New Thinking for the Next Generation of Geography Education
Powerful Geography
Clerks

Clerks

Clerks

I. JOB SUMMARY

Main Topic: Human Geography
Secondary Topic: Environment and Society

Overview:  Information clerks work in government and business and perform tasks such as maintaining records, collecting data, and providing information to customers. The following are examples of types of information clerks:

Correspondence clerks respond to inquiries from the public or customers. Court clerks organize and maintain records for courts of law. Eligibility interviewers ask questions both in person and over the phone to determine whether applicants qualify for government assistance and benefits. File clerks maintain electronic or paper records. Hotel, motel, and resort desk clerks, also called front desk clerks, provide customer service to guests at the establishment’s front desk. Human resources assistants provide administrative support to human resources managers. Interviewers ask questions over the phone, in person, through mail, or online. License clerks process applications for licenses and permits, including administering tests and collecting fees. Municipal clerks provide administrative support for town or city governments by maintaining government records. Order clerks receive requests from customers and process their payments, which may involve entering the customer address and payment method into the order-entry system. Reservation and transportation ticket agents and travel clerks take and confirm passengers’ bookings for hotels and transportation.

For many types of clerical work, geography skills are an important competency.  Many clerks interact with people from different locations and backgrounds.  Many clerks are recording information and maintaining records that are specifically tied to a geographical location.  Some clerks work with geographical problems (e.g., an airline ticket agent who must figure out how to get a customer to their destination when their booked flight is cancelled).

Geographers at work:  Urban geographers, business geographer, cultural geographer, economic geographer, human geographers

Recommended College Courses:  Human geography, physical geography, business geography, urban geography, economic geography, cultural geography

Skills:  Map reading and interpretation, understanding of cultural, language, and economic difference influenced by geography; computer and database systems; critical thinking; teamwork

Occupation Group: Office and Administrative Support

Learn more about Clerks from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and U.S. Department of Labor: https://www.bls.gov/ooh/office-and-administrative-support/information-clerks.htm#tab-2

Written by Christopher Anderson

II. POWERFUL GEOGRAPHIC KNOWLEDGE

Financial clerks do administrative work, help customers, and carry out transactions that involve money. General office clerks perform a variety of clerical tasks, including answering telephones, typing documents, and filing records. Information clerks perform routine clerical duties, maintain records, collect data, and provide information to customers. Material recording clerks track product information in order to keep businesses and supply chains on schedule. Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks produce financial records for organizations and check financial records for accuracy.
Financial clerks do administrative work, help customers, and carry out transactions that involve money. General office clerks perform a variety of clerical tasks, including answering telephones, typing documents, and filing records. Information clerks perform routine clerical duties, maintain records, collect data, and provide information to customers. Material recording clerks track product information in order to keep businesses and supply chains on schedule. Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks produce financial records for organizations and check financial records for accuracy.