Who this track is for
This track fits organized participants who communicate clearly, like keeping things on schedule, and want a first professional role in nearly any industry: schools, hospitals, law offices, city government, or private companies. No office experience is required.
Eligibility is the same across all five Foundation programs: young adults ages 16–25 who are aging out of foster care, exiting the juvenile justice system, or otherwise disconnected from school and work. Eligible young adults can apply directly, and case managers or partner agencies can refer someone using the same form. Applicants who are not yet connected to a support agency can still apply; our team can connect them with a partner organization for wraparound support. Participants need reliable internet and a computer; the Foundation can help with equipment. Applicants who are 16 or 17 may need guardian or caseworker consent before enrollment.
Format and weekly rhythm
About 16 weeks at roughly 15–20 hours per week, deliberately below full-time so participants can keep a job or handle school, family, or housing obligations while they train. Because the program is fully online, the specific hours in a week are flexible. The weekly cadence and checkpoints are not.
A typical week includes a live or recorded lesson from the track's volunteer educator, a hands-on assignment that builds on the previous week, a short one-to-one check-in with a mentor, and time on the running project that becomes the portfolio. Educators review the work produced so far at checkpoints before the next stage builds on it, so the program is structured rather than self-paced end to end.
What you learn
Each module corresponds to a line in a typical entry-level job posting for this role. Participants get hands-on time with the categories of software used on the job, and the emphasis is on judgment about the work, not only on operating the tools.
Business communication and correspondence
Drafting and proofreading emails, letters, and internal memos in a tone that fits the audience, including editing an AI first draft for accuracy and relationship.
Calendar and scheduling management
Coordinating meetings across several people's availability, booking rooms or video links, and rescheduling when plans change. Often the single most time-consuming task in the role.
Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace
Outlook, Word, Excel, and Teams alongside Gmail, Docs, Sheets, and Calendar, since employers use one suite or the other and expect fluency in whichever they run.
Document and records management
Keeping files, spreadsheets, and databases accurate and organized so anyone on the team can find what they need.
Spreadsheets and data entry
Building and cleaning spreadsheets, pulling reports together, and the Word and Excel skills tests staffing agencies and institutions commonly give.
Meeting support and office logistics
Agendas, minutes, action-item follow-up, supplies, travel coordination, visitors, and deliveries.
Customer service, screening, and triage
Answering calls and requests, and deciding what needs a supervisor's attention now versus what can wait.
AI productivity tools
Practical use of the AI drafting, summarization, and scheduling features now built into both office suites.
Tools used in the track
Microsoft 365 (Outlook, Word, Excel, Teams) and Google Workspace (Gmail, Docs, Sheets, Calendar), a scheduling tool such as Calendly, and the AI writing and summarization features built into both suites.
How the 16 weeks are structured
Software and communication foundations
Both major office suites, business writing, and calendar management, taught through office scenarios rather than lectures alone. Weekly lessons, a practical assignment, and a one-to-one mentor check-in.
Running the office
Multi-week scenarios that mirror the job: clearing a shared inbox, resolving scheduling conflicts, matching a vendor invoice to a purchase order, preparing agendas and minutes, and producing a clean report from messy data. Educators review the completed workflows at checkpoints.
Evidence, interviews, and placement
Assembling a one-page correspondence sample, a managed practice calendar, and a cleaned-up spreadsheet as interview evidence; mock interviews and scenario questions with a mentor; and beginning job placement support. Mentorship continues after graduation.
How progress is assessed
Progress is tracked primarily through the portfolio of work a participant produces, reviewed periodically by the track's educator against the skill areas the program is meant to build. This is closer to how a manager evaluates an employee's output than to a written exam. Readiness to move toward job placement is a judgment call made jointly by the educator and mentor, based on whether the participant's work and interview readiness would hold up with an employer, not a fixed test score.
When a participant falls behind, the first step is a conversation. If the cause is a housing crisis or a new work schedule, the plan is adjusted, which may mean pausing and rejoining a later cohort. If the track is not a fit, switching tracks is an option. Repeated no-shows without contact are the one pattern the cohort model cannot work around.
Program goal and what happens after
Program goal: the ability to perform entry-level administrative-assistant, office coordinator, front desk, and business operations-support work.
After completing the track, graduates receive job placement support: staff and mentors help identify openings, prepare application materials, and make direct introductions to employers open to hiring an Azgari Foundation graduate. Mentors stay reachable after graduation. Some graduates also pursue freelance or contract work with mentor support; that is an optional path, not the program's aim.
Enrollment does not guarantee a job, a client, a wage, or any specific income. Individual results vary with effort, market conditions, and personal circumstances. The Foundation will publish program outcomes once a full cohort has graduated.
The job market for this role
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports a median wage of $48,310 (May 2025) for secretaries and administrative assistants. Overall employment is projected to decline about 2 percent from 2025 to 2035 as software absorbs routine scheduling and correspondence, while turnover still generates about 314,400 openings a year on average. A high school diploma is the typical entry-level education requirement.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook, occupational profile (May 2025 wage data; 2025–2035 projections). Median wages describe the whole occupation, including experienced workers, and are cited as context, not as an expected starting wage for a graduate.
Questions about this track
Do I need a college degree?
No. A high school diploma is the typical entry-level requirement for most administrative assistant roles. A degree matters more for executive-support positions, which usually come later in a career.
I have never worked in an office.
That is expected. The program teaches the software, the workflows, and the communication norms from the beginning, and a mentor works through scenarios with you.
Where do graduates look for work?
Staffing agencies with temp-to-hire arrangements, school districts, hospitals, city and county governments, universities, and private companies. Postings use titles such as administrative assistant, office coordinator, front desk coordinator, and office administrator for overlapping work.
Is the program free?
Yes. Azgari Foundation is a 501(c)(3) public charity (EIN 41-2896092), and every track is tuition-free for accepted participants.
Read more in Administrative support: 314,000 openings a year in every industry and how the five tracks work.