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Staff assistant vs administrative clerk

The differences between staff assistants and administrative clerks can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a staff assistant and an administrative clerk. Additionally, a staff assistant has an average salary of $41,778, which is higher than the $32,327 average annual salary of an administrative clerk.

The top three skills for a staff assistant include customer service, patients and data entry. The most important skills for an administrative clerk are customer service, data entry, and patients.

Staff assistant vs administrative clerk overview

Staff AssistantAdministrative Clerk
Yearly salary$41,778$32,327
Hourly rate$20.09$15.54
Growth rate-8%-5%
Number of jobs126,202137,639
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 60%Bachelor's Degree, 37%
Average age5047
Years of experience22

What does a staff assistant do?

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.

What does an administrative clerk do?

An administrative clerk provides support to staff and does clerical works. These clerical duties include answering and making phone calls, typing documents, compiling and filing records, and scheduling appointments. The clerks often set up office meetings and invite reliable speakers. Also, they do research and prepare reports or presentations. Candidates for the job must be organized, detail-oriented, and can manage their time well. They must be tech-savvy and have a basic knowledge of bookkeeping. The salary depends on their experience, industry, and location of the job.

Staff assistant vs administrative clerk salary

Staff assistants and administrative clerks have different pay scales, as shown below.

Staff AssistantAdministrative Clerk
Average salary$41,778$32,327
Salary rangeBetween $27,000 And $63,000Between $25,000 And $40,000
Highest paying CityBridgewater, MASeattle, WA
Highest paying stateConnecticutWashington
Best paying companyMassasoit Community CollegeColumbia University in the City of New York
Best paying industryProfessionalFinance

Differences between staff assistant and administrative clerk education

There are a few differences between a staff assistant and an administrative clerk in terms of educational background:

Staff AssistantAdministrative Clerk
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 60%Bachelor's Degree, 37%
Most common majorBusinessBusiness
Most common collegeWestern Carolina UniversityWestern Carolina University

Staff assistant vs administrative clerk demographics

Here are the differences between staff assistants' and administrative clerks' demographics:

Staff AssistantAdministrative Clerk
Average age5047
Gender ratioMale, 29.4% Female, 70.6%Male, 27.9% Female, 72.1%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.1% Asian, 3.8% White, 66.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%Black or African American, 11.4% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 21.9% Asian, 8.3% White, 53.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%
LGBT Percentage6%6%

Differences between staff assistant and administrative clerk duties and responsibilities

Staff assistant example responsibilities.

  • Manage, troubleshoot, install and resolve hardware, software configurations, and network relate issues.
  • Manage candidate Facebook page and facilitate other advertising.
  • Manage fireworks inventory through QuickBooks and process customer wholesale orders.
  • Orchestrate special events and reservations; manage customer relations and provide exemplary service to all customers.
  • Conduct weekly groups for newly refer veterans and potential landlords on the HUD VASH searching process.
  • Supervise the daily operations, office work and customer service in a windows replacement company).
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Administrative clerk example responsibilities.

  • Orchestrate special events and reservations; manage customer relations and provide exemplary service to all customers.
  • Assist teachers with GED packets for students.
  • Ship orders via customers freight line request (ex.
  • Schedule and administer the GED exam upon the completion of the inmate's profile.
  • Enter data in spreadsheets for reports, auction items, payroll and monthly utility accounts.
  • Process all DMV registration, titles, title flips and plates using CVR and TriVin programs.
  • Show more

Staff assistant vs administrative clerk skills

Common staff assistant skills
  • Customer Service, 15%
  • Patients, 10%
  • Data Entry, 7%
  • PowerPoint, 5%
  • Office Procedures, 5%
  • Veterans, 4%
Common administrative clerk skills
  • Customer Service, 17%
  • Data Entry, 16%
  • Patients, 9%
  • Word Processing, 6%
  • Payroll Data, 5%
  • Database Systems, 4%

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