SECRETARIAL ASSISTANT 2
Career Family: SECRETARIAL ASSISTANT
New Jersey treats Secretarial Assistant 2 as a competitive-class job, so the gate is an examination and the ranked list it produces rather than a direct offer.
It sits mid-series for Secretarial Assistant, one step up from Secretarial Assistant 1 and one below Secretarial Assistant 3. Eligibility comes down to 4 years of relevant experience. The FY2026 range lands between $53,807 and $78,268, and state payroll currently lists about 139 people in the title, led by Health and Senior Services.
How to apply
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Exam
This is an application to sit an exam and be placed on an eligible list for this title, not an application for a specific job. A $35 application fee applies to Non-Public-Safety announcements issued on or after 2026-02-01. There may be no current vacancy behind it, and the list it produces may not be certified for months or years.
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Exam
Open to permanent employees in the competitive division who hold a qualifying lower title in the same unit. A $35 application fee applies to Non-Public-Safety announcements issued on or after 2026-02-01. Like the open competitive exam, this places you on a list; it is not itself a job offer.
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Agency posting
Department of Health posts its own vacancies directly, often before (or instead of) any civil service exam announcement. Provisional appointment against a posted vacancy is how most people are actually hired into this kind of title.
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Agency posting
Department of Human Services's employment page may require a click-through to see specific openings. Provisional appointment against a posted vacancy is how most people are actually hired into this kind of title.
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Agency posting
Department of Law & Public Safety posts its own vacancies directly, often before (or instead of) any civil service exam announcement. Provisional appointment against a posted vacancy is how most people are actually hired into this kind of title.
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Agency posting
Office of the Public Defender's employment page may require a click-through to see specific openings. Provisional appointment against a posted vacancy is how most people are actually hired into this kind of title.
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Agency posting
Department of Transportation posts its own vacancies directly, often before (or instead of) any civil service exam announcement. Provisional appointment against a posted vacancy is how most people are actually hired into this kind of title.
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Agency posting
Department of Corrections's employment page may require a click-through to see specific openings. Provisional appointment against a posted vacancy is how most people are actually hired into this kind of title.
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Agency posting
Department of Children and Families posts its own vacancies directly, often before (or instead of) any civil service exam announcement. Provisional appointment against a posted vacancy is how most people are actually hired into this kind of title.
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Agency posting
Department of Labor and Workforce Development's employment page may require a click-through to see specific openings. Provisional appointment against a posted vacancy is how most people are actually hired into this kind of title.
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Agency posting
Department of Environmental Protection posts its own vacancies directly, often before (or instead of) any civil service exam announcement. Provisional appointment against a posted vacancy is how most people are actually hired into this kind of title.
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Agency posting
Motor Vehicle Commission's employment page may require a click-through to see specific openings. Provisional appointment against a posted vacancy is how most people are actually hired into this kind of title.
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Agency posting
Department of Education posts its own vacancies directly, often before (or instead of) any civil service exam announcement. Provisional appointment against a posted vacancy is how most people are actually hired into this kind of title.
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Agency posting
Department of the Treasury's employment page may require a click-through to see specific openings. Provisional appointment against a posted vacancy is how most people are actually hired into this kind of title.
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Agency posting
Department of Military and Veterans Affairs's employment page may require a click-through to see specific openings. Provisional appointment against a posted vacancy is how most people are actually hired into this kind of title.
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Agency posting
Department of Banking & Insurance's employment page may require a click-through to see specific openings. Provisional appointment against a posted vacancy is how most people are actually hired into this kind of title.
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Agency posting
Board of Public Utilities's employment page may require a click-through to see specific openings. Provisional appointment against a posted vacancy is how most people are actually hired into this kind of title.
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Agency posting
Civil Service Commission's employment page may require a click-through to see specific openings. Provisional appointment against a posted vacancy is how most people are actually hired into this kind of title.
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Agency posting
Department of State posts its own vacancies directly, often before (or instead of) any civil service exam announcement. Provisional appointment against a posted vacancy is how most people are actually hired into this kind of title.
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Agency posting
State Parole Board's employment page may require a click-through to see specific openings. Provisional appointment against a posted vacancy is how most people are actually hired into this kind of title.
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Agency posting
Office of Administrative Law's employment page may require a click-through to see specific openings. Provisional appointment against a posted vacancy is how most people are actually hired into this kind of title.
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Agency posting
Office of Legislative Services's employment page may require a click-through to see specific openings. Provisional appointment against a posted vacancy is how most people are actually hired into this kind of title.
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Agency posting
Department of Agriculture's employment page may require a click-through to see specific openings. Provisional appointment against a posted vacancy is how most people are actually hired into this kind of title.
Pay ladder: Secretarial Assistant series
- Secretarial Assistant 1 — $49,266 – $71,403
- Secretarial Assistant 2 — $53,807 – $78,268 (this title)
- Secretarial Assistant 3 — $61,510 – $89,810
Promoting to Secretarial Assistant 3 raises the top of the band by about $11,542. Its top salary lands around the 19th percentile of all NJ civil service titles that publish a range.
Rungs are ordered by FY2026 pay. NJ level numbers are not always sequential, so ordering follows salary rather than the title number.
Who employs this title
State payroll records show 139 people working under this title. The median actual salary is $74,599. The agencies employing the most are:
- Health and Senior Services (17)
- Human Services (16)
- Law and Public Safety (15)
- Office of the Public Defender (15)
Counts from NJ YourMoney agency payroll. See statewide workforce analytics.
Official job specification
The text below is the official specification published by the New Jersey Civil Service Commission. The plain-language summary and analysis above are derived from it by NJ Civil Service Navigator.
Definition
Under supervision, provides secretarial, administrative and clerical support to an assigned deputy division director, assistant director, bureau chief, or organizational equivalent who is responsible for the administration of major programs, including administration of a large sub-divisional unit and management of large regional, field, or satellite installations (four or more regional entities), or dean of a State college; takes and transcribes dictation, prepares letters on more complex matters, provides requested information to internal and external customers, maintains the schedule of appointments and the daily engagement calendar of the executive official; performs work that is moderately difficult or complex and broader in scope; learn and utilize various information systems for daily work assignments used by the agency, office, or related units; does other related duties as required.
Examples of work
- Organizes assigned secretarial and administrative clerical work and develops effective work methods.
- Knowledge of basic computer applications.
- Knowledge of commonly used data processing and office applications.
- Takes and transcribes dictation of varied types including moderately complex correspondence, reports, and recommendations of a confidential nature.
- Reviews, sorts, and routes incoming correspondence.
- Prepares letters on moderately complex matters which may or may not be reviewed or signed by the executive official.
- Obtains pertinent material from files and/or other sources; puts it into usable form for the review and use of the executive official.
- Provides requested information to division personnel, representatives of state, local, and other groups, organizations, and agencies, and to the public in accordance with established policy.
- May interview callers at the office.
- Maintains a schedule of appointments and the daily engagement calendar of the executive official.
- Prepares meeting agendas; takes, transcribes, and puts the minutes of meetings, conferences, and hearings into official form.
- Makes arrangements for speaking engagements, travel, and for meetings, conferences, and hearings.
- Maintains mailing lists and makes necessary revisions.
- Prepares moderately complex statistical and other reports.
- Maintains confidential personal correspondence and other records and files, including a follow-up file.
- Will be required to learn how to utilize various types of electronic and/or manual recording and information systems used by the agency, office, or related units.
Experience
Four (4) years of experience in taking and transcribing dictation and/or in secretarial and administrative clerical work.
License
Appointees will be required to possess a driver's license valid in New Jersey only if the operation of vehicle, rather than employee mobility, is necessary to perform the essential duties of the position.
Knowledge, skills and abilities
- Knowledge of secretarial, stenographic, and other office routines, procedures, and practices, and their application to specific situations.
- Ability to read and interpret department regulations, programs, standards, and procedures.
- Ability to accurately take and transcribe moderately complex dictation.
- Ability to act as a confidential secretary to an executive official.
- Ability to communicate with visitors, schedule appointments, and process requests for information in accordance with established procedures.
- Ability to take minutes of meetings, conferences, and hearings, and transcribe them into official form.
- Ability to prepare moderately complex statistical and other reports.
- Ability to prepare correspondence.
- Ability to multitask.
- Ability to learn, understand, and readily adapt to the computer systems used by the agency.
- Ability to create mail merges, PowerPoint presentations for daily assignments.
- Ability to maintain confidential, follow-up, and other records and files.
- Ability to learn how to utilize various types of electronic and/or manual recording and information systems used by the agency, office, or related units.
- Ability to read, write, speak, understand, and communicate in English sufficiently to perform the duties of this position. American Sign Language or Braille may also be considered as acceptable forms of communication.
- Persons with mental or physical disabilities are eligible if they can perform the essential functions of the job with or without reasonable accommodation. If the accommodation cannot be made because it would cause the employer undue hardship, such persons may not be eligible.
Note
The examples of work for this title are for illustrative purposes only. A particular position using this title may not perform all duties listed in this job specification. Conversely, all duties performed on the job may not be listed.
Successful completion of a clerical training program with a minimum of 700 classroom training hours or thirty (30) semester hour credits in secretarial science from an accredited college or university may be substituted for one (1) year of the experience indicated above. Course work must include typing skills, methods, and procedures; other courses may include, but not be limited to, office procedures, word processing, and business English.