Career
Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants
Keep executives organized and their offices running.
Here's what you actually need to know.
The work
What people in this job do
- Manage and maintain executives' schedules.
- Make travel arrangements for executives.
- Prepare invoices, reports, memos, letters, financial statements, and other documents, using word processing, spreadsheet, database, or presentation software.
- Coordinate and direct office services, such as records, departmental finances, budget preparation, personnel issues, and housekeeping, to aid executives.
- Answer phone calls and direct calls to appropriate parties or take messages.
The outlook
How the forecast changed this year
AI
BLS now cites artificial intelligence in this occupation's outlook: “share decreases as firms increase the use of computer software, enhanced with artificial intelligence (AI) technology, to automate routine back-office functions, such as document preparation.”
The deeper question
What kind of person does this path ask you to become?
What this work centers on
O*NET interest profile, scored 1–7.
The work
Do you want most of your days spent on information & systems, then persuasion & leadership?
Responsibility
Are you willing to be the one responsible for this?
“Manage and maintain executives' schedules.”
Development
What would you need to build over the next 5–10 years?
Reading Comprehension, Active Listening, Speaking, Writing.
Trade-offs
What does it ask of you in exchange?
No degree beyond high school, though on-the-job training is typical, for a median of $76,590 a year and 43,300 openings nationally each year.
Paths in
Degrees that lead here
- Administrative Assistant and Secretarial Science, GeneralCIP 52.0401
- Executive Assistant/Executive SecretaryCIP 52.0402
Paths across
Careers that use similar skills
- Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive$47,540 · -6.0%
- Administrative Services Managers$114,130 · +5.2%
- Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants$55,570 · -5.2%
- Office Clerks, General$45,010 · -6.0%
- First-Line Supervisors of Office and Administrative Support Workers$69,500 · +0.1%
Ask anything about this career.
“Would this make sense if I don't want to sit at a desk all day?” Answers will come from the sources on this page, with citations. Coming soon.
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Sources
- BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- BLS Employment Projections, 2024–34 (archived), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- O*NET 31.0 Database (August 2026), National Center for O*NET Development / U.S. Department of Labor. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 Crosswalk, NCES and BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-01.