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Receptionists and Information Clerks
Answer inquiries and provide information to the general public, customers, visitors, and other interested parties regarding activities conducted at establishment and location of departments, offices, and employees within the organization.
Also Known As:
Clerk Specialist
Front Desk Receptionist
Greeter
Information Assistant (Info Assistant)
Medical Receptionist
Member Services Representative (Member Services Rep)
Office Assistant
Receptionist
Registration Clerk
Scheduler
Wages
Annual wages for Receptionists and Information Clerks in United States
Job Outlook
Bright
New job opportunities are very likely in the future
United States
2034 Projected Employment
1,007,600
0% Change From 2024
Explore File Clerks video
Tasks you might complete in a day.
- Operate telephone switchboard to answer, screen, or forward calls, providing information, taking messages, or scheduling appointments.
- Receive payment and record receipts for services.
- Transmit information or documents to customers, using computer, mail, or facsimile machine.
- File and maintain records.
- Provide information about establishment, such as location of departments or offices, employees within the organization, or services provided.
- Perform administrative support tasks, such as proofreading, transcribing handwritten information, or operating calculators or computers to work with pay records, invoices, balance sheets, or other documents.
- Collect, sort, distribute, or prepare mail, messages, or courier deliveries.
- Analyze data to determine answers to questions from customers or members of the public.
- Calculate and quote rates for tours, stocks, insurance policies, or other products or services.
- Take orders for merchandise or materials and send them to the proper departments to be filled.
- Greet persons entering establishment, determine nature and purpose of visit, and direct or escort them to specific destinations.
- Schedule appointments and maintain and update appointment calendars.
- Hear and resolve complaints from customers or the public.
- Perform administrative support tasks, such as proofreading, transcribing handwritten information, or operating calculators or computers to work with pay records, invoices, balance sheets, or other documents.
- Enroll individuals to participate in programs and notify them of their acceptance.
- Take orders for merchandise or materials and send them to the proper departments to be filled.
- Collect, sort, distribute, or prepare mail, messages, or courier deliveries.
- Perform duties, such as taking care of plants or straightening magazines to maintain lobby or reception area.
- Keep a current record of staff members' whereabouts and availability.
- Schedule space or equipment for special programs and prepare lists of participants.
- Process and prepare memos, correspondence, travel vouchers, or other documents.
- Operate telephone switchboard to answer, screen, or forward calls, providing information, taking messages, or scheduling appointments.
Subject areas you may need to master.
- Fine Arts - Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
- Building and Construction - Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
- English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
- Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
- Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
- Philosophy and Theology - Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
- Transportation - Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
- Physics - Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
- Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
- Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
- Foreign Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
- History and Archeology - Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
- Administrative - Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
- Economics and Accounting - Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
- Sales and Marketing - Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
- Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
- Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
- Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
- Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
- Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
- Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
- Personnel and Human Resources - Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
- Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
- Food Production - Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
- Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
- Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
- Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
- Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
- Geography - Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
- Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
- Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
- Telecommunications - Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
Strengths you may need in this role.
- Service Orientation - Looking for ways to help people.
- Quality Control Analysis - Testing how well a product or service works.
- Systems Analysis - Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
- Coordination - Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
- Science - Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
- Persuasion - Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
- Programming - Writing computer programs.
- Judgment and Decision Making - Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
- Learning Strategies - Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
- Active Learning - Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
- Reading Comprehension - Reading work-related information.
- Writing - Writing things for co-workers or customers.
- Equipment Selection - Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
- Operations Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
- Technology Design - Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
- Installation - Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
- Repairing - Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
- Systems Evaluation - Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
- Time Management - Managing your time and the time of other people.
- Management of Personnel Resources - Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
- Active Listening - Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
- Social Perceptiveness - Understanding people's reactions.
- Mathematics - Using math to solve problems.
- Instructing - Teaching people how to do something.
- Operations Analysis - Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
- Equipment Maintenance - Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
- Troubleshooting - Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
- Management of Financial Resources - Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
- Speaking - Talking to others.
- Critical Thinking - Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
- Monitoring - Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
- Negotiation - Bringing people together to solve differences.
- Complex Problem Solving - Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
- Operation and Control - Using equipment or systems.
- Management of Material Resources - Managing equipment and materials.
- Response Orientation - Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
- Static Strength - Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
- Selective Attention - Paying attention to something without being distracted.
- Time Sharing - Doing two or more things at the same time.
- Oral Comprehension - Listening and understanding what people say.
- Spatial Orientation - Knowing where things are around you.
- Multilimb Coordination - Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
- Fluency of Ideas - Coming up with lots of ideas.
- Information Ordering - Ordering or arranging things.
- Number Facility - Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
- Memorization - Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
- Trunk Strength - Using your lower back and stomach.
- Stamina - Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
- Gross Body Equilibrium - Keeping your balance or staying upright.
- Far Vision - Seeing details that are far away.
- Hearing Sensitivity - Telling the difference between sounds.
- Sound Localization - Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
- Night Vision - Seeing at night or under low light.
- Finger Dexterity - Putting together small parts with your fingers.
- Category Flexibility - Grouping things in different ways.
- Explosive Strength - Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
- Written Expression - Communicating by writing.
- Mathematical Reasoning - Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
- Speed of Closure - Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
- Flexibility of Closure - Seeing hidden patterns.
- Gross Body Coordination - Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
- Oral Expression - Communicating by speaking.
- Inductive Reasoning - Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
- Glare Sensitivity - Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
- Speed of Limb Movement - Quickly moving your arms and legs.
- Visualization - Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
- Control Precision - Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
- Speech Recognition - Recognizing spoken words.
- Written Comprehension - Reading and understanding what is written.
- Problem Sensitivity - Noticing when problems happen.
- Arm-Hand Steadiness - Keeping your arm or hand steady.
- Wrist-Finger Speed - Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
- Speech Clarity - Speaking clearly.
- Deductive Reasoning - Using rules to solve problems.
- Perceptual Speed - Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
- Peripheral Vision - Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
- Auditory Attention - Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
- Visual Color Discrimination - Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
- Manual Dexterity - Holding or moving items with your hands.
- Rate Control - Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
- Reaction Time - Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
- Dynamic Flexibility - Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Originality - Creating new and original ideas.
- Extent Flexibility - Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Dynamic Strength - Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
- Depth Perception - Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
- Near Vision - Seeing details up close.
Average Education Attained
Highest level of education earned by people in this career.
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Content sourced from United States Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration ("DOLETA") and the Minnesota Department of Employment & Economic Development ("DEED")