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Personal assistants and other secretaries provide administrative and secretarial support to individuals, departmental or management teams within organisations.

Main tasks

  • Translates documents and liaises with overseas clients and suppliers.
  • Arranges and attends meetings, takes minutes and prepares records of proceedings.
  • Uses appropriate software to produce correspondence, memoranda, reports, presentations and other documents from drafts, handwritten copy or by transcribing dictation.
  • Opens, sorts, distributes and files correspondence (in hard copy and electronic) and deals directly with routine correspondence.
  • Arranges appointments, keeps business diary, organises travel arrangements, makes reservations and organises a variety of functions.
  • Acts as a first point of contact for a manager or team with colleagues and people from outside organisations, fields telephone enquiries, takes and passes on messages.

Source: Office for National Statistics.

Salary and earnings

Potential earnings

£42,771.07

Average earnings

£23,068.00

Source: Office for National Statistics' Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE).

Skills & knowledge

The top 5 most important skills and knowledge requirements relevant to this career.

Active Listening

Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

Writing

Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.

Reading Comprehension

Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.

Speaking

Talking to others to convey information effectively.

Critical Thinking

Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.

Clerical

Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology.

Customer and Personal Service

Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

English Language

Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

Computers and Electronics

Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

Foreign Language

Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.

What course level do I need to study?

The level of study required will vary with each job, sector and company. The table below shows the level of study achieved by those currently working in this career choice.

Educational requirements: Level 2 NVQ; GCSE at grades A*-C

Source: Office for National Statistics.

Level of study Percentage achieved
Level 0 1%
Level 1 6%
Level 2 27%
Level 3 28%
Level 4-5 (Higher Education) 9%
Level 6 (Bachelors) 23%
Level 7 (Masters or equivalent) 6%
Level 8 (Doctorate) 0%

Source: Labour Force Survey (LFS) data.

Economic data for careers is provided by Lightcast and also available through our Career Coach app. Job postings, employment and earnings information is represented at the regional level for the East Midlands.