The Work of an Executive Assistant

An executive assistant is a high-end administrative assistant that works with officers at the corporate level. Executive assistants are often responsible for caring after one or two professionals in an office, not a huge set of them like administrative assistants. This line of work comes with immense responsibility, and it is certainly not for everyone. Before you consider becoming an executive assistant, you may want to figure out if this job is right for you. Listed below are some common job duties and pay rates that you can use to figure out the appropriateness of this job for your life.

Job Duties of an Executive Assistant

Executive assistants are the go-to workers at the corporate level. They take on the roles that most other people do not have time for at the executive level, and they are often in charge of all the leftover duties for one specific board member in a company. The job duties that you may have to tackle as an executive assistant will vary based on the specific employer you work for. Here is an overview of some of the basics:

• Doing whatever the boss needs done (literally)
• Managing administrative assistants in an office
• Preparing the minutes at corporate board meetings
• Performing all the clerical duties for an executive's office
• Organizing paperwork for the office
• Scheduling appointments with executive officers

You may have to take on many other job duties as an executive assistant, so be prepared to learn a lot in a short period of time. If you can be flexible enough to pick up on new skills at all times, you should do quite well in executive assistance.

Salary Levels for Executive Assistants

Executive assistants make more money than administrative assistants, but that does not mean they are rolling in the dough. Most of them do not make really good money until they have been in their positions for a long time, and even then, they may be under paid for their work. There are tons of different factors that go into determining a person's executive assistant salary, like location, education, experience, industry, and employer type. You will not know how much you can make in this position until you actually get into your career. Here are some average pay rates that you can use to approximate your future salary.

Salary by Years of Experience

• Less than 1 year: $25,145 - $48,693 a year
• 1-4 years: $28,219 - $54,890 a year
• 5-9 years: $31,588 - $64,390 a year
• 10-19 years: $36,261 - $70,030 a year
• 20 years or more: $37,128 - $73,352 a year

Salary by Company Size

• 1-9: $27,599 - $59,233 a year
• 10-49: $29,348 - $65,872 a year
• 50-199: $32,018 - $65,722 a year
• 200-599: $34,937 - $66,901 a year
• 600-1999: $35,785 - $69,815 a year
• 2000-4999: $36,925 - $71,868 a year
• 5000-19999: $38,240 - $72,353 a year
• 20000-49999: $40,144 - $74,584 a year
• 50000+: $41,818 - $71,872 a year

How to Become an Executive Assistant

To become an executive assistant, you must first learn how to become an administrative assistant. You can get a business administration degree of some sort, or you could just start working as an administrative assistant and move up from there. The college degree will give you the best possible chance at finding a job quickly, especially if you have a master's degree. With the right education, all you will have to do is apply for work and hope you are selected for the position. Think hard about whether or not this is the right career for you, and then do whatever it takes to get the job done in the end.