How hard is accounting?

Accounting is generally not too difficult, especially if you have good attention to detail and enjoy working with numbers. Accounting requires complex skills and abilities, but it is not more difficult than many other popular career paths.

How To Become An Accountant Assistant: What It Is and Career Path

What is an accountant assistant and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted expert

Stephen Moehrle Ph.D.

Are you an accounting student? Or are you looking for the best fields to major in? If you are good at math and problem-solving, you might want to be an accountant. Yes, there might be a lot of jokes about how boring accountants can be. However, this is far from the truth. You get to work with different companies and create a wide network. Of course, it pays really well, too! You can jumpstart this career right after graduation by being an accountant assistant.

It is an entry-level role that lets you shadow senior accountants in the company. This would help expose you to the daily life of being an accountant. You also get to meet clients and widen your network. This will be extremely helpful once you start carving your own career.

Accountant assistants should be meticulous and organized. They should also be trustworthy. They handle sensitive information, and as such, this data should be treated accordingly. If you are all of these and have really strong interest, go for this career!

What general advice would you give to an accountant assistant?

Stephen Moehrle Ph.D.

Professor and Chairman of Accounting, University of Missouri - St. Louis

It was a great time to be entering the accounting industry, before the pandemic. Our students were serving in internships in huge numbers and our graduates were enjoying 100% placement, usually with multiple offers. The entry-level professionals were entering a profession marked by emerging and evolving technologies that made even the entry-level duties especially interesting. Further, our tech-comfortable young professionals were experiencing quick advancement because of their ability to employ the new technologies.

Most of the above remains true so the only open question is job availability. It would be unrealistic to say things are great. However, it seems that job prospects for accounting majors will be better than for those of virtually every other entry-level profession during difficult times. I have been speaking with firm leaders across the spectrum of firms and most do intend to be on campus in the fall recruiting season. Of course, they have a lot of time to learn more about the economy over the next few months, but we are cautiously optimistic. Again, I am confident that whatever the state of job availability for young CPAs-to-be, prospects will be better for accounting graduates than virtually any other profession.

They will be entering the profession at a fascinating moment in time. Of course, the technological advances assure this regardless of economic conditions. However, there are business disruption-related issues that will provide rich opportunities for making a difference. For example, audit staff will be working with clients to see them through these troubling times. Lamentably, I fear that these young professionals will learn more about the going concern determination than they desire to know. Tax staff will help clients to optimally use the tax loss carrybacks and carryforwards that are arising by the day. Entry level professionals in corporate accounting will get a day-to-day front row seat in business management through crisis. While lamentable times, these are times when young professionals can make a difference that saves jobs.

ScoreAccountant AssistantUS Average

Salary

3.2

Avg. Salary $40,537

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

5.4

Growth rate 6%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

6.1

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.45%

Asian 16.85%

Black or African American 7.79%

Hispanic or Latino 10.10%

Unknown 3.92%

White 60.89%

Gender

female 75.11%

male 24.89%

Age - 43

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 43

Stress level

5.4

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.3

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

6.7

Work life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become an accountant assistant

Explore accountant assistant education requirements

Most common accountant assistant degrees

Bachelor's

57.4 %

Associate

18.4 %

High School Diploma

9.2 %

Start to develop specific accountant assistant skills

Skills	Percentages
Customer Service	18.06%
Data Entry	13.01%
Payroll Taxes	7.05%
Purchase Orders	6.16%
General Ledger Accounts	4.58%

Complete relevant accountant assistant training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New accountant assistants learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as an accountant assistant based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real accountant assistant resumes.

Gain additional accountant assistant certifications

Accountant assistant certifications can show employers you have a baseline of knowledge expected for the position. Certifications can also make you a more competitive candidate. Even if employers don't require a specific accountant assistant certification, having one may help you stand out relative to other applicants.

The most common certifications for accountant assistants include Certified Management Accountant (CMA) and Certified Public Accountant (CPA).

More About Certifications

Research accountant assistant duties and responsibilities

Manage international client's accounts by contacting leads and entering contacts into SalesForce database.
Monitor daily competitors blogs, twitter handles, Facebook pages.
Create wire frame and conceive design of home page call-out and Facebook page.
Publish content regularly on Instagram and YouTube as a part of the social media strategy.

Prepare your accountant assistant resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your accountant assistant resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on an accountant assistant resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable accountant assistant resume templates

Build a professional accountant assistant resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your accountant assistant resume.