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Executive Secretaries Training and Jobs


Schools and Degrees

Executive secretaries are required to have academic qualification beyond high school. A degree in office administration is preferred. These programs usually last for two years and are available in technical, business and professional schools. Short courses in computers can also be helpful.

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Training and Education

You'll generally want work experience in a related occupation for this career path. Of current executive secretaries, 18% graduated from college with degrees. Some 49% of workers attened college but did not go on to get a bachelor's degree. A high school education was sufficient for 33% of employees.


Job Overview

Executive secretaries administratively support an office and the top-level executives in a company. They perform jobs which are concerned with information management.


Job Requirements

The International Association of Administrative Professionals grants certifications in this field. The Certified Administrative Professional and the Certified Professional Secretary are some of the important designations that can be earned by executive secretaries. In order to earn these designations, candidates need to pass an exam and fulfill certain academic and experience requirements.

Expertise and experience is important for executive secretaries. With maturity and experience they advance to administrative positions with greater responsibilities.

Executive secretaries need to be good with computers and have good written and verbal communication skills. They also need fine organizational, administrative and management skills. Discretion and good judgment are also important for a successful executive secretary.


Nature of Work

Executive secretaries prepare office documents such as financial statements and reports. They coordinate and manage the schedules of executives and screen incoming visitors and calls. They not only schedule and plan meetings but also take notes while it is in progress. They also research and gather data and meet visitors on the behalf of the executive. Besides all this, they carry out all the other functions of normal secretaries. For instance, they supply orders, do filing work and keep the office's books.

Executive secretaries generally work for forty hours in a week, and they seldom have to work in the evenings or on weekends. They need to work at the computer for long hours and may face problems of the back, eyes, wrists and hands.


Area Job Conditions

Finding executive secretaries is easiest in College Station (Texas), Tallahassee (Florida), and Topeka (Kansas), and by comparison more challenging in Yakima (Washington), Anniston (Alabama), and Las Cruces (New Mexico).

The pay is best in Newark (New Jersey), Atlantic City (New Jersey), and San Francisco (California) and worst in Jonesboro (Arkansas), Great Falls (Montana), and Lawton (Oklahoma).


Part-Time and Self Employment

Executive secretaries working part-time accounted for 19% of those employed in 2008. Self-employed workers represent an estimated 1% of the total.


Executive Secretaries by Metropolitan Area (city and its surroundings)

In the table below, a Job Density near 0% means the area has an average number of people in this occupation, for its population. A higher or lower Job Density (e.g., +22% or -45%) tells you there are that many more or fewer workers of that type there than in the average US metro area. So, the higher the number, the more common the occupation.

Alabama

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Anniston $44,000 80 -78%
Auburn $52,000 140 -60%
Birmingham $47,000 2,380 -47%
Decatur $42,000 100 -77%
Dothan $44,000 150 -68%
Florence $41,000 120 -71%
Gadsden $39,000 50 -81%
Huntsville $47,000 1,090 -41%
Mobile $44,000 530 -66%
Montgomery $45,000 750 -48%
Tuscaloosa $47,000 260 -66%

Alaska

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Anchorage $49,000 2,130 +45%
Fairbanks $47,000 360 +46%

Arizona

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Flagstaff $39,000 620 +36%
Kingman $37,000 350 -7%
Phoenix $42,000 18,750 +16%
Prescott $36,000 630 +44%
Tucson $41,000 2,990 -3%
Yuma $38,000 290 -35%

Arkansas

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Fayetteville $39,000 1,490 -18%
Fort Smith $35,000 620 -42%
Hot Springs $37,000 200 -29%
Jonesboro $36,000 280 -25%
Little Rock $40,000 2,760 -12%
Pine Bluff $39,000 130 -44%

California

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Bakersfield $44,000 1,960 -16%
Chico $39,000 530 -8%
El Centro $45,000 320 -20%
Fresno $42,000 2,310 -20%
Hanford $39,000 160 -39%
Los Angeles $49,000 50,330 +35%
Madera $45,000 200 -18%
Merced $40,000 330 -28%
Modesto $45,000 1,190 -12%
Napa $50,000 660 +29%
Oakland $53,000 13,150 +43%
Oxnard $49,000 3,570 +33%
Redding $40,000 500 +2%
Riverside $45,000 9,730 -12%
Sacramento $47,000 8,960 +13%
Salinas $48,000 1,220 -13%
San Diego $47,000 16,180 +34%
San Francisco $58,000 16,150 +77%
San Jose $58,000 10,930 +33%
San Luis Obispo $43,000 1,030 +31%
Santa Ana $50,000 16,840 +26%
Santa Barbara $47,000 1,890 +28%
Santa Cruz $44,000 1,560 +113%
Santa Rosa $48,000 2,080 +36%
Stockton $45,000 1,490 -20%
Vallejo $44,000 1,220 +18%
Visalia $41,000 690 -41%
Yuba City $43,000 320 +7%

Colorado

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Boulder $51,000 2,240 +67%
Colorado Springs $42,000 2,220 -2%
Denver $49,000 13,640 +19%
Fort Collins $44,000 1,200 +10%
Grand Junction $41,000 400 -13%
Greeley $47,000 580 -4%
Pueblo $42,000 420 -9%

Connecticut

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Bridgeport $58,000 4,800 +24%
Danbury $50,000 360 -36%
Hartford $49,000 5,980 +14%
New Haven $53,000 3,230 +32%
Norwich $48,000 650 -39%
Waterbury $45,000 370 -34%

Delaware

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Dover $43,000 220 -47%
Wilmington $50,000 2,360 -20%

District of Columbia

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Washington $53,000 27,050 +21%

Florida

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Cape Coral $42,000 1,770 +3%
Deltona $36,000 1,210 -10%
Fort Lauderdale $43,000 6,750 +6%
Fort Walton Beach $40,000 410 -36%
Gainesville $40,000 1,530 +46%
Jacksonville $40,000 5,280 -4%
Lakeland $40,000 1,310 -22%
Miami $44,000 10,800 +20%
Naples $46,000 920 -4%
Ocala $38,000 580 -22%
Orlando $40,000 8,990 -4%
Palm Bay $41,000 1,680 -4%
Palm Coast $39,000 130 +14%
Panama City $37,000 610 +7%
Pensacola $39,000 1,390 +7%
Port St Lucie $42,000 960 -7%
Punta Gorda $36,000 250 -18%
Sarasota $41,000 2,260 +3%
Sebastian $40,000 360 -4%
Tallahassee $35,000 3,190 +125%
Tampa $40,000 10,060 -4%
West Palm Beach $43,000 5,610 +19%

Georgia

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Albany $37,000 420 -17%
Athens $39,000 640 +9%
Atlanta $45,000 29,130 +37%
Augusta $42,000 1,630 -11%
Brunswick $36,000 270 -16%
Columbus $37,000 1,090 +15%
Dalton $37,000 520 -7%
Gainesville $43,000 640 +11%
Hinesville $40,000 130 +38%
Macon $39,000 660 -14%
Rome $35,000 250 -8%
Savannah $39,000 1,590 +22%
Valdosta $35,000 220 -45%
Warner Robins $43,000 300 -31%

Hawaii

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Honolulu $46,000 3,420 -14%

Idaho

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Boise $38,000 1,840 -22%
Coeur Dalene $35,000 470 +16%
Idaho Falls $34,000 340 -9%
Lewiston $39,000 100 -42%
Pocatello $37,000 390 +70%

Illinois

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Bloomington $44,000 770 +32%
Champaign $47,000 1,140 +31%
Chicago $47,000 39,330 +13%
Danville $41,000 190 -7%
Decatur $38,000 500 +39%
Kankakee $38,000 410 +27%
Peoria $37,000 1,600 +7%
Rockford $40,000 970 -21%
Springfield $51,000 1,950 +111%

Indiana

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Anderson $42,000 120 -59%
Bloomington $35,000 610 +6%
Columbus $41,000 210 -29%
Elkhart $41,000 490 -47%
Evansville $39,000 1,010 -33%
Fort Wayne $40,000 1,100 -39%
Gary $43,000 1,400 -42%
Indianapolis $42,000 7,300 -11%
Kokomo $42,000 280 -8%
Lafayette $41,000 640 +2%
Michigan City $38,000 260 -19%
Muncie $37,000 500 +38%
South Bend $42,000 1,120 +0%
Terre Haute $41,000 330 -41%

Iowa

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Ames $45,000 340 +17%
Cedar Rapids $40,000 1,130 -7%
Davenport $38,000 1,200 -27%
Des Moines $45,000 3,400 +14%
Dubuque $40,000 220 -49%
Iowa City $42,000 800 +36%
Sioux City $37,000 380 -37%
Waterloo $38,000 580 -20%

Kansas

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Lawrence $35,000 640 +87%
Manhattan $37,000 630 +50%
Topeka $34,000 2,160 +128%
Wichita $42,000 2,380 -8%

Kentucky

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Bowling Green $36,000 500 +11%
Elizabethtown $33,000 350 0%
Lexington $37,000 2,190 +2%
Louisville $37,000 4,890 -12%
Owensboro $36,000 350 -7%

Louisiana

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Alexandria $34,000 620 +18%
Baton Rouge $36,000 4,480 +33%
Houma $36,000 580 -28%
Lafayette $35,000 1,200 -4%
Lake Charles $35,000 640 -14%
Monroe $34,000 600 -6%
New Orleans $37,000 4,430 -8%
Shreveport $36,000 1,840 +16%

Maine

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Bangor $40,000 270 -46%
Lewiston $38,000 190 -53%
Portland $42,000 1,010 -43%

Maryland

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Baltimore $50,000 10,020 -17%
Bethesda $54,000 6,910 +31%
Cumberland $39,000 190 -34%
Hagerstown $39,000 340 -59%
Salisbury $43,000 150 -65%

Massachusetts

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Barnstable Town $42,000 1,000 +18%
Boston $53,000 24,310 +52%
Brockton $51,000 590 -23%
Framingham $56,000 1,460 +2%
Haverhill $48,000 440 -36%
Lawrence $47,000 200 -59%
Leominster $43,000 310 -22%
Lowell $52,000 1,210 +17%
New Bedford $41,000 470 -12%
Peabody $43,000 1,010 +16%
Pittsfield $44,000 150 -40%
Springfield $44,000 1,850 -31%
Taunton $44,000 490 +38%
Worcester $50,000 1,670 -26%

Michigan

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Ann Arbor $44,000 2,780 +89%
Battle Creek $41,000 240 -42%
Bay City $39,000 230 -8%
Detroit $47,000 4,940 -19%
Flint $43,000 850 -25%
Grand Rapids $41,000 2,010 -41%
Holland $41,000 540 -34%
Jackson $42,000 310 -20%
Kalamazoo $42,000 940 -20%
Lansing $46,000 2,430 +38%
Monroe $37,000 170 -40%
Muskegon $37,000 260 -43%
Niles $40,000 380 -19%
Saginaw $40,000 490 -29%
Warren $45,000 9,210 -7%

Minnesota

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Duluth $42,000 820 -27%
Mankato $40,000 530 +16%
Minneapolis $46,000 18,410 +12%
Rochester $41,000 1,080 +23%
St Cloud $40,000 700 -14%

Mississippi

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Gulfport $39,000 440 -52%
Hattiesburg $37,000 250 -46%
Jackson $36,000 1,950 -14%
Pascagoula $38,000 180 -51%

Missouri

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Cape Girardeau $32,000 320 -9%
Columbia $35,000 420 -37%
Jefferson City $34,000 1,410 +129%
Joplin $33,000 260 -61%
Kansas City $43,000 7,610 -18%
Springfield $35,000 900 -47%
St Joseph $40,000 280 -32%
St Louis $44,000 8,710 -29%

Montana

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Billings $38,000 370 -48%
Great Falls $36,000 130 -54%
Missoula $36,000 370 -12%

Nebraska

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Lincoln $37,000 1,880 +34%
Omaha $40,000 3,210 -25%

Nevada

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Carson City $50,000 100 -49%
Las Vegas $51,000 2,920 -63%
Reno $49,000 720 -57%

New Hampshire

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Manchester $47,000 520 -41%
Nashua $49,000 510 -57%
Portsmouth $49,000 180 -62%
Rochester $43,000 260 -40%

New Jersey

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Atlantic City $54,000 400 -68%
Camden $52,000 1,910 -60%
Edison $55,000 4,970 -47%
Newark $57,000 5,680 -38%
Ocean City $51,000 120 -63%
Trenton $53,000 2,090 +3%
Vineland $53,000 80 -84%

New Mexico

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Albuquerque $39,000 2,100 -40%
Farmington $40,000 170 -57%
Las Cruces $41,000 130 -75%
Santa Fe $61,000 690 +35%

New York

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Albany $49,000 5,450 +33%
Binghamton $46,000 910 -6%
Buffalo $44,000 3,920 -22%
Elmira $40,000 240 -19%
Glens Falls $41,000 260 -38%
Ithaca $46,000 360 +12%
Kingston $43,000 480 -3%
Nassau $55,000 14,010 +20%
New York $59,000 71,950 +50%
Poughkeepsie $45,000 2,250 +2%
Rochester $45,000 4,300 -7%
Syracuse $46,000 2,760 -2%
Utica $42,000 730 -33%

North Carolina

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Asheville $38,000 1,510 -4%
Burlington $40,000 340 -26%
Charlotte $42,000 9,300 +18%
Durham $43,000 5,640 +127%
Fayetteville $35,000 720 -34%
Goldsboro $34,000 290 -9%
Greensboro $40,000 2,860 -11%
Greenville $38,000 690 +23%
Hickory $37,000 1,040 -19%
Jacksonville $41,000 250 -26%
Raleigh $40,000 6,150 +30%
Rocky Mount $39,000 310 -34%
Wilmington $39,000 1,210 +2%
Winston Salem $41,000 2,330 +24%

North Dakota

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Bismarck $35,000 820 +52%
Fargo $41,000 1,080 +2%
Grand Forks $38,000 430 +12%

Ohio

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Akron $42,000 2,350 -19%
Canton $38,000 750 -49%
Cincinnati $42,000 8,230 -12%
Cleveland $43,000 7,640 -19%
Columbus $45,000 8,090 -4%
Dayton $41,000 2,490 -28%
Lima $38,000 210 -50%
Mansfield $39,000 240 -43%
Sandusky $44,000 160 -40%
Springfield $37,000 270 -30%
Steubenville $36,000 170 -48%
Toledo $42,000 1,950 -27%
Youngstown $38,000 1,100 -46%

Oklahoma

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Lawton $33,000 220 -31%
Oklahoma City $39,000 5,280 0%
Tulsa $37,000 3,430 -12%

Oregon

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Bend $47,000 280 -46%
Corvallis $45,000 170 -16%
Eugene $43,000 630 -49%
Medford $43,000 270 -58%
Portland $46,000 5,790 -38%
Salem $42,000 850 -35%

Pennsylvania

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Allentown $42,000 1,950 -38%
Altoona $33,000 180 -64%
Erie $41,000 620 -44%
Harrisburg $45,000 2,280 -21%
Johnstown $38,000 270 -41%
Lancaster $42,000 1,250 -41%
Philadelphia $50,000 15,310 -13%
Pittsburgh $41,000 7,520 -29%
Reading $45,000 720 -51%
Scranton $40,000 970 -59%
State College $46,000 730 +42%
Williamsport $34,000 220 -47%
York $42,000 880 -44%

Rhode Island

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Providence $47,000 3,010 -41%

South Carolina

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Anderson $41,000 180 -61%
Charleston $43,000 1,510 -42%
Columbia $45,000 2,300 -28%
Florence $44,000 250 -62%
Greenville $39,000 2,830 +5%
Myrtle Beach $38,000 350 -63%
Spartanburg $42,000 470 -53%
Sumter $37,000 150 -40%

South Dakota

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Rapid City $34,000 290 -45%
Sioux Falls $34,000 980 -19%

Tennessee

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Chattanooga $37,000 2,030 0%
Clarksville $33,000 580 -12%
Cleveland $35,000 200 -24%
Jackson $36,000 350 -27%
Johnson City $35,000 480 -20%
Kingsport $37,000 570 -46%
Knoxville $38,000 2,080 -31%
Memphis $41,000 3,870 -31%
Morristown $33,000 150 -59%
Nashville $40,000 7,380 +9%

Texas

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Abilene $41,000 580 +12%
Amarillo $42,000 810 -11%
Austin $49,000 12,180 +69%
Beaumont $41,000 1,290 -9%
Brownsville $39,000 710 -37%
College Station $46,000 850 +9%
Corpus Christi $40,000 1,560 -1%
Dallas $47,000 19,410 +0%
El Paso $40,000 2,140 -13%
Fort Worth $44,000 6,830 -14%
Houston $47,000 25,180 +4%
Killeen $36,000 870 -22%
Laredo $41,000 450 -32%
Longview $41,000 570 -30%
Lubbock $40,000 970 -11%
Mcallen $40,000 1,090 -47%
Midland $45,000 620 +20%
Odessa $40,000 400 -13%
San Angelo $44,000 270 -17%
San Antonio $43,000 7,030 -12%
Sherman $43,000 250 -23%
Texarkana $37,000 240 -45%
Tyler $40,000 720 -6%
Victoria $40,000 310 -19%
Waco $42,000 1,100 +29%
Wichita Falls $40,000 360 -20%

Utah

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Logan $38,000 200 -47%
Ogden $40,000 1,080 -39%
Provo $39,000 1,110 -26%
Salt Lake City $41,000 4,920 -12%
St George $36,000 310 -15%

Vermont

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Burlington $42,000 1,320 +37%

Virginia

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Blacksburg $38,000 410 -18%
Charlottesville $48,000 620 -15%
Danville $39,000 180 -32%
Harrisonburg $46,000 230 -49%
Lynchburg $39,000 500 -41%
Richmond $43,000 4,420 -21%
Roanoke $39,000 700 -49%
Virginia Beach $41,000 3,840 -45%
Winchester $40,000 230 -42%

Washington

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Bellingham $46,000 230 -63%
Bremerton $47,000 250 -64%
Kennewick $49,000 540 -37%
Longview $46,000 110 -57%
Mount Vernon $46,000 180 -49%
Olympia $51,000 1,510 +79%
Seattle $51,000 9,090 -30%
Spokane $44,000 850 -53%
Tacoma $47,000 1,230 -48%
Wenatchee $48,000 140 -54%
Yakima $43,000 230 -67%

West Virginia

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Charleston $39,000 950 -25%
Huntington $34,000 550 -44%
Morgantown $36,000 670 +56%
Parkersburg $37,000 280 -50%
Wheeling $40,000 400 -25%

Wisconsin

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Appleton $38,000 490 -51%
Eau Claire $36,000 350 -43%
Fond $38,000 190 -44%
Green Bay $38,000 1,070 -28%
Janesville $41,000 260 -50%
La Crosse $35,000 470 -21%
Madison $41,000 2,550 -17%
Milwaukee $44,000 5,680 -26%
Oshkosh $40,000 400 -46%
Racine $41,000 370 -40%
Sheboygan $38,000 270 -41%
Wausau $38,000 350 -36%

Wyoming

City and Area Median Salary Employees Job Density
Casper $38,000 190 -33%
Cheyenne $39,000 340 +2%
*FOOTNOTES: Job Facts salary and numbers data is based on US Department of Labor Statistics data for 2011. Other data on page may be from earlier years. Typical salary is given as median salary, where 50% in the job make more and 50% less. Salary range is Job Hunt's estimates of typical starting salary as being at the 10th percentile of reported pay and typical top end salary, for the most senior workers, as being at the 90th. Job openings is an estimate of new jobs every year due to growth plus those leaving the field. Where NA is given data is not available. Suggested studies is based on Job Hunt research, suggesting a minimum degree level that is judged to offer the best opportunities for entry-level employment. This Executive Secretaries and Administrative Assistants schools and career page was originally researched by CityTownInfo.com.