Managing your future: An associate degree in office management

Are you interested in a business career, but don't feel you have the time or money right now to pursue a bachelor's degree or an MBA? An alternative track towards a management role can be a position as an office manager. An associate degree in office management, or an associate degree in office administration, may be enough to get you started on this type of career path.

If you feel that your skill set includes a good sense of organization, a talent for dealing with people, and a fundamental understanding of business, then you may want to look into how an office management degree could help hone those skills and give you a marketable credential for your resume.

Careers in office management

Office managers oversee the day-to-day administrative functions that help a business operate. This may include supervision of the clerical staff, allocation of office space and other resources, coordinating the procurement and maintenance of facilities and equipment, and arranging for the availability of a variety of services, from mail delivery to coffee and refreshments.

In smaller organizations, an office manager's job may also have elements of human resources, information technology, and basic accounting functions as well. In short, an office manager needs to be able to draw on a broad range of skills, all centered around a practical ability to get things done efficiently.

What are the job prospects for someone with these all-round abilities? Below are examples of office management careers, listed with corresponding data for the number of jobs in the US, and the average annual incomes. This information is based on data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) as of May, 2009.

• First line supervisors/managers of office and administrative support workers: 1,381,000 jobs averaging $49,990 per year.
• Administrative services managers: 243,580 jobs averaging $81,530 per year.

According to the BLS, growth in these roles is expected to be about average for the job market, and given the above-average compensation potential of these jobs, competition can be fierce. A degree in office management or office administration could help you gain a competitive edge.

Earning an office management degree

As you work towards an associate degree in office administration or office management, some of the subject areas you should look for include the following:

• Human resources
• Organizational principles
• Basic accounting
• Record keeping systems
• Information processing and storage
• Leases and contracts
• Fundamentals of business
• Legal environment of business

An associate degree in office management may be an especially attractive credential in smaller organizations, so you may want to focus your initial search for office management jobs on relatively small businesses. In addition, experience weighs heavily along with educational background as a qualification for this type of job, so you may want to consider pursuing an online associate degree in office management. An online associate degree in office management would allow you to work while you continued your education, so you would wind up with both experience and a degree--the ideal combination for an office management candidate.

An associate degree in office management or office administration could put you on track towards a challenging and rewarding career. It could prepare you for a role in which you were actively participating in the business world, and were depended upon by others in your organization.

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