How To Become An Office Technician: What It Is and Career Path

What is an office technician and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted Expert

Anne McConnell Ph.D.

An office technician is an entry-level office employee who performs administrative tasks like inventory, photocopying, and scheduling travel plans. A person working in this position will typically be supervised by the office manager.

The requirements for this position are a high-school certificate and knowledge of word processing tools. The responsibilities associated with this position include; data entry clerk work, engaging in phone calls, interacting with clients, maintaining the filing systems and general paperwork such as photocopying, scanning and, printing.

What general advice would you give to an Office Technician?

Anne McConnell Ph.D.

Professor, West Virginia State University

I would say it's important to be very attentive to the way you communicate with your employers, managers, and co-workers. Even sending an e-mail can be an opportunity to demonstrate your professionalism and communication skills. Some people think that no one knows how to write anymore, or how to communicate in a professional way. I don't think that's true. But we don't always think about how our writing can be a tool to communicate our competence and seriousness. If you know how to write and communicate professionally-which college grads do-then make sure to demonstrate that in the workplace.

ScoreOffice TechnicianUS Average

Salary

2.7

Avg. Salary $34,956

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level

6.6

Growth Rate -5%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity

5.7

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.94%

Asian 8.48%

Black or African American 8.40%

Hispanic or Latino 23.17%

Unknown 4.46%

White 54.55%

Gender

female 69.99%

male 30.01%

Age - 50

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 50

Stress Level

6.6

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity Level

4.3

Complexity Level is basic

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance

7.1

Work Life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become an office technician

Explore office technician education requirements

Most common office technician degrees

Bachelor's

35.9 %

Associate

31.2 %

High School Diploma

17.8 %

Start to develop specific office technician skills

Skills	Percentages
Data Entry	15.95%
Patients	11.03%
Office Equipment	7.28%
Office Procedures	6.96%
Word Processing	5.07%

Complete relevant office technician training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New office technicians learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as an office technician based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real office technician resumes.

Gain additional office technician certifications

Office technician certifications can show employers you have a baseline of knowledge expected for the position. Certifications can also make you a more competitive candidate. Even if employers don't require a specific office technician certification, having one may help you stand out relative to other applicants.

The most common certifications for office technicians include Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) and Certified Pharmacy Technician (CPhT).

More About Certifications

Research office technician duties and responsibilities

Manage operational FedEx relationship through order fulfillment, shipment tracking, and communication with parties involve in shipment transaction.
Interact with SCO divisions, other agencies and campuses and the public, to resolve distribution problems concerning mail and payroll.
Communicate payroll information with employees.
Verify eligibility and coverage with Medicaid and Medicare.

Prepare your office technician resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your office technician resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on an office technician resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose From 10+ Customizable Office Technician Resume templates

Build a professional Office Technician resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Office Technician resume.

Apply for office technician jobs

Now it's time to start searching for an office technician job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do office technicians rate their job?

-/5

5 Stars

4 Stars

3 Stars

2 Stars

1 Star

Office Technician reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on Aug 2020

Pros

It my passion to help people in need. It makes me feel good to see people the Youth do well in the life

A zippia user wrote a review on Jun 2019

Pros

Interaction with clients and or customers is what I mainly liked, especially when confidentiality was needed! I also liked multitasking for different. departments.

A zippia user wrote a review on May 2019

Pros

Interacting with the public very friendly helpful in problem solving also I have patience with others

Cons

Rude customers who use profanity

What is an office technician and how to become one

What general advice would you give to an Office Technician?

Office Technician career paths

Key steps to become an office technician

Explore office technician education requirements

Most common office technician degrees

Start to develop specific office technician skills

Complete relevant office technician training and internships

Gain additional office technician certifications

Research office technician duties and responsibilities

Prepare your office technician resume

Choose From 10+ Customizable Office Technician Resume templates

Apply for office technician jobs

How Did You Land Your First Office Technician Job

Average office technician salary

How do office technicians rate their job?

Office Technician reviews