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Senior project accountant vs junior accountant

The differences between senior project accountants and junior accountants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a senior project accountant and a junior accountant. Additionally, a senior project accountant has an average salary of $64,388, which is higher than the $50,444 average annual salary of a junior accountant.

The top three skills for a senior project accountant include reconciliations, project management and GAAP. The most important skills for a junior accountant are reconciliations, general ledger accounts, and account reconciliations.

Senior project accountant vs junior accountant overview

Senior Project AccountantJunior Accountant
Yearly salary$64,388$50,444
Hourly rate$30.96$24.25
Growth rate6%6%
Number of jobs45,27757,892
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 76%Bachelor's Degree, 70%
Average age4444
Years of experience44

What does a senior project accountant do?

Senior Project Accountants are responsible for providing support in financial management for a project. Their duties include creating financial appraisals, producing project forecasts, and developing project financial reports. They are responsible for facilitating financial planning, identifying budget deviances, performing impact analysis, and assisting in risk management planning. Senior Project Accountants also establish financial governance for a project, improve financial tools, test data, and prepare a business case analysis for senior management. They participate in project meetings, assist in internal audits, and ensure operations adhere to corporate financial legislations.

What does a junior accountant do?

Junior accountants maintain the financial records of companies through the analysis of their general ledger accounts and balance sheets. The accountant's post journal entries, maintain accounts receivable and payable, and update financial statements. They pay payroll every month, reconcile ledgers, and submit payroll taxes. The skills necessary for this job include analytical skills, problem-solving, information confidentiality, and proficiency in accounting software and technology. They are also expected to be detail-oriented.

Senior project accountant vs junior accountant salary

Senior project accountants and junior accountants have different pay scales, as shown below.

Senior Project AccountantJunior Accountant
Average salary$64,388$50,444
Salary rangeBetween $48,000 And $85,000Between $38,000 And $66,000
Highest paying CityWashington, DCNew York, NY
Highest paying stateMassachusettsNew York
Best paying companyDahl ConsultingFuhu
Best paying industryTechnologyConstruction

Differences between senior project accountant and junior accountant education

There are a few differences between a senior project accountant and a junior accountant in terms of educational background:

Senior Project AccountantJunior Accountant
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 76%Bachelor's Degree, 70%
Most common majorAccountingAccounting
Most common collegeUniversity of PennsylvaniaUniversity of Pennsylvania

Senior project accountant vs junior accountant demographics

Here are the differences between senior project accountants' and junior accountants' demographics:

Senior Project AccountantJunior Accountant
Average age4444
Gender ratioMale, 37.3% Female, 62.7%Male, 39.6% Female, 60.4%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 8.7% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 11.0% Asian, 12.2% White, 63.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%Black or African American, 7.9% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 10.2% Asian, 16.6% White, 60.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage7%7%

Differences between senior project accountant and junior accountant duties and responsibilities

Senior project accountant example responsibilities.

  • Manage daily operations of the accounting department to include contract billing, accounts receivable, and monthly backlog/accrual reconciliations.
  • Manage the review, enhancement, and creation of department policy and procedure documentation require for Sarbanes-Oxley auditing and compliance.
  • Produce financial reports on a timely basis for building construction decision making using various job cost methods in conformity to GAAP.
  • Provide recommendations and assist with development, documentation, and implementation of agree process improvement procedures according to GAAP and SOX.
  • Audit and approve the supporting documents of all invoices of the company in accordance with the requirements regulations by SOX.
  • Prepare schedules for recurring accruals and deferrals and amortize monthly.
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Junior accountant example responsibilities.

  • Manage and monitor accounting procedures for compliance with Sarbanes-Oxley and coordinate and facilitate external audit requirements.
  • Perform and assist with month-end close procedures, including preparation of monthly balance sheet and income statement account reconciliations.
  • Identify hundreds of daily transactions from banking statements using QuickBooks and present monthly financial reports
  • Perform bank and credit card reconciliations and assist with month-end accruals in addition to inter-company reconciliations.
  • Prepare financial schedules, account reconciliations, and detail financial statements and reports for analysis, financial reporting, and decision-making.
  • Deposit checks into lockbox and post to funds to proper accounts daily.
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Senior project accountant vs junior accountant skills

Common senior project accountant skills
  • Reconciliations, 7%
  • Project Management, 6%
  • GAAP, 5%
  • Financial Reports, 4%
  • Payroll, 4%
  • Accruals, 4%
Common junior accountant skills
  • Reconciliations, 18%
  • General Ledger Accounts, 8%
  • Account Reconciliations, 5%
  • Data Entry, 5%
  • QuickBooks, 4%
  • Payroll Taxes, 4%

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