Eight years ago, Jessica Ross (Office Administration ’07) began her first day at Ramsey Solutions, Dave Ramsey’s popular program to solve money challenges. Jessica served as the administrative assistant for EntreLeadership for 4 years until she progressed into her current role as customer success agent. Listening to customers with empathy, Jessica ensures they feel heard and applies their feedback to improving products and services. “I love the customer interaction because it’s always a challenge, and each day is different,” she said. “You never know what the next day will hold.”
Every day is also different for Connie Beneteau (Office Administration ’04). While she calls herself a bookkeeper, Connie does many essential tasks for her husband’s credit card processing business. “I chose to study office administration [at Pensacola Christian College] for the variety of tasks I would learn,” said Connie. “I’ve used my major ever since graduation and have been prepared for my jobs as a teller, receptionist, and now bookkeeper.” As their business and their family grew, the Beneteaus hired more employees to relieve some of Connie’s many responsibilities.
Strategically trained to serve in any school, church, law, or medical office, office administration students are prepared to master practical skills and confidently keep up in a fast-paced world and changing times. “The variety of jobs available appeals to me,” said Anna Williams (Office Administration ’21). “I could work as a receptionist, personal assistant, or executive assistant in a variety of fields. I could work in a law office, hospital, vet clinic, or a billion other businesses. I know the door is open to me to do so many different things with my degree because of how broad it was.”
By balancing a full class load, students immediately get a taste of a real office environment, with each class providing relevant projects and course material. Dean of professional studies, Dr. Donna Marion, said, “Because we realize most office situations require that the assistant be able to work under pressure while balancing multiple responsibilities, we try to simulate that in the classroom.”
In the Office Procedures (OA 318) class she took as a junior, Amanda Smith (Office Administration ’21) actively applied freshly learned concepts. “We took minutes for guest speakers visiting the class, created an office manual, and planned a tour of the staff offices,” she said. “When the guest speakers came in, they treated the class as an actual staff meeting, and it was our responsibility to accurately type out what was said. These class periods made me extremely thankful for the typing and computer classes I had taken in previous semesters.”
After receiving a solid foundation in general business and computer concepts, students advance their knowledge with upper-level classes. The current technologies that students learn enable them to adapt to many different types of office settings. “Many of our graduates can step into the roles for which they are hired with little training time required,” said Dr. Marion. “In many instances, graduates are promoted to leadership roles after a short time of employment.”
Before graduation, each student completes a 40-hour practicum spent observing and performing various duties in a real-life office setting. “During my practicum, I felt equipped to deal with important legal documents at a CPA office,” said Anna. “The detail-oriented, broad nature of my degree prepared me and gave me a foundation to grow on. I appreciate the Christ-centered training I received because it helped me be mindful of balancing efficiency with biblical principles/testimony. While working in the CPA office, I had the opportunity to lead my coworker to the Lord—all during the crazy, COVID tax season.”
Because employees, clients, and customers interact with the office assistant, PCC strives to instill in students a heart for service and to be a testimony for the Lord by exhibiting courtesy, flexibility, integrity, and an eye for details. “I’m thankful for my time at PCC because it taught me to have balance in my role,” said Jessica Ross. “I quickly learned to respect the guidelines that PCC put on their students because they set me up for success. PCC helped set expectations for what things would be like in the workforce.”
Bethany Bowman (Legal Office Administration ’14, M.A. Bible Exposition ’20) acknowledges that some parts of office administration are more challenging than others. “But there is no other job that I can imagine being more rewarding than the opportunity to be Jesus’ hands and feet to the people God has graciously placed in my life,” she said. “And really, that’s what we’re supposed to do as Christians, period, no matter what our job—inside or outside the home.”