Career
Receptionists and information clerks
Be the first person visitors meet.
Here's what you actually need to know.
The work
What people in this job do
- Operate telephone switchboard to answer, screen, or forward calls, providing information, taking messages, or scheduling appointments.
- Greet persons entering establishment, determine nature and purpose of visit, and direct or escort them to specific destinations.
- Receive payment and record receipts for services.
- Schedule appointments and maintain and update appointment calendars.
- Transmit information or documents to customers, using computer, mail, or facsimile machine.
The outlook
How the forecast changed this year
AI
BLS now cites artificial intelligence in this occupation's outlook: “share decreases as companies use computer software, enhanced with artificial intelligence (AI) technology, to automate data collection, document preparation, and other tasks performed by clerks.”
The deeper question
What kind of person does this path ask you to become?
What this work centers on
O*NET interest profile, scored 1–7.
The work
Do you want most of your days spent on information & systems, then persuasion & leadership?
Responsibility
Are you willing to be the one responsible for this?
“Operate telephone switchboard to answer, screen, or forward calls, providing information, taking messages, or scheduling appointments.”
Development
What would you need to build over the next 5–10 years?
Speaking, Active Listening, Service Orientation, Social Perceptiveness.
Trade-offs
What does it ask of you in exchange?
No degree beyond high school, though short-term on-the-job training is typical, for a median of $38,010 a year and 105,100 openings nationally each year.
Paths in
Degrees that lead here
- Veterinary Reception/ReceptionistCIP 01.8203
- ReceptionistCIP 52.0406
Paths across
Careers that use similar skills
- Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants$45,930 · +4.8%
- Office Clerks, General$45,010 · -6.0%
- Customer Service Representatives$44,770 · -5.3%
- Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive$47,540 · -6.0%
- Switchboard Operators, Including Answering Service$38,630 · -26.0%
Ask anything about this career.
“Would this make sense if I don't want to sit at a desk all day?” Answers will come from the sources on this page, with citations. Coming soon.
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Sources
- BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- BLS Employment Projections, 2024–34 (archived), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- O*NET 31.0 Database (August 2026), National Center for O*NET Development / U.S. Department of Labor. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 Crosswalk, NCES and BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-01.