Administrative Assistant Overview
Majors Overview November 20, 2012In most organization, administrative assistants or rather secretaries carry out clerical duties. However, specialized administrative assistants such as the ones in medical or legal field are required to be specialized in their subject compared to others who normally perform general clerical duties. This article has compiled some valuable information about the duties of administrative assistants.
Administrative Assistants Work Environment
The main duties and responsibilities of administrative assistants involve offering office support and assistance to managers, executives and other professionals. The secretaries or administrative assistants have a chance to work in a number of settings ranging from law firms to distribution centers. These professionals normally complete their duties from a desk and use a computer throughout the day.
Administrative Assistants Responsibilities
The main duties of administrative assistants involves distributing and managing information within the organization. Such duties include maintaining files in the office, taking memos, and answering phone calls. In addition, the secretaries perform other duties such as greeting clients and customers, as well as sending and receiving mails.
Bookkeeping
There are offices that require their administrative assistants to record and monitor the expenditures of the office. Expenditure responsibilities and duties include preparing expenditure reports and creating spreadsheets for an office manager. Assistants who perform administrative duties, expertise in Microsoft Excel and office book keeping software is essential.
Planning and Scheduling
Another important responsibility of an administrative assistant is planning and scheduling events such as luncheons and board meetings. Such duties call for the assistant to inquire about availability of the participants or researching about vendors’ prices. Other responsibilities may include preparation of the presentation materials and scheduling appointments.
Documentation
In addition, the administrative assistant or secretary assists staff members with documentation. Besides managing files, organizing and storing files; administrative assistants are required to type, proofread and edit documents. They may carry out dictation as well as record the meetings’ minutes.
Specialized Administrative Assistant Duties
The administrative assistants who carry out specialized duties in fields such as engineering, legal or medical industries are required to hold comprehensive and advanced professional knowledge in their particular field. For instance, medical administrative assistants are required to possess a strong ability to interpret medical reports and dealing with insurance companies while legal administrative assistants are required to have an understanding of procedures and legal terminology. Another group of specialized administrative assistants are bilingual secretaries who work in various fields, but supposed to support a particular supervisor or manager. The normal work environment for these professionals are places where people speaks other languages. The bilingual assistants typically carry out secretarial services like communicating through emails or phones, conducting research, organizing files, planning appointments and managing schedules.
Administrative Assistant and Secretarial Science Statistics
Top Schools with Administrative Assistant and Secretarial Science Programs
| School Name | Tuition | Size | Degrees Granted | Degrees Granted By Type |
| Acadiana – Lafayette Lafayette, LA |
$1,534 | 1,314 | 401 | Certificate (366), Associate (35) |
| Central Louisiana Tech – Alexandria Alexandria, LA |
$1,625 | 515 | 165 | Certificate (163), Associate (2) |
| SCL Tech – Young Memorial Morgan City, LA |
$1,594 | 945 | 131 | Certificate (123), Associate (8) |
| Sowela Technical Community College Lake Charles, LA |
$4,486 | 2,135 | 128 | Certificate (115), Associate (13) |
| Tacoma Community College Tacoma, WA |
$8,541 | 6,399 | 124 | Certificate (124) |
| Northeast LTC – Delta Ouachita West Monroe, LA |
$1,694 | 1,003 | 118 | Certificate (104), Associate (14) |
| Capital Area Tech – Baton Rouge Baton Rouge, LA |
$1,664 | 2,448 | 118 | Certificate (116), Associate (2) |
| Northwest LTC – Minden Minden, LA |
$1,494 | 832 | 110 | Certificate (98), Associate (12) |
| Eastern Iowa Community College Davenport, IA |
$5,760 | 8,480 | 106 | Certificate (80), Associate (26) |
| Moultrie Technical College Moultrie, GA |
$5,772 | 2,525 | 104 | Certificate (104) |
