior executive secretary certifications include Professional Legal Secretary (PLS) and Word 2010 Certification.

What education do you need to become a senior executive secretary?

What degree do you need to be a senior executive secretary?

The most common degree for senior executive secretaries is bachelor's degree, with 46% of senior executive secretaries earning that degree. The second and third most common degree levels are associate degree degree at 31% and associate degree degree at 10%.
  • Bachelor's, 46%
  • Associate, 31%
  • High School Diploma, 10%
  • Diploma, 6%
  • Other Degrees, 7%

What should I major in to become a senior executive secretary?

You should major in business to become a senior executive secretary. 42% of senior executive secretaries major in business. Other common majors for a senior executive secretary include secretarial and administrative science and accounting.

Most common colleges for senior executive secretaries

Senior executive secretaries often get their degrees at University of Phoenix, Northeastern University, and Hofstra University. Here are the most common colleges for senior executive secretaries in the US based on their resumes.
Senior executive secretary common collegePercentages
University of Phoenix9.72%
Northeastern University9.72%
Hofstra University8.33%
University of Houston5.56%
Strayer University5.56%

Best majors for senior executive secretaries

Best colleges for senior executive secretaries

The best colleges for senior executive secretaries are Stanford University, Northwestern University, and Boston College.

A senior executive secretary with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for senior executive secretaries. We based this list on several metrics: admissions rate, retention rate, mean earnings of graduates, the ratio of working vs. non-working students ten years after admission, the average cost of attendance, and median debt for graduates who become senior executive secretaries.

1. Western Carolina University

Cullowhee, NC • Private

In-state tuition

$3,926

Enrollment

9,835

2. Stanford University

Stanford, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$51,354

Enrollment

7,083

3. Ball State University

Muncie, IN • Private

In-state tuition

$9,896

Enrollment

15,529

4. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$55,584

Enrollment

10,764

5. Bowling Green State University

Bowling Green, OH • Private

In-state tuition

$11,105

Enrollment

13,729

6. Cedar Crest College

Allentown, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$39,216

Enrollment

1,303

7. Morgan State University

Baltimore, MD • Private

In-state tuition

$7,900

Enrollment

6,404

8. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

In-state tuition

$54,568

Enrollment

8,451

9. Siena Heights University

Adrian, MI • Private

In-state tuition

$27,124

Enrollment

2,035

10. University of Akron

Akron, OH • Private

In-state tuition

$11,463

Enrollment

13,676

20 best online courses for senior executive secretaries

Advertising disclosure

1. Financial Reporting

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The Financial Reporting Specialization focuses on the role of financial accounting principles and processes in creating and reporting an organization’s financial statements. Learners who complete this specialization will be able to (1) use financial accounting principles to create and/or process an organization’s financial statements and (2) analyze financial statements to assess an organization’s financial position...

2. Custom Reports in Google Analytics

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In this project, you will create three custom reports in Google Analytics, using three different methods. You will understand the building blocks of a custom report. You will determine what data is needed for a custom report. And, you will create the custom report to best meet your analysis and monitoring needs. You will also discover the Google Gallery where you can find various types of custom reports, and import the ones that best meet your needs. Note: This course works best for learners...

3. Customer Service & Support For Customer Service Executives

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4.5
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Learn Customer Service Skills & Provide Excellent Customer Support, Customer Experience & How To Manage Upset Customers...

4. Minute Taking at Meetings

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4.4
(5,774)

Minute Taking: making the taking of notes/minutes at formal and informal meetings easier...

5. The Global Financial Crisis

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Former U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Timothy F. Geithner and Professor Andrew Metrick survey the causes, events, policy responses, and aftermath of the recent global financial crisis...

6. Robotic Path Planning and Task Execution

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This course, which is the last and final course in the Introduction to Robotics with Webots specialization, will teach you basic approaches for planning robot trajectories and sequence their task execution. In "Robotic Path Planning and Task Execution", you will develop standard algorithms such as Breadth-First Search, Dijkstra's, A* and Rapidly Exploring Random Trees through guided exercises. You will implement Behavior Trees for task sequencing and experiment with a mobile manipulation robot...

7. Audit - Financial Statement

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Master the Art of Auditing Financial Statements: In-Depth Analysis, Techniques, and Real-World Case Studies...

8. Project Kickoff Meetings: How to Lead them Effectively

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Learn how to start your projects the right way using a simple, step-by-step plan...

9. Financial Statement Analysis

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Learn how to make understanding financial statements your superpower!...

10. Leading Effective Meetings - You Can Lead Effective Meetings

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Learn How to Plan Effective Meetings, Run Effective Meetings and Generate Results After Your Meetings...

11. Executive Travel Planning for Virtual Assistants

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12. SQL Server Reporting Services Part 2 (SSRS)

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SQL Server Reporting Services Part 2 (SSRS): Deployment, Security, Report Builder, Mobile Report Publisher...

13. Managing Difficult Meeting Participants

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Dealing with Negativism and Other Difficult Behaviors of Meeting Participants...

14. Business English for Meetings

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4.6
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Useful English Phrases for Communicating with Confidence in Business Meetings...

15. Financial Reporting & Analysis: Complete Preparation

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Learn to Read, Understand, and Analyse the Financial Statements of a Company...

16. Becoming an Executive Personal Assistant

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Learn how to be an effective personal assistant, and find out how to develop the skills for the role...

17. Financial Statement Auditing Cycles

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4.3
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In this course, we learn how public accountants plan and execute an audit...

18. Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS): 2022 edition

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Build reports in MS SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS): Implement report layouts, add interactivity...

19. Better Virtual Meetings: How to Lead Effective Meetings

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Learn the basics of facilitation and minute taking at meetings to save time, improve communication, and get things done...

20. Customer Service Fundamentals: Putting People First

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Customer Care Listening Great Customer Service Concern for Others Company Culture Engaging People Responding...

Top 10 most affordable universities for senior executive secretaries

The most affordable schools for senior executive secretaries are Baruch College of the City University of New York, suny farmingdale, and california state university - bakersfield.

If the best universities for senior executive secretaries are out of your price range, check out these affordable schools. After factoring in in-state tuition and fees, the average cost of attendance, admissions rate, average net price, and mean earnings after six years, we found that these are the most affordable schools for senior executive secretaries.

1. Baruch College of the City University of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,262

Cost of attendance

14,046

2. SUNY Farmingdale

Farmingdale, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,306

Cost of attendance

16,091

3. California State University - Bakersfield

Bakersfield, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,309

Cost of attendance

16,714

4. University of Puerto Rico - Mayaguez

Mayaguez, PR • Private

In-state tuition

$4,094

Cost of attendance

14,302

5. Minot State University

Minot, ND • Private

In-state tuition

$7,064

Cost of attendance

15,576

6. California State University - Dominguez Hills

Carson, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,942

Cost of attendance

14,469

7. Clayton State University

Morrow, GA • Private

In-state tuition

$5,419

Cost of attendance

17,697

8. Brooklyn College of the City University of New York

Brooklyn, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,240

Cost of attendance

13,991

9. Dickinson State University

Dickinson, ND • Private

In-state tuition

$6,768

Cost of attendance

15,506

10. SUNY Polytechnic Institute

Utica, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,238

Cost of attendance

21,567

Top 10 hardest universities to get into for senior executive secretaries

The hardest universities for senior executive secretaries to get into are Stanford University, Northwestern University, and Boston College.

Some great schools for senior executive secretaries are hard to get into, but they also set your career up for greater success. The list below shows the most challenging universities to get into for senior executive secretaries based on an institution's admissions rates, average SAT scores accepted, median ACT scores accepted, and mean earnings of students six years after admission.

1. Stanford University

Stanford, CA • Private

Admissions rate

4%

SAT average

1,497

2. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

Admissions rate

8%

SAT average

1,508

3. Boston College

Chestnut Hill, MA • Private

Admissions rate

28%

SAT average

1,429

4. Boston University

Boston, MA • Private

Admissions rate

22%

SAT average

1,420

5. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

Admissions rate

8%

SAT average

1,492

6. SUNY at Binghamton

Vestal, NY • Private

Admissions rate

40%

SAT average

1,376

7. New York University

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

20%

SAT average

1,419

8. Bentley University

Waltham, MA • Private

Admissions rate

43%

SAT average

1,338

9. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

13%

SAT average

1,445

10. Brandeis University

Waltham, MA • Private

Admissions rate

31%

SAT average

1,398

Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for senior executive secretaries

The easiest schools for senior executive secretaries to get into are Oklahoma Wesleyan University, notre dame college, and lim college.

Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a senior executive secretary without much hassle, check out the list of schools where you will be accepted in no time. We compiled admissions rates, average SAT scores, average ACT scores, and average salary of students six years after graduation to uncover which were the easiest schools to get into for senior executive secretaries.

1. Oklahoma Wesleyan University

Bartlesville, OK • Private

Admissions rate

68%

SAT average

964

2. Notre Dame College

Cleveland, OH • Private

Admissions rate

90%

SAT average

994

3. LIM College

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

83%

SAT average

1,061

4. Notre Dame de Namur University

Belmont, CA • Private

Admissions rate

82%

SAT average

983

5. Holy Names University

Oakland, CA • Private

Admissions rate

70%

SAT average

849

6. Oregon Institute of Technology

Klamath Falls, OR • Private

Admissions rate

96%

SAT average

1,139

7. D'Youville College

Buffalo, NY • Private

Admissions rate

100%

SAT average

1,072

8. Presentation College

Aberdeen, SD • Private

Admissions rate

97%

SAT average

1,050

9. Lewis-Clark State College

Lewiston, ID • Private

Admissions rate

100%

SAT average

1,009

10. Fresno Pacific University

Fresno, CA • Private

Admissions rate

85%

SAT average

1,053

Average senior executive secretary salary by education level

Senior executive secretaries with a Master's degree earn more than those without, at $50,697 annually. With a Bachelor's degree, senior executive secretaries earn a median annual income of $50,539 compared to $47,588 for senior executive secretaries with an Associate degree.
Senior executive secretary education levelSenior executive secretary salary
Master's Degree$50,697
High School Diploma or Less$46,804
Bachelor's Degree$50,539
Some College/ Associate Degree$47,588

Senior executive secretary education FAQs

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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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