# Correspondence Clerks

> Compose letters or electronic correspondence in reply to requests for merchandise, damage claims, credit and other information, delinquent accounts, incorrect billings, or unsatisfactory services. Duties may include gathering data to formulate reply and preparing correspondence.

- Edition: Data verified Nov 2026 · CollegesRef 2026–27 edition
- Page: https://www.collegesref.com/careers/correspondence-clerks
- SOC code: 43-4021.00
- Career family: Office and administrative support
- Median annual pay: $46,800 (10th percentile $33,300, 90th percentile $64,510)
- Projected growth: Decline, -5.6%
- Openings a year: 500
- Typical entry education: High school diploma
- Bright outlook: no
- Data years: BLS 2025 wages · 2025–35 projections

## Interest profile (code CES)

| Interest area | Score (0–100) |
| --- | ---: |
| Realistic (R) | 5 |
| Investigative (I) | 25 |
| Artistic (A) | 10 |
| Social (S) | 28 |
| Enterprising (E) | 41 |
| Conventional (C) | 98 |

## What you'd do

- Working with Computers (importance 88/100)
- Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates (importance 78/100)
- Getting Information (importance 77/100)
- Performing Administrative Activities (importance 75/100)
- Documenting/Recording Information (importance 75/100)
- Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work (importance 75/100)
- Processing Information (importance 73/100)
- Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships (importance 69/100)
- Communicating with People Outside the Organization (importance 69/100)
- Making Decisions and Solving Problems (importance 66/100)

## Skills

Writing, Active Listening, Reading Comprehension, Speaking, Critical Thinking, Judgment and Decision Making, Social Perceptiveness, Service Orientation, Time Management, Complex Problem Solving

## Knowledge

Administrative, English Language, Customer and Personal Service, Economics and Accounting, Mathematics, Computers and Electronics, Administration and Management, Public Safety and Security, Law and Government, Communications and Media

## Also called

Authorization and Referral Coordinator, Authorization Coordinator, Authorization Representative (Authorization Rep), Authorization Specialist, Chargeback Specialist, Claims Correspondence Clerk, Collections Correspondent, Commercial Correspondent, Correspondence Analyst, Correspondence Clerk

## Majors that lead here (NCES CIP–SOC crosswalk, 4-digit CIP)

- [Business Operations Support and Assistant Services](https://www.collegesref.com/programs/5204) (CIP 5204, 758 colleges)

## Colleges with strong outcomes (College Scorecard, 2025)

| College | Program | Earnings 1 yr | Earnings 4 yrs | Median debt |
| --- | --- | ---: | ---: | ---: |
| [Bellevue University-Nebraska](https://www.collegesref.com/college/bellevue-university-nebraska-206) | Business Operations Support and Assistant Services | $67,452 | $83,581 | $19,499 |
| [Valdosta State University](https://www.collegesref.com/college/valdosta-state-university-3105) | Business Operations Support and Assistant Services | $42,670 | $60,715 | $25,991 |

## Related careers

- [Office Clerks, General](https://www.collegesref.com/careers/office-clerks-general): $45,010 median pay
- [File Clerks](https://www.collegesref.com/careers/file-clerks): $43,600 median pay
- [Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive](https://www.collegesref.com/careers/secretaries-and-administrative-assistants-except-legal-medical-and-executive): $47,540 median pay
- [Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants](https://www.collegesref.com/careers/legal-secretaries-and-administrative-assistants): $55,570 median pay
- [Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks](https://www.collegesref.com/careers/bookkeeping-accounting-and-auditing-clerks): $50,670 median pay
- [Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative Assistants](https://www.collegesref.com/careers/executive-secretaries-and-executive-administrative-assistants): $76,590 median pay

## Sources

- [O*NET Database](https://www.onetcenter.org/database.html), version 31.0 (CC BY 4.0)
- [BLS Employment Projections](https://www.bls.gov/emp/tables.htm), version 2025-35, data year 2025 (Public domain (U.S. government work))
- [BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics](https://www.bls.gov/oes/tables.htm), version 2025, data year 2025 (Public domain (U.S. government work))
- [NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk](https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/cipcode/resources.aspx?y=56), version 2020, data year 2020 (Public domain (U.S. government work))

O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. CollegesRef has modified all or some of this information.