How to Become an Administrative Specialist

Administrative specialists have the advantage of choosing to work in a variety of industries. Private corporations, non-profit organizations, law firms, medical facilities and major motion picture studios all have a need for an administrative specialist that can manage an office efficiently. To become an administrative specialist, you must become proficient at a variety of tasks like keyboarding, setting up and maintaining databases and spreadsheets, preparing documents, producing project proposals and planning meetings. Read on to learn more.

Instructions

Become an Administrative Specialist

1. Develop or improve your typing, word-processing and office software skills. These are the fundamentals for a career as an administrative specialist. You must also be proficient at spelling and writing, know and use proper grammar and be able to communicate effectively. You will be using all of these skills every day.

2. Work on your organizational skills. An administrative specialist must be able to run and manage an office, and maintain the overall office environment. A person good at organizing his own time is a good candidate to become an administrative specialist, as he will need to organize the workplace of his bosses and fellow employees.

3. Brush up on the skills needed to become an administrative specialist in a particular industry. Don't apply for work in a medical office if your vocabulary doesn't include medical terminology, and don't seek employment at a law firm if you don't know the difference between a bankruptcy and a divorce form.

4. Enroll in an administrative specialist certificate program. While a certificate should be adequate to get you an entry level position as an administrative specialist, to advance in this field you might need to earn an associate's degree or even a bachelor's degree in Business, Public Administration or a related field.

5. Work your way up. Lacking the formal education required for this field should not stop anyone who really wants to become an administrative specialist. Start your career path by seeking employment as an administrative assistant. While this may just be a glorified secretarial position, you will gain valuable work experience that can make up for your lack of education. Keep in mind that many companies promote from within.

Tips & Warnings

• Being an administrative specialist can be stressful at times. You will be asked to perform a multitude of tasks quickly and accurately, and burdened with tight deadlines and heavy workloads.

• You can expect to be asked to do things that other people don't want to do such as photocopying, filing, running errands and making coffee.