Office Administration Program Opens Various Doors

An office administrator is someone who has attended an office administration program such as Centennial College’s Office Administration – Executive offering and can handle the multiple functions performed by administrative assistants who work with upper-level management. This includes being able to: monitor departmental supplies and replace them as needed, perform clerical duties, work with a range of computer software and programs, attend meetings to take down minutes, type and file reports, prepare their supervisors’ daily schedule, greet visitors, answer phones and takes messages, communicate effectively, and ensure punctuality and professionalism.

Here’s how Centennial College’s Office Administration program gets students prepared for this range of duties in roles such as administrative support officers, senior secretaries and executive secretaries as well as administrative assistants.

• The Office Administration program takes just two years to complete and results in an Ontario College Diploma.

• To apply for this Office Administration program, students must have completed at minimum an Ontario Secondary School Diploma or equivalent or be 19 years of age or older.

• Additional application requirements include successful completion of the English 12C or U or a skills assessment or equivalent.

• It is worth noting that meeting minimum admission requirements does not guarantee admission to the Office Administration program.

• Students transferring to the Office Administration program from the Office Administration - General certificate program must have successfully completed either the Transcription Techniques or Machine Transcription course.

• Emphasis is placed on developing document production, note-taking and related computer skills.

• Students of office administrator schools also become familiar with client service, communication, time management and supervisory skills, arranging national and international conferences, taking minutes of meetings, Internet research abilities, composing business correspondence and presentation preparation.

• Faculty members who have worked in the business world and can recognize current trends while sharing their own anecdotes lead all courses in the offering.

• Specific courses within the Office Administration program include: Microcomputers, Introduction to Word Processing, Transcription Techniques, Financial Procedures, Office Procedures and Communications, Accounting Fundamentals, Job Search Skills, Executive Office Procedures and more.

• The Office Administration program prides itself on offering students practical experience through hands-on learning.

• One of the ways in which students get to apply what they have learned is through a field placement in the last semester of study. Students spend two days a week working in a business setting related to their area of specialization (Executive, Legal, or Medical).

• Upon graduation, students may enter the field or pursue further education in an articulated program with selected universities, institutes and professional associations. These partnerships allow graduates to apply academic credit towards further study.

• Partners of the Office Administration program are Athabasca University, Davenport University and University of New Brunswick.