Postgraduate courses in Office Administration

There are a number of skills involved in working in office administration in order to keep everything running as it should within a business or company. 

There is no such thing as being over-educated so every course you embark on will stand to you and your career. Office administration might be the right path for you. Why not find out?

What is office administration?

In simple terms, office administration refers to the day to day activities carried out to keep an office running smoothly. 

What does an office administrator do?

Office administrators are the backbone of offices in order to make sure everything is going to plan and up to date. The work of an office administrator includes financial planning, billing, record keeping, filing and physical distribution and logistics involved within an office or organisation/business. Day to day tasks may differ depending on the particular office you might work in or the requirements of the sector. Duties may include: 

• Maintaining office services
• Preparing payroll 
• Correspondence to queries
• Creating filing systems
• Speaking to customers/clients over the phone 
• Approving supply requests/orders
• Monitor clerical functions
• Assisting employer
• Entering data into computer systems 

Courses

There are quite a few courses on offer in administration/office administration across the UK. Some courses offer part time or full time study as well as online courses. Given the current Covid-19 restrictions, some courses will begin online and possibly finish on campus of the University they are offered by. 

 

Courses in this area can often be split up into particular areas rather than a general administration course and can focus on particular parts of administration such as typing, office management and skills required to become a registrar, to name a few. As well as general postgraduate courses in this area there are also which allow you to gain a PGCert. Though not the professionally recognized courses, they still allow you to work in the area. These include: 

Records Managements

Courses in records management covers the fundamental and basic principles involved in the practice of record management and information rights. Students will also learn about the strict requirements of legislation and how they can be applied to your area of work in relation to record management. 

Digital Record Keeping

Courses in digital record keeping provide the basic knowledge and skills in order to work in a professional capacity in the administration field. Students will learn how digital records should be managed, preserved and retrieved. Students will need experience in an appropriate professional setting. 

Entry requirements

As these courses are all postgraduate courses, an honours degree is required for most. In some cases, applicants are welcome to apply but entry acceptance can be based on experience.  

Potential jobs in administration 

There are many different roles in administration you could work in. They include:

• Bookkeeper
  Record and maintain financial transactions and record financial data in general ledgers.

• Registrar
  Ensure all deaths, births, marriages and civil partnerships are recorded and kept.

• Medical secretary
  Carry out clerical work in hospitals, general practitioners and health professional offices such as taking phone calls, scheduling appointments, greeting patients and recording and filing paperwork.

• School secretary 

Similar roles carried out to a medical secretary but in a school setting. School secretaries schedule appointments with teachers/principals/parents and handle school communication as well as making sure paperwork is filed, up to date and in order. 

• Typist 

This is exactly what it says on the tin. Typists are skilled in typing and generally type documents, reports and policies for businesses and companies as well as checking documents for grammatical errors and spelling. 

Salary expectation 

The salary of an office administrator can differ depending on the company, location and possibly experience. However, the average salary in such a role is around £21,000 across the UK. Starting salaries may be lower while salary highs in areas such as London can reach up to £32,500. 

As location can play a big role in this, different areas have different averages. For example, the average salary of an office administrator in London is £27,000 while in Manchester the average may be closer to £19,000. These salaries can also depend on your specific role. 

Skills and requirements 

The ideal skills and requirements for jobs in office administration include: 

• Strong communication skills
• Organisation skills
• Computer/typing skills
• Research skills
• Self motivated
• Filing and bookkeeping
• Customer service skills
• Flexibility 
• Work well with others in office environment