What does a Correspondence Clerk do?

Compose letters or electronic correspondence in reply to requests for merchandise, damage claims, credit and other information, delinquent accounts, incorrect billings, or unsatisfactory services. Day to day that includes work like maintain files and control records to show correspondence activities and Read incoming correspondence to ascertain nature of writers' concerns and to determine disposition of correspondence.

What skills should a Correspondence Clerk put on a resume?

O*NET rates Writing, Active Listening, Reading Comprehension, Speaking, and Critical Thinking among the most important skills for this occupation. Name the ones that are genuinely yours and show where you used them. A resume that lists skills you do not have is weaker than one that lists fewer.

What software should a Correspondence Clerk list?

Software recorded for this occupation includes Electronic data interchange EDI software, Electronic health record EHR software, Enterprise resource planning ERP software, Epic Systems, and GE Healthcare Centricity EMR. Applicant tracking systems match on the exact product name, so write the tool as the posting writes it rather than describing it in general terms.

What other job titles cover Correspondence Clerk work?

O*NET records 38 titles for this occupation, including Correspondence Coordinator, Correspondence Representative, Correspondence Rep, and Dispute Resolution Analyst. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

What qualifications does a Correspondence Clerk need?

In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 43% reported their level of education as "High School Diploma, or the equivalent". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

Will this resume pass an ATS for a Correspondence Clerk role?

No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer's system is configured, including ours. What you can control is that the resume parses cleanly, names the work in the words the posting uses, and does not claim anything you cannot back up.

Correspondence Clerk resume example

A resume for a Correspondence Clerk needs to show the work itself: compose letters or electronic correspondence in reply to requests for merchandise, damage claims, credit and other information, delinquent accounts, incorrect billings, or unsatisfactory services. Day to day that means work like this: maintain files and control records to show correspondence activities; read incoming correspondence to ascertain nature of writers' concerns and to determine disposition of correspondence. Recruiters and applicant tracking systems both read for the tasks and tools this role actually involves, so the strongest resume names them in your own experience rather than describing the job in the abstract. Below are the tasks O*NET records for this occupation, the software and tools it uses, the titles it is advertised under, and the skills worth naming if they are genuinely yours.

Also advertised as

The same job is posted under many titles. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

Correspondence Coordinator
Correspondence Representative
Correspondence Rep
Dispute Resolution Analyst
Chargeback Specialist
Claims Correspondence Clerk
Correspondent
Dispute Specialist
Office Technician
Office Tech
Technical Clerk
Authorization Rep
Authorization and Referral Coordinator
Authorization Coordinator
Authorization Representative
Authorization Specialist
Collections Correspondent
Commercial Correspondent

O*NET records 38 titles for this occupation in total.

What people in this job call themselves

Titles reported by people actually doing this work, which is often not the title on the job posting.

Correspondence Clerk
Correspondence Representative (Correspondence Rep)
Office Technician (Office Tech)

What this work actually involves

Tasks recorded for this occupation, in O*NET's words. If your experience covers one of these, it belongs on your resume in your own words.

Maintain files and control records to show correspondence activities.
Read incoming correspondence to ascertain nature of writers' concerns and to determine disposition of correspondence.
Gather records pertinent to specific problems, review them for completeness and accuracy, and attach records to correspondence as necessary.
Prepare documents and correspondence, such as damage claims, credit and billing inquiries, invoices, and service complaints.
Compile data from records to prepare periodic reports.
Compose letters in reply to correspondence concerning such items as requests for merchandise, damage claims, credit information requests, delinquent accounts, incorrect billing, or unsatisfactory service.
Route correspondence to other departments for reply.
Ensure that money collected is properly recorded and secured.
Process orders for goods requested in correspondence.
Present clear and concise explanations of governing rules and regulations.
Review correspondence for format and typographical accuracy, assemble the information into a prescribed form with the correct number of copies, and submit it to an authorized official for signature.
Compute costs of records furnished to requesters, and write letters to obtain payment.

17 tasks are recorded in total; these are the most central.

Example bullets for this role

Built from this occupation's own tasks. The brackets stay empty on purpose: we will not invent a number for you, and a fabricated metric is the fastest way to lose an interview you had already won.

Maintain files and control records to show correspondence activities, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Read incoming correspondence to ascertain nature of writers' concerns and to determine disposition of correspondence, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Gather records pertinent to specific problems, review them for completeness and accuracy, and attach records to correspondence as necessary, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Prepare documents and correspondence, such as damage claims, credit and billing inquiries, invoices, and service complaints, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].

Software used in this role

Recorded for this occupation by O*NET. An applicant tracking system matches the exact product name, so write the tool the way the posting writes it.

Electronic data interchange EDI software
Electronic health record EHR software
Enterprise resource planning ERP software
Epic Systems
GE Healthcare Centricity EMR
Healthcare common procedure coding system HCPCS
Imaging software
Microsoft Access
Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Office software
Microsoft Outlook
Microsoft PowerPoint
Microsoft SharePoint
Microsoft Windows

17 software entries are recorded in total.

Tools and equipment

The physical equipment this occupation is recorded as using. Worth naming when a posting asks for it by name.

Computer inkjet printers
Computer laser printers
Copy machines
Document scanners
Laser facsimile machines
Microfiche viewing equipment
Multiline telephone systems
Paper folding machines
Personal computers

Skills an ATS reads for

Worth naming only if they are genuinely yours. Keyword overlap is one input to a resume's score, not a verdict.

Epic

What this job rates as most important

O*NET rates every skill for importance to this occupation. These are the highest rated, in order.

01Writing
02Active Listening
03Reading Comprehension
04Speaking
05Critical Thinking
06Judgment and Decision Making
07Social Perceptiveness
08Service Orientation
09Time Management

Knowledge areas

The subject knowledge this occupation draws on, rated by importance.

Administrative
English Language
Customer and Personal Service
Economics and Accounting
Mathematics
Computers and Electronics

What qualifications people in this job have

From O*NET's survey of people doing this work. This is what postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

43%High School Diploma, or the equivalent
28%Associate's Degree
17%Some College Courses

What level this role is pitched at

O*NET places this occupation in “Some Preparation Needed”. These occupations usually require a high school diploma.

Some previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is usually needed. For example, a teller would benefit from experience working directly with the public.

Common questions

What does a Correspondence Clerk do?: Compose letters or electronic correspondence in reply to requests for merchandise, damage claims, credit and other information, delinquent accounts, incorrect billings, or unsatisfactory services. Day to day that includes work like maintain files and control records to show correspondence activities and Read incoming correspondence to ascertain nature of writers' concerns and to determine disposition of correspondence.
What skills should a Correspondence Clerk put on a resume?: O*NET rates Writing, Active Listening, Reading Comprehension, Speaking, and Critical Thinking among the most important skills for this occupation. Name the ones that are genuinely yours and show where you used them. A resume that lists skills you do not have is weaker than one that lists fewer.
What software should a Correspondence Clerk list?: Software recorded for this occupation includes Electronic data interchange EDI software, Electronic health record EHR software, Enterprise resource planning ERP software, Epic Systems, and GE Healthcare Centricity EMR. Applicant tracking systems match on the exact product name, so write the tool as the posting writes it rather than describing it in general terms.
What other job titles cover Correspondence Clerk work?: O*NET records 38 titles for this occupation, including Correspondence Coordinator, Correspondence Representative, Correspondence Rep, and Dispute Resolution Analyst. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.
What qualifications does a Correspondence Clerk need?: In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 43% reported their level of education as "High School Diploma, or the equivalent". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.
Will this resume pass an ATS for a Correspondence Clerk role?: No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer's system is configured, including ours. What you can control is that the resume parses cleanly, names the work in the words the posting uses, and does not claim anything you cannot back up.

Related roles

Occupations O*NET records as closest to this one, and worth looking at if this search is not moving.

What this page cannot tell you

No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer’s ATS is configured, including ours.
This page makes no claim about pay, demand or how many people hold this job. O*NET does not publish that here and we will not estimate it.
Keyword overlap is one input to a resume’s score, not a verdict on you. A resume that names skills you do not have is worse than one that names fewer.

If this is the job you are aiming at, the guide to tailoring a resume covers how to aim one posting properly, and building and exporting a resume here is free.

Occupation data from the O*NET 29.1 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under CC BY 4.0. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. SpartanResume is not endorsed by USDOL/ETA.