File Clerks
File correspondence, cards, invoices, receipts, and other records in alphabetical or numerical order or according to the filing system used. Locate and remove material from file when requested.
- Median pay
- $43,600
- Doing it now
- 76,200
- By 2035
- Down 15.8%
- Usually needs
- High school diploma or equivalent
a year
across the country
5,600 openings a year
to get in
What the work involves
- Add new material to file records or create new records as necessary.
- Gather materials to be filed from departments or employees.
- Sort or classify information according to guidelines, such as content, purpose, user criteria, or chronological, alphabetical, or numerical order.
- Scan or read incoming materials to determine how and where they should be classified or filed.
- Place materials into storage receptacles, such as file cabinets, boxes, bins, or drawers, according to classification and identification information.
- Assign and record or stamp identification numbers or codes to index materials for filing.
- Answer questions about records or files.
What to study
The fields of study the Department of Education links to this occupation, most widely taught first.
- Business Operations Support and Assistant ServicesSee 44 colleges that teach it
Who it suits
O*NET scores every occupation on six interest dimensions. This one leans hardest on these three.
Organised and precise
Hands-on and practical
Helping and teaching
Careers like this one
Where this comes from: the description and the task list are O*NET, which the Department of Labor maintains. Pay, workforce size, outlook and the education normally needed are the Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections programme, 2025 wages and 2025 to 2035 projections. Half of them earn more than $43,600 a year, which means half earn less, and what you would earn depends on where you work and how long you have been doing it. The fields of study come from the National Center for Education Statistics crosswalk.