Accounting internship vs senior accounting clerk

The differences between accounting interns and senior accounting clerks can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both an accounting internship and a senior accounting clerk. Additionally, a senior accounting clerk has an average salary of $46,531, which is higher than the $30,642 average annual salary of an accounting internship.

The top three skills for an accounting internship include reconciliations, data entry and payroll. The most important skills for a senior accounting clerk are data entry, general ledger accounts, and reconciliations.

Accounting internship vs senior accounting clerk overview

	Accounting Internship	Senior Accounting Clerk
Yearly salary	$30,642	$46,531
Hourly rate	$14.73	$22.37
Growth rate	-5%	-5%
Number of jobs	80,299	82,627
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 73%	Bachelor's Degree, 47%
Average age	51	51
Years of experience	6	6

What does an accounting internship do?

An accounting internship is a trainee who reports to an organization's accountant in order to learn about the accounting field, complete financial projects and files taxes, and financial reports. An intern should be a graduate of a Bachelor's or Master's in Accounting and should have an aptitude for mathematics and proficiency with computers. In order to prepare financial reports, an intern should possess knowledge with bookkeeping software. An intern must also know how to handle sensitive information with honesty and integrity.

What does a senior accounting clerk do?

Senior Accounting Clerks lead in a complex set of work staff and are responsible for performing governmental fund accounting that involves reporting and financial record keeping. They are responsible for resolving discrepancies, verifying and auditing financial reports, and inputting data into their financial accounting system. They must know methods of verifying and reconciling accounting records, accounts payable and receivable, and how to familiarize themselves with their firm's financial accounting software. They must also be skilled in handling large sums of cash with integrity and making manual arithmetical calculations with speed and accuracy.

Accounting internship vs senior accounting clerk salary

Accounting interns and senior accounting clerks have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Accounting Internship	Senior Accounting Clerk
Average salary	$30,642	$46,531
Salary range	Between $24,000 And $38,000	Between $33,000 And $64,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	San Jose, CA
Highest paying state	California	California
Best paying company	BWX Technologies	Encore Capital Group
Best paying industry	Telecommunication	Finance

Differences between accounting internship and senior accounting clerk education

There are a few differences between an accounting internship and a senior accounting clerk in terms of educational background:

	Accounting Internship	Senior Accounting Clerk
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 73%	Bachelor's Degree, 47%
Most common major	Accounting	Accounting
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Accounting internship vs senior accounting clerk demographics

Here are the differences between accounting interns' and senior accounting clerks' demographics:

	Accounting Internship	Senior Accounting Clerk
Average age	51	51
Gender ratio	Male, 53.3% Female, 46.7%	Male, 18.0% Female, 82.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 6.7% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.2% Asian, 6.5% White, 68.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%	Black or African American, 6.8% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.4% Asian, 6.6% White, 67.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between accounting internship and senior accounting clerk duties and responsibilities

Accounting internship example responsibilities.

Acquire training on the automated ADP payroll system which lead to a recommendation for the payroll manager position.
Manage revenue ledger including other subsidiary ledgers and responsible for the reconciliation of various income accounts to ensure accuracy of postings.
Prepare and process accounts payable checks and ACH payments.
Code diagnosis and add appropriate modifiers to CPT codes.
Prepare and maintain monthly departmental reports to maintain SOX compliance.
Demonstrate knowledge of medical terminology, ICD-9 codes, and CPT codes.

Senior accounting clerk example responsibilities.

Manage payroll general ledger accounts including account reconciliations and monthly accruals.
Implement premium accounting statistical reports of all monies collect, including return items and general accounting from bank reconciliations.
Process ACH payments in accordance with company deadlines.
Cross train on many functions within the ACH department.
Monitor and clear holding accounts daily using PeopleSoft; prepare journals as necessary.
Assist with monthly, quarterly, and yearly closing processes, including accruals.

Accounting internship vs senior accounting clerk skills

Common accounting internship skills

Reconciliations, 14%
Data Entry, 7%
Payroll, 6%
First Hand, 6%
Work Ethic, 6%
Account Reconciliations, 5%

Common senior accounting clerk skills

Data Entry, 10%
General Ledger Accounts, 9%
Reconciliations, 8%
Senior Accounting, 7%
Purchase Orders, 7%
Credit Card Payments, 5%

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Accounting Internship
Accounting Internship vs Senior Accounting Clerk

Updated January 8, 2025

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