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What They Do
About This Career
Performs routine administrative functions such as drafting correspondence, scheduling appointments, organizing and maintaining paper and electronic files, or providing information to callers.
This career is part of the Business Management and Administration cluster Administrative Services pathway.
A person in this career:
- Answers telephones and gives information to callers, takes messages, or transfers calls to appropriate individuals.
- Greets visitors or callers and handles their inquiries or directs them to the appropriate persons according to their needs.
- Creates, maintains, and enters information into databases.
- Uses computers for various applications, such as database management or word processing.
- Operates office equipment, such as fax machines, copiers, or phone systems and arranges for repairs when equipment malfunctions.
- Sets up and manages paper or electronic filing systems, recording information, updating paperwork, or maintaining documents, such as attendance records, correspondence, or other material.
- Operates electronic mail systems and coordinates the flow of information, internally or with other organizations.
- Schedules and confirms appointments for clients, customers, or supervisors.
- Maintains scheduling and event calendars.
- Composes, types, and distributes meeting notes, routine correspondence, or reports, such as presentations or expense, statistical, or monthly reports.
Working Conditions and Physical Demands
People who do this job report that:
- You would sit most of the time. There's some walking and standing. You may have to lift and carry things like books, papers or tools weighing 10 lbs. or less.
- Work in this occupation requires being inside most of the time
- Work in this occupation involves sitting more than one-third of the time
Working in this career involves (physical activities):
- Seeing clearly up close
- Speaking clearly enough to be able to be understood by others
- Identifying and understanding the speech of another person
Work Hours and Travel
- Regular working hours and limited travel
Specialty and Similar Careers
Careers that are more detailed or close to this career:
- Administrative Technician
- Department Secretary
- Office Assistant — Performs a combination of clerical duties requiring limited knowledge of systems or procedures.
- Staff Assistant
- Administrative Support Assistant (ASA)
- Administrative Specialist (Admin Specialist)
- Administrative Secretary (Admin Secretary)
- Administrative Clerk
Every year the U.S. Department of Labor conducts national surveys of wage data by occupation in every state and in all industry divisions. These surveys are conducted through the Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) program.
The statistics collected for one year are published the next fall. For example, 2013 wage information was published in the fall of 2014.
There are over 800 occupations in the surveys, and these occupations cover the entire U.S. labor market. The surveys ask for reports in a scale of ranges for both hourly wages and annual wages.
In many cases, these occupations are broad enough to cover many more detailed specialties of an occupation. A specific occupation may be included in a broader occupational category for which labor market data is available. When you look at the statistics for a broad category, be aware that the salary data for a specific career may differ.
For more details about how wage information is collected and calculated by the U.S. Department of Labor, visit their website at http://www.bls.gov/bls/blswage.htm.
Every year the U.S. Department of Labor conducts a national survey of over 400,000
employers in every state and in all industry divisions. This survey is conducted
through the Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) program. Every other year the
department publishes outlook information based on these surveys.
Each outlook period covers 10 years. For example, in 2003 the outlook information
was published for 2004-2014. Employers are asked to report the number of employees
in about 770 different occupations that cover the entire U.S. labor market.
From this information, staffing patterns for different industries are established.
Industry growth is projected into the future based on past trends and current economic
conditions. Industry staffing patterns are then applied to the industry projections
to obtain occupational projections.
In many cases, these occupations are broad enough to cover many more detailed specialties
of an occupation. A specific occupation may be included in a broader occupational
category for which labor market data is available. When you look at the statistics
for a broad category, be aware that the employment data for a specific field may
differ.
For more details about how employment information is collected and calculated by
the U.S. Department of Labor, visit their website at http://stats.bls.gov/news.release/ocwage.tn.htm.
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