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How to become a PA

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Career progression and salary expectations for a PA

As a Trainee Personal Assistant, you'll start by providing administrative support, assisting with tasks such as scheduling appointments, managing correspondence, and organising meetings. This role offers valuable exposure to the inner workings of a business or organisation, laying the foundation for a successful career as a Personal Assistant.
As a Personal Assistant, you'll take on increased responsibility, managing the day-to-day administrative tasks of a senior executive or manager. This role involves coordinating schedules, arranging travel plans, preparing documents, and acting as a key point of contact for both internal and external stakeholders. 
In this advanced role, you'll provide high-level administrative support to top executives or senior management. As an Executive Assistant, you'll handle a wide range of tasks, including strategic planning, project management, and communication on behalf of the executive you support. 

The role of a PA

Passionate about organisation? Great at communicating? Good with acronyms? You should become a PA…

Personal Assistants (PAs) provide administrative and secretarial support to managers, executives, and company directors. They may also assist wealthy entrepreneurs, or even celebrities. Acting as the first point of contact between a manager and their employees, clients, and anyone else they communicate with, PAs do everything from managing office systems to handling all kinds of correspondence.

They also carry out a wide range other duties, all to ensure their manager’s schedule, workload, and day-to-day is organised and maintained effectively.

Typical PA tasks could include:

  • Screening phone calls, and replying to emails
  • Arranging meetings and appointments
  • Making travel arrangements
  • Note-taking, typing and compiling reports
  • Maintaining filing systems
  • Sourcing office supplies
  • Assisting with projects
First things first, you’ll need to be extremely organised, with great communication skills.

And, as much of your duties will be administrative, expert IT skills and knowledge of a range of software packages (particularly Word and Excel) are equally important. You’ll also need to demonstrate discretion and reliability in everything you do.

N.B. Those who are prone to being fashionably late need not apply…

You’ll also need:

  • Attention to detail
  • Flexibility
  • An ability to meet deadlines
  • Research and analysis skills
  • Initiative
  • Time management skills
  • Trustworthiness
"Having a natural passion for organisation (yep, I’m one of those people), pursuing a career as a Personal Assistant seemed like an ideal route for me. Not only does it allow me to make the most of my love for efficiency, it also involves a great deal of communication on a daily basis – which is definitely something I enjoy. Additionally, being a PA means I’m awarded with a high level of trust and responsibility, not just by my manager, but also from others within the organisation. And, although it can be stressful to work so closely with one person (especially if problems arise), I find that effective communication is all you need to bring order back and resolve any issues."

Get qualified as a PA

You won’t need a degree to become a PA, but qualifications in admin or secretarial studies will help boost your employability. Additionally, experience in administrative roles or customer-facing positions, such as retail or hospitality, is highly beneficial for aspiring PAs, as it helps develop relevant skills and familiarity with office procedures.

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