How To Become A Senior Cost Analyst: What It Is and Career Path

What is a senior cost analyst and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted expert

Brian Meehan

Senior cost analysts are professionals who manage the finances and budget for various construction projects. For example, a senior cost analyst who works for a construction company is responsible for estimating the cost, time, materials, equipment, and labor needed for a particular construction project.

They manage other analysts to conduct cost analyses, determine the duration of a project, hire vendors and contractors, and make sure that the project deadlines are met promptly. These professionals also manage groups who prepare estimates to meet project goals, set staff work hours, and research project documents, and analyze specifications.

A senior cost analyst typically works in an office environment during normal work hours and has excellent management, communication, analytical and organizational skills. These individuals are adept at negotiating with vendors, staff, upper management and contractors, and can coordinate projects and make accurate time and cost estimates. Senior cost analysts also formulate contingency plans in the event of construction issues and effectively manages risks that may impact cost and time estimates.

Depending on the industry, many senior cost analysts have a bachelor's or an advanced degree in finance, marketing, or a comparable field. However, an advanced degree is not a critical requirement if the individual has comparable knowledge and experience. Most senior cost analysts can make up to $78,000 per year, and the job market for this field is estimated to grow 9% in the US by 2029.

What general advice would you give to a senior cost analyst?

Brian Meehan

Assistant Professor of Economics, Campbell School of Business, Berry College

My advice would be to apply broadly for jobs and take advantage of the robust set of career opportunities a degree in economics provides. It also gives you a better gauge of the opportunity cost (next best alternative) of accepting a job. Try to determine what that best alternative is. Additional training can also be a good option. Those individuals interested in graduate schools, professional schools, law schools, MBAs, etc. should look into these opportunities. Improving your human capital stock (via training and education), while weathering a recession, and then capitalizing on a healthier job market at the end of this training, is a pretty good route (assuming the recession is short).

ScoreSenior Cost AnalystUS Average

Salary

6.1

Avg. Salary $77,845

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

6.5

Growth rate 3%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

3.9

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 1.01%

Asian 7.90%

Black or African American 10.12%

Hispanic or Latino 15.64%

Unknown 4.54%

White 60.79%

Gender

female 36.45%

male 63.55%

Age - 47

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 - 47

Stress level

6.5

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.6

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.7

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a senior cost analyst

Explore senior cost analyst education requirements

Most common senior cost analyst degrees

Bachelor's

78.2 %

Master's

15.6 %

Associate

5.0 %

Start to develop specific senior cost analyst skills

Skills	Percentages
Financial Analysis	8.62%
Cost Analysis	6.40%
Cost Estimates	4.73%
Reconciliations	4.52%
DOD	3.91%

Complete relevant senior cost analyst training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New senior cost analysts 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 senior cost analyst based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real senior cost analyst resumes.

Research senior cost analyst duties and responsibilities

Lead HFM and Essbase implementation efforts, including training of field and headquarters personnel.
Prepare and post journal entries, prepare balance sheet reconciliations and analysis of plant performance for presentation to internal management.
Work also include preliminary stages of SOX compliance and implementation at the plant level.
Run the entire tests for the SOX quarterly audit and check for any issue for the audit.

Get senior cost analyst experience

Generally, it takes 2-4 years to become a senior cost analyst. The most common roles before becoming a senior cost analyst include cost accountant, cost analyst team lead and senior finance analyst.

Prepare your senior cost analyst resume

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

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