PA Secretarial

This is our most popular course and
is designed to give you everything you need to have a full career as a more senior Secretary/PA.  You can study this course through our distance learning service and is tutor led.

The qualifications gained in this course will provide you with maximum job opportunities and promotional prospects.

You should aim to study between 5-10 hours per week on average.  The course will take about a year to complete based on this.  You have an overall time limit of 18 months within which to complete the course.

There are 3 main sections to the course, Secretarial, Computer/IT and Administration and the course also includes shorthand.

You can gain 6 Diplomas on this course with the OCR Examining Board (Oxford Cambridge and Royal Society of Arts).

Included in the course is our unique Career and Job support service - which includes helping to design a professional CV, developing your interview techniques, looking at your options based on where you live and the types of businesses you would like to work in, supporting you as you apply for jobs and go for interviews.

The course is broken down into 3 main sections – Secretarial, Computer/IT and Administration/Shorthand.

Secretarial

This section covers all the key secretarial skills you will need as a PA. You will learn how to produce professional business documents from drafts and audio dictation using digital software, edit multi page documents, use mail merge facilities, and desk top publishing features to enable you to produce complex documents.

Computer/IT

This section will enable you to use all the key Office applications to a professional standard.

You will learn how to create Word documents integrating information from other programs within it, and  file management in Windows Explorer. 

In PowerPoint you will learn how to create professional slide presentations using PowerPoint for meetings, talks and exhibitions using special effects, audio and graphics.

In Excel you will be learning how to create functions/formulae to provide complex calculations and present reports for business meetings, clients etc and pivot tables.

You will also learn how to create databases using Access, how to create queries and produce professional reports using a range of calculations as well as relational databases.

Finally you will also learn how to use Outlook which will help you organise yourself and your boss’ daily routine, set up appointments and meetings and use email and its range of facilities.

You will also demonstrate your knowledge of IT by producing a documented project to show the design of a computerised system to be used within an office environment. This will involve you creating a solution to given task and presenting it within a thesis style document providing evidence and reasoning as to its suitability.

Administration

This section will provide you with the know-how in how to cope with a range of different tasks that you will be faced with on a day to day basis. This knowledge will help you make better decisions and cope with the level of responsibility you are required to have in your position. It will also help you develop your confidence so you will not be phased when difficult situations occur and decisions have to be made.

One module covers composing business documents – correspondence, agendas, minutes of meetings, reports, chairs agenda, job descriptions, and notices – covering simple situations, to more complex situations which require more attention to detail and tone.

Another module will develop your skills with working as part of a team – so you are a positive member and communicate well. You will also learn how to deal with clients – both personally and on the telephone in a professional manner – including difficult situations which will require tact and diplomacy.

You will also learn about how different businesses are formed – from sole traders, partnerships to public limited companies and what they are required to do legally.  You will learn as well who is responsible for what – from the Chairman down.

You will also learn the techniques in organising yourself – so you work more
effectively and professionally. You will develop your skills to a standard that you are evaluating others in these skills and identifying how to improve a team’s performance.

The final module will develop your skills in the different methods used within an office – learning the correct procedures and developing your ability to analyse them and improve on them.

Shorthand

In addition you will learn shorthand – which is a key skill and becoming more in demand in the business world – which enables you take down minutes of meetings, telephone messages, instructions and key points at informal meetings.

You can gain 6 Diplomas on this course with the OCR (Oxford, Cambridge and Royal Society of Arts) Examining Board.

Two of the Level 2 Diplomas are optional as you will be gaining a higher Diploma at Level 3 in the same subject area. This helps to complete the course more quickly as well as reduce the cost of exam fees.

It is recommended that students gain both the Level 2 and Level 3 CLAIT Diplomas as each Level covers different programs/computer skills.

Diploma in Text Processing Level 2 (optional)

• Text Production
• Word Processing
• Audio Transcription
• Mail Merge 

Diploma in Text Processing Level 3 

• Text Production
• Word Processing
• Audio Transcription
• Document Presentation 

Shorthand Level 1, 2 and 3 (50 wpm-100wpm)

Diploma for IT Users (CLAIT Plus) Level 2

• Word and File Management
• Excel – spreadsheets and graphs
• Access – databases
• Outlook – email and personal information management
• PowerPoint – slide presentations

Diploma for IT Users (CLAIT Advanced) Level 3

• Creating IT Solutions
• Advanced Word
• Advanced Access
• Advanced Excel
• Advanced PowerPoint

Diploma in Administration Level 2 (optional)

• Producing professional business documents
• Effective working relationships
• Working in business organisations 
• Methodology in the office

Diploma in Administration Level 3

• Producing complex business documents
• Promoting effective working relationships
• Reviewing the organisation of business activities
• Reviewing and developing office procedures

Career Counselling and Job Support

For those looking to change jobs or start their career, full career counseling and job support will be provided.

This will include developing a professional CV, interview techniques, looking at options, guidance with research, monitoring job applications and interviews.

You will need Microsoft Office (Word, Access, Excel, Outlook and PowerPoint) to complete this course.

You will also need Internet connection, a printer, and a computer with headphones (used for the Audio and Shorthand modules).

You will also need the following text books:

• OCR Certificate in Administration Level 2
• OCR Certificate in Administration Level 3
• Teeline Gold Course Book
• Teeline Gold Word List

Text books will be sent to you via the post.