How To Become A Cost Accounting Clerk: What It Is and Career Path

What is a cost accounting clerk and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted expert

Jodi Olson

The average cost accounting clerk salary is $38,272. The most common degree is a bachelor's degree degree with an accounting major. It usually takes 4-6 years of experience to become a cost accounting clerk. Cost accounting clerks with a Certified Management Accountant (CMA) certification earn more money. Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow -5% and produce -77,200 job opportunities across the U.S.

What's a day at work look like for a cost accounting clerk?

Jodi Olson

Assistant Accounting Professor, Winona State University

Graduates could see a range of possibilities from working entirely remotely to fully on-site with precautions in place, based on recent graduate and internship experiences we have seen during the pandemic. Except for a very few internships cut short or cancelled immediately at the onset of the pandemic as the profession adapted to unknowns and putting safety measures in place, we have not seen a significant change in the demand for interns or graduates. Some new graduates expect their first day on the jobs to be remote and feel ready to meet that challenge being familiar with the technology required to be productive and communicate virtually. It has become an assumption that precautions are in place, regardless of the remote or in-person setting. It seems that both graduates and employers are working hard together to achieve success, both with caution and the usual high professional standards.

ScoreCost Accounting ClerkUS Average

Salary

3.0

Avg. Salary $38,272

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

6.0

Growth rate -5%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

2.7

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.63%

Asian 6.59%

Black or African American 6.84%

Hispanic or Latino 14.54%

Unknown 3.97%

White 67.44%

Gender

female 78.31%

male 21.69%

Age - 53

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 - 53

Stress level

6.0

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

6.4

Complexity level is intermediate

7 - challenging

Work life balance

7.3

Work life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a cost accounting clerk

Explore cost accounting clerk education requirements

Most common cost accounting clerk degrees

Bachelor's

45.7 %

Associate

34.2 %

High School Diploma

10.6 %

Start to develop specific cost accounting clerk skills

Skills	Percentages
Data Entry	16.26%
Payroll	12.34%
Purchase Orders	11.12%
Financial Reports	11.06%
General Ledger	5.42%

Complete relevant cost accounting clerk training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New cost accounting clerks 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 a cost accounting clerk based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real cost accounting clerk resumes.

Research cost accounting clerk duties and responsibilities

Manage financial department with responsibility for payroll, accounts payable and accounts receivable.
Manage revenue ledger including other subsidiary ledgers and responsible for the reconciliation of various income accounts to ensure accuracy of postings.
Review and reconcile WIP reports.
Update inventory and run current inventory list.

Prepare your cost accounting clerk resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your cost accounting clerk 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 a cost accounting clerk resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable cost accounting clerk resume templates

Build a professional cost accounting clerk 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 cost accounting clerk resume.