Job prospects should be best for experienced secretaries. Several hundred thousand secretarial positions will be available each year as experienced workers transfer to other occupations or retire. Applicants for secretary positions should also have basic office skills. Secretaries must be skilled in keyboarding. They should also be good at spelling, punctuation, grammar, and speaking.
Shorthand is necessary for some positions.
Familiarity with computers is increasingly important. Knowledge of word processing, spreadsheet, and database programs is helpful. As technology continues to change, retraining and continuing education will be important. This means that secretaries must adapt to change. Secretaries may have to attend classes to learn to operate new equipment.