accounting

Classified Information
Here's a breakdown of the financial record keeping occupation:

Bookkeeping clerks handle all financial transactions and record keeping. As a bookkeeper, you'll record transactions, post debits and credits, produce financial statements, and prepare reports and summaries for supervisors. You'll prepare bank deposits by compiling data from cashiers, verifying and balancing receipts, and sending payment to the bank. You may also handle payroll, make purchases, prepare invoices, and keep track of overdue accounts.

Accounting clerks have more specialized tasks, such as accounts payable or accounts receivable. Entry-level accounting clerks post details of transactions, total accounts, compute interest charges, and monitor loans and accounts to ensure that payments are up to date. Advanced accounting clerks may total, balance, and reconcile billing vouchers; ensure the accuracy of account data; and code documents according to company procedures.

Auditing clerks verify records of transactions posted by other workers. They check figures, postings, and documents to ensure that they are correct, mathematically accurate, and properly coded.

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An associate degree in business or accounting is required for some bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerk positions. In a degree program, you'll master essentials such as word processing, spreadsheets, databases, and other specialized accounting software. You'll also hone your communication skills, which you'll need for letter writing and phone calls to clients.

Once you have at least two years of bookkeeping experience, you may take the American Institute of Professional Bookkeepers' exam to become a Certified Bookkeeper. More than 100 colleges and universities offer preparatory courses for certification, and another 150 offer courses online.

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According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median annual earnings of bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks in May 2004 were $28,570, with the top 10 percent earning more than $43,570.

Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks held more than two million jobs in 2004 and were employed in every industry. And, demand for bookkeepers is expected to increase, as these professionals perform a variety of financial transactions, from payroll to billing. A 2005 survey of Certified Bookkeepers found that 41 percent have been promoted and/or gotten a new job as a result of becoming certified; and 56 percent of freelancers said certification brought new clients, while 33 percent used certification to raise their rates.

Get on your way to an accounting, auditing, and bookkeeping career today. It's one of the best-kept secrets around.

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