Internal audit internship vs senior auditor

The differences between internal audit interns and senior auditors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a senior auditor has an average salary of $74,382, which is higher than the $30,264 average annual salary of an internal audit internship.

The top three skills for an internal audit internship include internal audit, data analytics and SOX. The most important skills for a senior auditor are CPA, internal audit, and audit reports.

Internal audit internship vs senior auditor overview

	Internal Audit Internship	Senior Auditor
Yearly salary	$30,264	$74,382
Hourly rate	$14.55	$35.76
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	62,780	23,025
Job satisfaction	-	5
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 67%	Bachelor's Degree, 79%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	-	-

What does an internal audit internship do?

An internal audit intern is responsible for performing administrative and clerical duties as needed for the financial department under the supervision of tenured staff or a direct manager. Internal audit interns shadow staff on analyzing and preparing documents, familiarizing office operations, writing financial reports, verifying account statements, and escalating financial discrepancies to management for immediate resolution. An internal audit intern must be detail-oriented, as well as possess excellent analytical and organizational skills to handle tasks efficiently and spot audit inconsistencies.

What does a senior auditor do?

Senior auditors have a vital role to play in the financial auditing process. They hold more responsibilities compared to staff auditors and report to an auditing manager directly. They have varied duties and responsibilities, including assigning tasks to staff auditors, overseeing compliant and precise auditing processes, and performing control and risk assessments. Senior auditors also are responsible for presenting audit findings, coordinating periodical audits, and submitting reports to the manager. If you are looking to apply for this role, you need to have a bachelor's degree in accounting or finance, strong analytical and mathematical skills, and proficiency in MS Office.

Internal audit internship vs senior auditor salary

Internal audit interns and senior auditors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Internal Audit Internship	Senior Auditor
Average salary	$30,264	$74,382
Salary range	Between $12,000 And $71,000	Between $54,000 And $101,000
Highest paying City	New York, NY	Washington, DC
Highest paying state	New York	New York
Best paying company	MDU Resources	Microsoft
Best paying industry	Energy	Technology

Differences between internal audit internship and senior auditor education

There are a few differences between an internal audit internship and a senior auditor in terms of educational background:

	Internal Audit Internship	Senior Auditor
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 67%	Bachelor's Degree, 79%
Most common major	Accounting	Accounting
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Internal audit internship vs senior auditor demographics

Here are the differences between internal audit interns' and senior auditors' demographics:

	Internal Audit Internship	Senior Auditor
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 50.7% Female, 49.3%	Male, 62.7% Female, 37.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 7.6% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 9.9% Asian, 18.5% White, 59.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 8.3% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 10.6% Asian, 14.2% White, 62.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between internal audit internship and senior auditor duties and responsibilities

Internal audit internship example responsibilities.

Test Sarbanes-Oxley controls for institutional billing, wholesaler incentive compensation, retail manage account revenue, and journal entry processing.
Review management's SOX testing, identify exceptions and communicate to management.
Perform basic bookkeeping, keeping accurate track of numerous transactions per GAAP standards.
Perform substantive testing of revenue, purchases, and payments in order to evaluate accuracy and compliance with GAAP.
Gather audit evidence/supporting documentation for the SOX compliance audit.
Document internal controls, conduct financial statement analysis, and perform daily tasks on Sarbanes-Oxley testing.

Senior auditor example responsibilities.

Conduct routine retrospective and prospective audits for ICD-10 CM/PCS, CPT and HCPCS for outpatient/inpatient facility and manage auditors.
Lead internal control reviews for an internationally own agriculture manufacturing company focuse on the inventory and payroll areas.
Create technology specific audit programs for SOX and operational audits ensuring that risks are clearly define and adequately test.
Enforce regulatory requirements and uphold Sarbanes-Oxley financial disclosure procedures to ensure accurate representation of internal and on-site audit assignments.
Guide clients with the compliance of the accounting standards (IFRS).
Prepare, and conduct all GxP (GMP, GLP, and GCP) in house and CMO training.

Internal audit internship vs senior auditor skills

Common internal audit internship skills

Internal Audit, 22%
Data Analytics, 8%
SOX, 5%
Patients, 5%
Sarbanes-Oxley, 4%
Risk Management, 4%

Common senior auditor skills

CPA, 13%
Internal Audit, 7%
Audit Reports, 6%
Audit Procedures, 5%
Audit Engagements, 5%
Risk Assessments, 4%

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Internal Audit Internship vs Senior Auditor

Updated January 8, 2025

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