Best programs to become a secretary
You do not need a college degree to become a secretary. BLS lists a high school diploma or equivalent as the typical entry-level education. The fields of study that lead most directly to this job are Administrative Assistant and Secretarial Science, as well as Executive Assistant/Executive Secretary (IPEDS completions).
2 college programs at 467 schools train secretaries and administrative assistants, graduating 8,222 people a year (IPEDS completions). The job pays a median of $47,540 (BLS OEWS May 2025).
About secretaries and administrative assistants
Perform routine administrative functions such as drafting correspondence, scheduling appointments, organizing and maintaining paper and electronic files, or providing information to callers.
Best programs to study to become a secretary
Ranked by graduates per year (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are College Scorecard figures for people who finished the program, reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. That is a different measurement from the occupation-wide wages further down this page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CIP 52.0401 | 7,104 | 86.4% | 413 | $25,993 | $9,500 |
| 2 | CIP 52.0402 | 1,118 | 13.6% | 69 | $25,993 | $9,500 |
Top 50 schools by graduates into this job
Counting every feeder program a school offers, not just its largest one.
Fields of study that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level, the tier our program pages are built on. Numbers are graduates per year.
What secretaries and administrative assistants earn
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
Top-paying states
Top-paying metro areas
Job outlook
Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.
Where the jobs are, state by state
Pick a state for in-state pay, the schools there, and the programs they run.
| State | Median pay | Jobs | Concentration | Schools | Graduates / yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | $55,400 | 158,630 | 0.79× | 79 | 1,392 |
| Idaho | $43,710 | 7,570 | 0.80× | 5 | 1,386 |
| Texas | $45,140 | 149,650 | 0.97× | 34 | 672 |
| Alabama | $41,630 | 45,050 | 1.94× | 19 | 547 |
| Minnesota | $51,400 | 31,330 | 0.97× | 18 | 459 |
| Kentucky | $44,200 | 18,420 | 0.84× | 7 | 333 |
| Georgia | $41,600 | 44,430 | 0.83× | 21 | 331 |
| Louisiana | $38,790 | 28,040 | 1.32× | 8 | 320 |
| South Carolina | $44,880 | 30,180 | 1.19× | 11 | 271 |
| Wisconsin | $47,710 | 28,100 | 0.87× | 12 | 259 |
| Tennessee | $45,810 | 34,580 | 0.96× | 21 | 224 |
| Mississippi | $37,340 | 14,720 | 1.15× | 12 | 196 |
| Utah | $47,050 | 14,870 | 0.78× | 6 | 180 |
| Illinois | $48,310 | 74,280 | 1.11× | 23 | 141 |
| Oklahoma | $39,660 | 20,120 | 1.07× | 14 | 140 |
| Ohio | $46,230 | 54,790 | 0.90× | 10 | 131 |
| New York | $49,600 | 122,490 | 1.15× | 14 | 114 |
| Michigan | $46,020 | 40,830 | 0.84× | 12 | 87 |
| Indianalimited | $44,270 | 20,100 | 0.57× | 1 | 82 |
| Arkansas | $37,630 | 8,590 | 0.60× | 8 | 81 |
| Iowa | $45,150 | 12,830 | 0.75× | 11 | 76 |
| Kansas | $42,270 | 32,120 | 2.04× | 12 | 70 |
| Florida | $45,900 | 104,000 | 0.95× | 12 | 60 |
| Nebraskamoderate | $46,760 | 16,240 | 1.44× | 3 | 49 |
| Nevadalimited | $46,570 | 16,790 | 0.99× | 2 | 49 |
| Arizona | $47,940 | 31,220 | 0.88× | 9 | 45 |
| New Mexicomoderate | $46,450 | 25,430 | 2.66× | 4 | 45 |
| Pennsylvania | $46,270 | 65,310 | 0.98× | 8 | 45 |
| Washington | $57,330 | 31,710 | 0.81× | 9 | 45 |
| Oregonmoderate | $51,740 | 23,150 | 1.07× | 4 | 41 |
| Alaskamoderate | $48,530 | 5,390 | 1.51× | 3 | 28 |
| Coloradolimited | $48,690 | 29,120 | 0.92× | 1 | 28 |
| Missourimoderate | $43,540 | 33,180 | 1.03× | 3 | 24 |
| Massachusetts | $57,940 | 37,750 | 0.95× | 5 | 15 |
| Hawaiilimited | $50,830 | 7,020 | 1.02× | 2 | 14 |
| Connecticutlimited | $57,210 | 22,650 | 1.22× | 1 | 8 |
| Marylandmoderate | $48,680 | 54,890 | 1.81× | 3 | 7 |
| West Virginiamoderate | $40,370 | 8,820 | 1.15× | 3 | 6 |
| North Dakotamoderate | $47,480 | 5,800 | 1.23× | 3 | 5 |
| New Jerseymoderate | $50,260 | 65,960 | 1.40× | 3 | 4 |
| Wyominglimited | $45,450 | 2,250 | 0.73× | 2 | 4 |
| South Dakotalimited | $41,700 | 6,120 | 1.22× | 1 | 3 |
| Rhode Islandlimited | $52,140 | 5,200 | 0.95× | 1 | 1 |
| Virginialimited | $47,620 | 31,580 | 0.70× | 1 | 1 |
Skills and knowledge
From O*NET, the U.S. Department of Labor's occupational database. Importance is a 1 to 5 scale.
What they do day to day
- Answer telephones and give information to callers, take messages, or transfer calls to appropriate individuals.
- Greet visitors or callers and handle their inquiries or direct them to the appropriate persons according to their needs.
- Create, maintain, and enter information into databases.
- Use computers for various applications, such as database management or word processing.
- Operate office equipment, such as fax machines, copiers, or phone systems and arrange for repairs when equipment malfunctions.
- Set up and manage paper or electronic filing systems, recording information, updating paperwork, or maintaining documents, such as attendance records, correspondence, or other material.
- Operate electronic mail systems and coordinate the flow of information, internally or with other organizations.
- Schedule and confirm appointments for clients, customers, or supervisors.
Skills
- Active Listening4.0
- Speaking4.0
- Reading Comprehension3.9
- Writing3.8
- Monitoring3.1
- Critical Thinking3.0
- Active Learning2.9
- Learning Strategies2.1
Knowledge areas
- Administrative4.5
- English Language4.3
- Computers and Electronics3.8
- Customer and Personal Service3.8
- Administration and Management3.4
- Mathematics2.9
Abilities
- Oral Expression4.0
- Written Expression4.0
- Oral Comprehension4.0
- Written Comprehension4.0
- Near Vision3.9
- Speech Clarity3.8
Core activities
- Working with Computers4.4
- Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates4.2
- Getting Information4.2
- Performing Administrative Activities4.1
- Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work3.8
- Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships3.8
How to get in
How to become a secretary
- Typical entry education
- High school diploma or equivalent
- On-the-job training
- Short-term on-the-job training
Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not.
Some occupations may need little or no previous experience; others require several months to a year of experience. For example, landscaping and groundskeeping workers might require very little training or previous experience, while agricultural equipment operators can benefit from on-the job training.
Ranges from a few days to one year of on-the-job training.
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 2 majors mapped to Secretaries and Administrative Assistants2 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 52.0401Administrative Assistant and Secretarial Science, General
- 52.0402Executive Assistant/Executive Secretary
Related careers
Jobs O*NET identifies as close to this one, with their own pay and outlook.
Common questions
What degree do you need to become a secretary?+
You do not need a college degree to become a secretary. BLS lists a high school diploma or equivalent as the typical entry-level education. The fields of study that lead most directly to this job are Administrative Assistant and Secretarial Science, as well as Executive Assistant/Executive Secretary (IPEDS completions).
Which college majors lead to becoming a secretary?+
The fields of study that lead most directly to this job are Administrative Assistant and Secretarial Science, as well as Executive Assistant/Executive Secretary (IPEDS completions). In all, the NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 2 programs to this job, which together graduate about 8,222 people a year.
How much do secretaries and administrative assistants earn?+
The median is $47,540 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). The middle range runs from $33,280 at the 10th percentile to $66,350 at the 90th. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.
Is demand for secretaries and administrative assistants growing?+
BLS projects a -1.6% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, decline, with roughly 202,800 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career?+
467 institutions reported graduates from at least one of the 2 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.
What other job titles do secretaries and administrative assistants work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Secretary, Office Assistant, Administrative Assistant (Admin Assistant), Administrative Secretary (Admin Secretary) among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 43-6014.
About the data on this page
Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024-25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).
BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics
May 2025Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.
BLS Employment Projections
2024–34Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.
IPEDS Completions
2024-25 (provisional)Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.
College Scorecard, Field of Study
2020-21 cohortsMedian graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.
Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes
latest availableGraduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.
NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk
CIP 2020 / SOC 2018Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.
O*NET Database 30.3
30.3Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.
Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA
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