I want to work in Secretarial Work

Graduate Secretary

• Prospects Job Profile: Secretary/Administrator 
• INVOLVES: Word-processing & desktop publishing (this is becoming less central as most managers now have their own computers). Dealing with incoming post, email, telephone calls Answering enquiries, maintaining diaries & making appointments. Organising meetings, travel, dispatch, purchases, etc. Maintaining a filing system/computer databases.
• EMPLOYERS: All types of organisation, & also individuals, in UK & overseas, including those which require specialist secretarial qualifications such as law firms, hospitals/surgeries & farms.
• RELATED JOBS: administrative assistant, receptionist.
• SATISFACTIONS: Flexibility - easy to move from one employer or location to another. Fits in well with different lifestyles - part-time work, career break.
• NEGATIVES: Lowish salary. Routine work as junior secretary. Little power to implement change within the organisation.
• SKILLS: written communication, verbal communication, organising, listening, co-operating.
• ADVANCEMENT: Movement from secretary to senior secretary/office manager, with greater scope for initiative & responsibility, including supervision of other staff. from senior secretary to personal assistant - a highly proactive role working closely with senior manager(s) & undertaking a substantial role in your own right, such as researching & producing reports.
• DEGREE: Any degree subject: languages for bilingual secretary. Postgraduate secretarial courses confers a distinct advantage. These are widely available. Otherwise would need very good keyboard skills and knowledge of packages such as WP & spreadsheets.
• VACANCY SOURCES: Recruitment Agencies , Local & National Newspapers.
• TIPS: Get good word-processing skills preferably via a secretarial course. Can be a stepping stone into other jobs - especially in the media & secretarial teaching.

Further Information

• Job profiles for Office Manager, Personal Assistant and Secretary/Administrator
• Profile -Secretary/administrator
• Institute of Administrative Management
• The Association of Medical Secretaries, Practice Managers, Administrators and Receptionists
• The Institute of Agricultural Secretaries and Administrators
  
• The Institute of Legal Secretaries
• Language Employers (for bilingual secretaries)
• Tiger Recruitment London based recruitment agency specialising in Office Managers, Events Managers, PA and secretarial positions. Have temporary and permanent positions for graduate and experienced job seekers.
• BBC article Is the art of shorthand dying?

Office Administration, Secretarial and P.A. Courses 

There are many courses covering these areas: those listed below are a selection, mostly in the south of England , that may be of interest to Kent graduates seeking to improve their skills in these areas. This list does not imply any recommendation of these courses.

• Pitman Training: Executive PA 
• Canterbury Centre
• Lewis Secretarial & Computer College – PA Secretarial 
  and Euro Secretary courses
• Oxford Media & Business School – Executive Personal Assistant Course