Purchasing Assistant job description: duties, skills and qualifications.

Core duties

15

O*NET task statements

O*NET occupation

Procurement Clerks

O*NET-SOC 43-3061.00

Preparation

Job Zone 1-2 of 5

very little to some preparation

Typical entry education

High school diploma or equivalent

BLS 2025–35

Median pay

$50,580

BLS May 2025

Data Government data groups this job as Procurement Clerks (O*NET-SOC 43-3061.00). O*NET 31.0 lists “Purchasing Assistant” as a job title for this occupation only (evidence: O*NET's Sample of Reported Titles (titles job holders report), O*NET job-incumbent data, the SOC Index and employer job postings). Figures on this page are for that occupation. TryHired has no separate career page for this title yet.

1. Track the status of requisitions, contracts, and orders. importance 4.5 of 5
2. Perform buying duties when necessary. importance 4.4 of 5
3. Prepare purchase orders and send copies to suppliers and to departments originating requests. importance 4.4 of 5
4. Calculate costs of orders, and charge or forward invoices to appropriate accounts. importance 4.3 of 5
5. Compare prices, specifications, and delivery dates to determine the best bid among potential suppliers. importance 4.3 of 5
6. Maintain knowledge of all organizational and governmental rules affecting purchases, and provide information about these rules to organization staff members and to vendors. importance 4.2 of 5
7. Determine if inventory quantities are sufficient for needs, ordering more materials when necessary. importance 4.2 of 5
8. Check shipments when they arrive to ensure that orders have been filled correctly and that goods meet specifications. importance 4.2 of 5
9. Contact suppliers to schedule or expedite deliveries and to resolve shortages, missed or late deliveries, and other problems. importance 4.2 of 5
10. Prepare, maintain, and review purchasing files, reports and price lists. importance 4.2 of 5
11. Review requisition orders to verify accuracy, terminology, and specifications. importance 4.1 of 5
12. Respond to customer and supplier inquiries about order status, changes, or cancellations. importance 4.1 of 5
13. Monitor in-house inventory movement and complete inventory transfer forms for bookkeeping purposes. importance 4.0 of 5
14. Compare suppliers' bills with bids and purchase orders to verify accuracy. importance 4.0 of 5
15. Locate suppliers, using sources such as catalogs and the internet, and interview them to gather information about products to be ordered. importance 3.9 of 5

Work activities O*NET rates most important here: Working with Computers, Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates, Getting Information, Processing Information and Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships.

Also part of the job

Supplemental tasks O*NET lists for this occupation: less central than the core duties above, and not done in every job.

• Monitor contractor performance, recommending contract modifications when necessary.
• Prepare invitation-of-bid forms, and mail forms to supplier firms or distribute forms for public posting.
• Train and supervise subordinates and other staff.

Knowledge areas: English Language, Administrative, Customer and Personal Service, Economics and Accounting and Administration and Management.

Software O*NET lists for this occupation: Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office software, Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft PowerPoint, Microsoft Word, SAP software. These are examples O*NET records for the job, not a list of tools every employer uses or a checklist of what you must know.

• Education: BLS lists a high school diploma or equivalent as the typical entry-level education.
• Experience: BLS lists no work experience in a related occupation as typical to enter.
• Training on the job: BLS lists moderate-term on-the-job training as typical once hired.
• Preparation: O*NET places the job in Job Zone 1-2 of 5 (very little to some preparation). Some occupations may need little or no previous experience; others require several months to a year of experience.
• Licenses and certifications: not listed here. A license is a legal requirement set by a state; a certification is a credential from a private or professional body. Rules vary by state and employer, and a missing entry on this page does not mean none is required: check with your state's licensing board.

The most common answer among purchasing assistants surveyed by O*NET is a high school diploma or equivalent (48%).

Job title: Purchasing Assistant
[Company] · [City, State] · [Full-time or part-time] · [Pay range, where your state requires one]

About the role
[Company] is hiring a Purchasing Assistant to compile information and records to draw up purchase orders for procurement of materials and services.
[One sentence on your team and why this role matters.]

What you will do
- Track the status of requisitions, contracts, and orders.
- Perform buying duties when necessary.
- Prepare purchase orders and send copies to suppliers and to departments originating requests.
- Calculate costs of orders, and charge or forward invoices to appropriate accounts.
- Compare prices, specifications, and delivery dates to determine the best bid among potential suppliers.
- Maintain knowledge of all organizational and governmental rules affecting purchases, and provide information about these rules to organization staff members and to vendors.
- Determine if inventory quantities are sufficient for needs, ordering more materials when necessary.
- Check shipments when they arrive to ensure that orders have been filled correctly and that goods meet specifications.

What we are looking for
- [Education: BLS lists a high school diploma or equivalent as typical for this occupation; set the level this role truly needs]
- [Experience: BLS lists no related work experience as typical to enter; set what this role needs]
- Strength in reading comprehension, speaking and active listening
- Working knowledge of English Language and Administrative
- [Software your team uses, e.g. Microsoft Excel or Microsoft Office software]
- [Any license or certification your state or company requires]

[Schedule, benefits and how to apply]

Illustrative: every name, employer, school, date and number in these samples is fictional or a bracketed placeholder. Replace each bracket with your own true details; never copy a result you did not achieve.

Not a real job posting. This template is TryHired's illustration built from government occupational data. It is not an opening at any employer, and no employer wrote it.

For Procurement Clerks, the median annual wage was $50,580 in May 2025. The median hourly wage was $24.32. BLS estimates about 55,810 jobs in this occupation in the U.S.

BLS projects employment of Procurement Clerks to decline 8.1% from 2025 to 2035, with about 3,700 openings a year over that period, including openings to replace workers who leave.

• Read a real purchasing assistant posting next to the core duties above. Duties it repeats, such as “Track the status of requisitions, contracts, and orders”, tell you what that employer weighs most; anything it adds is specific to that team.
• Tailor your resume to the posting, not to this page: describe only purchasing assistant work you have actually done, with your own results.
• Prepare a story for each of the top-rated skills (reading comprehension and speaking): a real situation, what you did and what changed.