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The differences between virtual assistants and 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 virtual assistant and an assistant. Additionally, a virtual assistant has an average salary of $39,915, which is higher than the $37,363 average annual salary of an assistant.
The top three skills for a virtual assistant include data entry, customer service and email management. The most important skills for an assistant are patients, customer service, and patient care.
| Virtual Assistant | Assistant | |
| Yearly salary | $39,915 | $37,363 |
| Hourly rate | $19.19 | $17.96 |
| Growth rate | -8% | -8% |
| Number of jobs | 49,508 | 557,900 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 54% | Bachelor's Degree, 49% |
| Average age | 50 | 50 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
Virtual Assistants are remote workers who work with clients that need assistance. They usually do administrative or clerical activities such as managing soft copies of a document, writing e-mail correspondences, managing calendars, scheduling appointments, and other activities. They manage the e-mail of their clients and respond to inquiries and other messages. They also manage phone calls by answering calls, taking messages, and dialing for their clients. Virtual Assistants may also be asked to handle travel-related tasks of their clients, such as creating itineraries, booking flights, and booking hotels.
An assistant intern is responsible for facilitating administrative and clerical tasks as assigned by the management. Assistant interns' duties include keeping records of meetings, receiving calls and handling customer inquiries, assisting on writing reports and data entry processing, cooperating and providing support for business events, and adhering to company policies and regulatory procedures. Successful assistant interns must have excellent time-management, multi-tasking, and communication skills. They must be a team player and fast-learner to handle various tasks in the corporate industry.
Virtual assistants and assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Virtual Assistant | Assistant | |
| Average salary | $39,915 | $37,363 |
| Salary range | Between $29,000 And $54,000 | Between $16,000 And $82,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | Boston, MA |
| Highest paying state | Hawaii | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | IBM | Latham & Watkins |
| Best paying industry | Professional | Education |
There are a few differences between a virtual assistant and an assistant in terms of educational background:
| Virtual Assistant | Assistant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 54% | Bachelor's Degree, 49% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Western Carolina University | Western Carolina University |
Here are the differences between virtual assistants' and assistants' demographics:
| Virtual Assistant | Assistant | |
| Average age | 50 | 50 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 12.4% Female, 87.6% | Male, 40.7% Female, 59.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.1% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.0% Asian, 3.8% White, 66.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.4% Asian, 3.8% White, 65.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |