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Fiscal technician vs accounting assistant

The differences between fiscal technicians and accounting assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a fiscal technician and an accounting assistant. Additionally, an accounting assistant has an average salary of $39,569, which is higher than the $38,696 average annual salary of a fiscal technician.

The top three skills for a fiscal technician include financial reports, data entry and purchase orders. The most important skills for an accounting assistant are data entry, customer service, and reconciliations.

Fiscal technician vs accounting assistant overview

Fiscal TechnicianAccounting Assistant
Yearly salary$38,696$39,569
Hourly rate$18.60$19.02
Growth rate-5%-5%
Number of jobs13,38463,945
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 47%Bachelor's Degree, 55%
Average age5151
Years of experience66

What does a fiscal technician do?

Fiscal technicians are the ones who are responsible for ensuring that there are no accounting inaccuracies for a client. They must also make sure that fraud and other discrepancies on accounts are seen and are solved. They are responsible for maintaining clean and reliable financial records by tracking transactions, doing inventories, verifying the truthfulness and accuracy of every entry, comparing folders, and keeping correct records secured.

What does an accounting assistant do?

An accounting assistant is responsible for supporting the daily operations of the business' accounting department, from reviewing financial transactions to the submission of financial reports. Accounting assistants' duties include performing data entry and clerical tasks, maintaining a safe record of account statements, updating and analyzing transactions, verifying the accuracy of financial records, and managing customers and vendors' inquiries as immediate as possible. An accounting assistant must have a broad knowledge of the accounting principles and processes, as well as excellent communication and time-management skills, especially on meeting strict deadlines and doing complex tasks as needed.

Fiscal technician vs accounting assistant salary

Fiscal technicians and accounting assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.

Fiscal TechnicianAccounting Assistant
Average salary$38,696$39,569
Salary rangeBetween $29,000 And $50,000Between $30,000 And $50,000
Highest paying CityWalnut, CAWashington, DC
Highest paying stateMassachusettsNew York
Best paying companyMt. San Antonio CollegeLos Alamos National Laboratory
Best paying industryNon ProfitsFinance

Differences between fiscal technician and accounting assistant education

There are a few differences between a fiscal technician and an accounting assistant in terms of educational background:

Fiscal TechnicianAccounting Assistant
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 47%Bachelor's Degree, 55%
Most common majorBusinessAccounting
Most common collegeUniversity of PennsylvaniaUniversity of Pennsylvania

Fiscal technician vs accounting assistant demographics

Here are the differences between fiscal technicians' and accounting assistants' demographics:

Fiscal TechnicianAccounting Assistant
Average age5151
Gender ratioMale, 15.8% Female, 84.2%Male, 20.1% Female, 79.9%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 7.0% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.7% Asian, 6.7% White, 67.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%Black or African American, 6.8% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 6.6% White, 67.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage7%7%

Differences between fiscal technician and accounting assistant duties and responsibilities

Fiscal technician example responsibilities.

  • Manage finance operations of assign USPS location.
  • Analyze debtor and creditor ledgers and accounts daily to ensure accuracy.
  • Correspond with Medicaid, Medicare and insurance companies with regards to billing matters.
  • Keep vendor ledgers for each fiscal year and all back up documentation for invoices.
  • Review time reports for accuracy and complete reconciliations of retroactive payments.
  • Complete financial reconciliations for various accounts and assist in developing the budget and cost center analysis for management.
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Accounting assistant example responsibilities.

  • Manage revenue ledger including other subsidiary ledgers and responsible for the reconciliation of various income accounts to ensure accuracy of postings.
  • Participate in weekly, monthly, quarterly, and yearly audits to ensure SOX compliance and propose opportunities for improvement.
  • Meet with account teams to discuss job structure, new projects, client requests, billing procedures, and SOX requirements.
  • Reconcile departmental report cash against banking ACH transactions.
  • Process mortgage portfolio monthly payments and interest accruals.
  • Utilize online system for calculating payroll and family tuition payments.
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Fiscal technician vs accounting assistant skills

Common fiscal technician skills
  • Financial Reports, 11%
  • Data Entry, 9%
  • Purchase Orders, 8%
  • Payroll, 8%
  • Word Processing, 4%
  • Customer Service, 4%
Common accounting assistant skills
  • Data Entry, 13%
  • Customer Service, 11%
  • Reconciliations, 8%
  • Purchase Orders, 7%
  • Credit Card Payments, 6%
  • General Ledger Accounts, 5%

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