What does an accountant internship do?
An accounting intern is responsible for assisting an organization's accounting department, observing practical applications and processes, and performing accounting duties under the supervision of tenured accounting staff. Accounting interns support the accounting operations by preparing and organizing financial reports, helping with accounts reconciliation, researching financial and stock market trends, utilizing various accounting software, and managing feedback from their mentors. An accounting intern must be detail-oriented and a fast-learner, immediately adjusting to the company's culture and actively cooperating with the team to ensure a smooth flow of operations.
Accountant internship responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real accountant internship resumes:
- Develop and manage CRM system to identify cross sell and up sell opportunities.
- Create RFP responses for IDHN's to achieve a more compliant, long term agreement.
- Work with manage care, medical reimbursement and Medicaid issues/challenges.
- Perform market research, creating a client PowerPoint presentation with competitive intelligence.
- Leverage senior role to train and mentor associates with day-to-day performance.
- Support sales team to deliver presentations, premise visits and RFP preparations.
- Leverage extraordinary customer loyalty to capture $350K of top competitor's media clients.
- Work on implementation of call coaching program focusing on account activity tracking in CRM.
- Work in a team environment with two full-time CPA's to gather paperwork information for auditing.
- Work as staff accountant after internship and prepare tax returns and assist CPA's on various engagements.
- Perform accounting functions to comply with federal, state, GAAP and company policies, procedures, and regulations.
- General ledger reconciliations accordance with GAAP.
- Perform Medicare quarterly credit balance reporting.
- Create and conduct PowerPoint presentations for the cotton purchase
- Produce financial statements in QuickBooks and review financial statement with clients.
Accountant internship skills and personality traits
We calculated that 9% of Accountant Interns are proficient in R, Account Management, and PowerPoint. They’re also known for soft skills such as Analytical skills, Communication skills, and Detail oriented.
We break down the percentage of Accountant Interns that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- R, 9%
Utilized tools such as Oracle, R, and Tableau and presented to senior management.
- Account Management, 8%
Supported integrated marketing campaigns by providing daily support to the account management team and ensuring organized and efficient delivery of projects.
- PowerPoint, 8%
Researched client competition Created competition analysis PowerPoint presentations Participated in weekly client meetings Served as company liaison for the Marketing Resource Center
- Renewable Energy, 8%
Attended 5 DTE Energy GreenCurrent events, signing up over 300 customers for voluntary home renewable energy programs.
- Journal Entries, 5%
Assisted general accounting department with daily operations, including entering journal entries, preparing payments and substantiations by auditing documents.
- Payroll, 4%
Assisted in the preparation and distribution of federal payroll certifications required by federally funded grants.
Common skills that an accountant internship uses to do their job include "r," "account management," and "powerpoint." You can find details on the most important accountant internship responsibilities below.
Communication skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling accountant internship duties is communication skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "accountants and auditors must be able to listen to and discuss facts and concerns from clients, managers, and other stakeholders." According to an accountant internship resume, here's how accountant interns can utilize communication skills in their job responsibilities: "drafted financial statements, annual financial reports, disclosure notes, and required communications. "
Detail oriented. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of accountant interns is detail oriented. This skill is critical to many everyday accountant internship duties, as "accountants and auditors must pay attention to detail when compiling and examining documents." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "prepared 25 detailed financial reports for upper management. "
Math skills. accountant internship responsibilities often require "math skills." The duties that rely on this skill are shown by the fact that "accountants and auditors must be able to analyze, compare, and interpret facts and figures." This resume example shows what accountant interns do with math skills on a typical day: "recorded the detailed statistics from trading contracts and billings produced accounting and financial reports"
Organizational skills. Another crucial skill for an accountant internship to carry out their responsibilities is "organizational skills." A big part of what accountant interns relies on this skill, since "strong organizational skills are important for accountants and auditors, who often work with a range of financial documents for a variety of clients." How this skill relates to accountant internship duties can be seen in an example from an accountant internship resume snippet: "managed over 100 clients reconciliation for bank statements maintained various companies' organizational process, workflows policies and procedures"
The three companies that hire the most accountant internships are:
- Novogradac19 accountant interns jobs
- KSM7 accountant interns jobs
- Enterprise Holdings6 accountant interns jobs
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Compare different accountant interns
Accountant internship vs. Assistant account executive
An assistant account executive is responsible for managing customer accounts, under the supervision of an account executive. Assistant account executives develop processes and techniques to execute projects based on clients' specifications. They assist account executives with clients' presentations for project updates and status reports. They also manage client requests to increase brand awareness, including maximizing sales strategies and resources and advertising promotions within the budget goals. They must have excellent communication and critical-thinking skills, especially when managing the clients' expectations and marketing the clients' brands to all available platforms for customers' recognition.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, accountant internship responsibilities require skills like "r," "renewable energy," "payroll," and "individual tax returns." Meanwhile a typical assistant account executive has skills in areas such as "customer service," "general ledger," "fact sheets," and "purchase orders." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
Assistant account executives earn the highest salaries when working in the professional industry, with an average yearly salary of $50,936. On the other hand, accountant interns are paid more in the media industry with an average salary of $36,253.The education levels that assistant account executives earn slightly differ from accountant interns. In particular, assistant account executives are 1.3% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than an accountant internship. Additionally, they're 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Accountant internship vs. Certified public accountant
A certified public accountant (CPA) acts as an advisor to small businesses and chief financial officers to Fortune 500 companies. They typically work for both small and large public accounting firms. They offer advice on many issues, such as accounting and taxation. They aid businesses and individuals to plan and achieve their financial goals. There are several requirements to become a CPA, including having a degree in accounting, passing the CPA examination, and obtaining a CPA license to practice.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real accountant internship resumes. While accountant internship responsibilities can utilize skills like "r," "account management," "renewable energy," and "payroll," certified public accountants use skills like "strong customer service," "customer service," "state tax returns," and "payroll tax returns."
Certified public accountants earn a higher average salary than accountant interns. But certified public accountants earn the highest pay in the finance industry, with an average salary of $92,755. Additionally, accountant interns earn the highest salaries in the media with average pay of $36,253 annually.In general, certified public accountants achieve similar levels of education than accountant interns. They're 3.3% more likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for accountant internships in the next 3-5 years?
Terri Walsh
Professor/Program Manager, Accounting, Seminole State College of Florida
Accountant internship vs. Finance analyst/accountant
In a company setting, a finance analyst/accountant is in charge of handling and monitoring financial activities, ensuring efficiency and accuracy. Their responsibilities revolve around preparing financial reports, performing audits and risk assessments, and identifying any errors and inconsistencies, resolving them promptly and efficiently. They also conduct research and analysis to identify new business opportunities, evaluate the existing procedures to determine its strengths and weaknesses, and recommend solutions to optimize operations for financial growth. Furthermore, as a finance analyst/accountant, it is essential to uphold the company's policies and regulations, including its vision and mission.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, an accountant internship is likely to be skilled in "r," "account management," "powerpoint," and "renewable energy," while a typical finance analyst/accountant is skilled in "reconciliations," "external auditors," "balance sheet accounts," and "accruals."
Finance analyst/accountants earn the highest salary when working in the finance industry, where they receive an average salary of $78,897. Comparatively, accountant interns have the highest earning potential in the media industry, with an average salary of $36,253.finance analyst/accountants typically earn higher educational levels compared to accountant interns. Specifically, they're 5.8% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.0% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Accountant internship vs. Senior staff accountant
A senior staff accountant is responsible for managing the accounting operations of the company's accounting department, reconciling accounts, and finalizing financial reports to discuss with the management. Senior staff accountants resolve account discrepancies, analyze the company's financial status, and verify financial transactions. They must have excellent analytical skills and extensive knowledge of the accounting principles to perform accounting duties that would minimize the financial risk of the company. A senior staff accountant provides strategic recommendations to prevent overspending and increase efficiency across all departments to drive more revenues and profits.
Types of accountant internship
Updated January 8, 2025
