Personal assistants (PAs), also known as executive secretaries, provide secretarial support for a senior manager and their department. They help to ease the manager’s workload by dealing with a range of administrative and secretarial tasks.

Typical duties for a personal assistant might include:

• screening telephone calls and handling enquiries that do not need to be passed on to the manager
• organising the manager’s diary and making appointments
• dealing with correspondence
• using a computer to produce letters, reports and presentations
• organising and attending meetings
• devising and maintaining office systems
• making travel arrangements
• looking after visitors.

PAs work closely with their manager, and many have a high level of responsibility. PAs may also:

• stand in for the manager and make decisions on their behalf
• supervise other secretarial staff
• be the office manager
• deal with accounts and budgets
• take on one-off projects, such as research or writing reports.

Hours and Environment

As a personal assistant you will usually work 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday. You may sometimes need to work overtime or flexible hours at busy times or to meet deadlines. Job-sharing or part-time work may be available.

You will be office-based, but may sometimes travel to attend meetings and other events.

Skills and Interests

To be a personal assistant you should:

• be extremely well-organised
• remain calm and professional while carrying out several tasks at once
• be able to work with people at all levels, particularly senior management
• be computer literate
• be flexible and adaptable
• have excellent written and spoken communication skills
• be tactful and discreet, as you could be dealing with confidential information.

Entry

You do not need any specific qualifications to work as a personal assistant, as entry requirements can vary from employer to employer. However, many employers ask for some GCSEs (A-C)/S grades (1-3), including English.

Most employers will prefer you to have at least a year’s experience of secretarial work before becoming a personal assistant. You should also be computer literate and able to use a variety of office computer software.

Some employers will prefer you to have a recognised qualification in administration or secretarial skills. Before looking for work, you may find it useful to take a qualification such as:

• NVQ/SVQ Levels 1 to 3 in Business and Administration
• City and Guilds, OCR (RSA) or London Chamber of Commerce and Industry Examinations Board (LCCIEB) certificates and diplomas.

Most further education colleges offer a wide range of full- and part-time courses. Some private secretarial colleges also offer full-time intensive courses. Please check with colleges for exact entry requirements.

Having a business-related HND or degree could give you an advanage in finding a job with a high level of responsibility. Foreign language qualifications can also be useful in some jobs. 

You may be able to get into secretarial work through an apprenticeship scheme. Funding for apprenticeships is available for 16-24 year olds and some over-25s. To find out more, visit www.apprenticeships.org.uk. For information about apprenticeships in other parts of the UK, see Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Training

You will usually be trained on the job in company procedures and systems. You may also be able to work towards an advanced secretarial qualification whilst employed. 

Qualifications include:

• Education Development International's LCCIEB Private Secretary’s Diploma or Business Administration Diploma
• OCR Higher Diploma in Administrative and Secretarial Procedures
• NVQ/SVQ Levels 3 and 4 in Business and Administration.

Opportunities

As a PA, you could work for senior managers in all kinds of organisation, but particularly in industry and commerce, the media, and local and central government.

Career prospects are good, and you could take on more responsibility by moving to a larger company or working for a more senior manager. Promotion to a managerial position or into a specialist role may be possible.

Annual Income

Figures are intended as a guideline only.

Personal assistants usually earn around £18,000 to £25,000 a year.
Senior PAs can earn £30,000 to £40,000 a year in some large companies.

Further information

Tel: 024 7685 1509

Education Development International plc 
International House
Siskin Parkway East 
Middlemarch Business Park
Coventry
CV3 4PE
Tel: 0870 720 2909

Tel: 020 7294 2800
Suite 464
24-28 St Leonards Road
Windsor
Berks
SL4 3BB
Tel: 0844 8000 182
6 Graphite Square
Vauxhall Walk
London
SE11 5EE
Tel: 020 7091 9620