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The differences between tax interns and general accountants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a general accountant has an average salary of $55,043, which is higher than the $46,283 average annual salary of a tax internship.
The top three skills for a tax internship include first hand, CPA and taxation. The most important skills for a general accountant are financial data, reconciliations, and cash handling.
| Tax Internship | General Accountant | |
| Yearly salary | $46,283 | $55,043 |
| Hourly rate | $22.25 | $26.46 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 71,991 | 87,663 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 75% | Bachelor's Degree, 75% |
| Average age | 47 | 44 |
| Years of experience | - | 4 |
A tax intern is responsible for supporting the finance and accounting department on preparing tax documents, including analyzing financial statements and performing account reconciliations, under the supervision of a tenured tax preparer. Tax interns observe tax processes, shadowing the staff on daily operations, and utilizing their classroom knowledge to practical applications by recommending strategic procedures to handle tax filings efficiently and accurately. A tax intern must have excellent knowledge of the financial industry, as well as high-organizational skills on processing paper works and following instructions from the tax consultant.
A general accountant is responsible for evaluating account statements, conducting data analysis with financial transactions, and generating reports on revenues, expenses, and sales forecasting. These accountants manage discrepancies on the company and clients' profiles, including bank reconciliations and processing of account receivables and payables. They also handle the release of invoices and petty cash, analyzing balance sheets, and updating accurate financial information on the database. A general accountant must have excellent analytical skills, as well as extensive knowledge of the accounting principles and disciplines.
Tax interns and general accountants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Tax Internship | General Accountant | |
| Average salary | $46,283 | $55,043 |
| Salary range | Between $30,000 And $71,000 | Between $40,000 And $73,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | - | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | - | Apple |
| Best paying industry | - | Automotive |
There are a few differences between a tax internship and a general accountant in terms of educational background:
| Tax Internship | General Accountant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 75% | Bachelor's Degree, 75% |
| Most common major | Accounting | Accounting |
| Most common college | University of Southern California | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between tax interns' and general accountants' demographics:
| Tax Internship | General Accountant | |
| Average age | 47 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 53.6% Female, 46.4% | Male, 43.1% Female, 56.9% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 8.5% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 14.1% Asian, 11.4% White, 61.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% | Black or African American, 8.7% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 11.1% Asian, 13.7% White, 62.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 7% |