Careers / Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants

Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants — Career Decision Dashboard

United States

Opens your browser print dialog — choose “Save as PDF”.

Median annual wage

$45,930

United States, 2025

Employment

961,610

United States, 2025

Typical education

High School Diploma or the equivalent (such as a GED)

Job Zone 2

Skills identified

35

10 related careers

Career overview

Perform secretarial duties using specific knowledge of medical terminology and hospital, clinic, or laboratory procedures. Duties may include scheduling appointments, billing patients, and compiling and recording medical charts, reports, and correspondence.

O*NET code
43-6013.00
Job zone
2
Experience required
Over 1 year, up to and including 2 years

Typical tasks

  • Answer telephones and direct calls to appropriate staff.
  • Schedule and confirm patient diagnostic appointments, surgeries, or medical consultations.
  • Complete insurance or other claim forms.
  • Greet visitors, ascertain purpose of visit, and direct them to appropriate staff.
  • Transmit correspondence or medical records by mail, e-mail, or fax.
  • Maintain medical records, technical library, or correspondence files.
  • Receive and route messages or documents, such as laboratory results, to appropriate staff.
  • Interview patients to complete documents, case histories, or forms, such as intake or insurance forms.

Choose a location

Salary analysis — United States

$35,930
10th
$38,570
25th
$45,930
Median
$50,580
75th
$60,530
90th

10th percentile

$35,930

25th percentile

$38,570

75th percentile

$50,580

90th percentile

$60,530

Most important skills

  • Speaking4.0
  • Active Listening3.9
  • Service Orientation3.6
  • Reading Comprehension3.5
  • Complex Problem Solving3.1
  • Coordination3.1
  • Writing3.1
  • Time Management3.1
  • Critical Thinking3.1
  • Monitoring3.0
  • Social Perceptiveness3.0
  • Judgment and Decision Making2.9

What skills do you need?

Select the skills you already have

Skills listed are those O*NET rates at importance 3.0 or above for this occupation. Set your own level on the same 0–7 O*NET scale.

Skill coverage

0%

0 of 11 identified skills

Matched

0

Missing

11

Your selected skills cover approximately 0% of the skills identified for this occupation in O*NET. This is a coverage measure of listed skills only — it is not a qualification, hiring or interview outcome.

Skills to develop

SkillImportanceRequired levelYour levelGap
Speaking4.03.6Not selected3.6
Active Listening3.93.5Not selected3.5
Service Orientation3.63.3Not selected3.3
Reading Comprehension3.53.1Not selected3.1
Writing3.13.0Not selected3.0
Critical Thinking3.13.0Not selected3.0
Social Perceptiveness3.03.0Not selected3.0
Time Management3.12.9Not selected2.9
Monitoring3.02.9Not selected2.9
Complex Problem Solving3.12.8Not selected2.8
Coordination3.12.8Not selected2.8

Ordered by required level gap multiplied by O*NET importance. No prediction or recommendation is implied.

Related careers

How salary varies by location

LocationMedianEmploymentYear
San Jose, CA$69,3506,3402025
Napa, CA$61,8305102025
San Francisco, CA$61,33013,6602025
Vallejo, CA$61,2209902025
Seattle, WA$60,3506,4202025
Santa Rosa, CA$60,2401,1902025
Longview, WA$58,830502025
WA$58,10010,9602025
Sacramento, CA$57,7307,7102025
Bellingham, WA$55,6702302025
San Luis Obispo, CA$54,7408402025
Portland, OR$54,5608,2902025
CA$54,490115,0502025
Olympia, WA$52,9003202025
Kahului, HI$52,5702902025
Barnstable Town, MA$51,9405602025
Minneapolis, MN$51,8708,9202025
San Diego, CA$51,65011,2602025
Albany, OR$51,6503102025
Norwich, CT$51,6104902025
All locations with published data

Career transition paths

Compare the skills of a career you hold today with Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants to see shared skills, target-only skills and skill overlap.

Build a transition comparison

Career and skills data: O*NET 31.0.

Salary and employment data: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS, 2025 (May 2025 release).

Figures are periodic published survey snapshots, not real-time market rates.