Accounting Internships
Description of Accounting Internships
If you are interested in the highly paying accounting field, finding an accounting internship can be of great use to you. Many companies, government agencies and Certified Public Accounting firms offer accounting internships, which aid you to implement accounting principles and concepts that you have learned in school. Accounting internships are either part time during the school year or full time during summer, and can last between a few months to a year. You can find both paid and unpaid internships.
Typical accounting internship functions include analyzing and comparing facts and figures, compiling financial reports, preparing invoices and coordinating administrative tasks. In small companies that do not have financial experts, the interns may need to do a range of work, including managing bank accounts, creating profit and loss statements and supporting the operations of the functional areas. There are also many medium and large firms that offer a wide range of accounting internships.
Types of Accounting Internships
Accounting is a broad field. Public accounting, management accounting and internal auditing are some of the major types with each having its own sub divisions. Internship programs are usually offered in all these fields.
Many of the accounting internships programs are summer internships only. This allows the intern to work full-time during the summer giving them a chance to participate in extensive training. Leading companies usually offer eight to ten weeks accounting internships. Also, some companies offer spring and fall internship programs as well.
Small companies tend to offer unpaid internships because they lack the funds. If you get an unpaid internship, see if the company will give you stipend, free meals or pay for transportation expenses. If the accounting internship is unpaid, then you will need to receive school credit.
Companies Offering Accounting Internships
The most reputable companies offer accounting internship programs are what’s known as the Big Four:
- KPMG Internships
- Price Waterhouse Coopers (PWC) Internships
- Ernst and Young Internships
- Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Internships
These are by far the most prestigious accounting firms that offer internship programs to accounting students. These companies offer decent compensation, so the competition to get internship in these companies is high.
If you’re interested in accounting internships elsewhere, you can find them almost anywhere. Some examples of these are Wyndham Worldwide Internships, Xerox Internships, Jaguar Cars Limited Internships, NRG Energy Internships, Taylor Corporation Internships, Ford Foundation Internships, Wyndham Hotel Group Internships, Salesforce.com Internships, Accolade Inc Internships, Jackson National Life Insurance Company Internships, and IBM Internships.
Below are other companies offering accounting internships:
- Inspired Innovations and World Star - Inspired Innovations and World Star offer accounting internship programs, which typically require you to analyze and compare facts and figures, prepare monthly reports and invoices for clients and coordinate organizational and administrative tasks.
- Brower Company L.L.C - Brower Company in Rosemont offers internship programs to students enrolled in an accounting degree program and must have at least 3.0 GPA in their major. Intern responsibilities include assisting with daily or weekly reporting, assisting with forecasting and budget process, month end account closure and preparing reports.
- Getting Visible - Getting Visible is a leading computer based company in California. It offers accounting internship programs to undergraduate students. As an intern, you will be required to support the accounting and finance team in various projects, including data analysis, accounting and administrative assistance.
- C3 Solutions - C3 Solutions is an IT outsourcing company in Houston. Students pursuing an accounting degree program can apply for their internship program. The accounting internships offered by C3 require you to take care of expense reports, reconcile debit and credit cards, maintaining quick books and handling invoices. You need to work part time during the course of the year and get payment for your service.
- USAPhone - USAphone is a small telephone company that looks for capable interns to assist them in their accounting tasks. The program requires you to do various tasks, including calculating sales tax and making account receivable calls.
- 908 Development group – The accounting internship program offered by 908 Development Group require interns to offer financial and administrative services to their accountant. The responsibilities of an intern also include assisting with accounts payable input, reviewing invoices and collecting W9 forms.
- CCC Information Services - CCC Information Services is a leading software company in Chicago. Accounting internships are offered by CCC to students pursuing a bachelor’s or master’s degree in accounting. The program gives you a chance to work alongside professionals in the industry. As an intern, you are expected to assist the accounts payable group with preparing invoice and work in various projects, such as making journal entries. The program requires you to work for 35 hours in a week.
Typical Salary of Accounting Internships
Accounting interns typically earn $32,510 in a year. The top 10% among them earn around $49, 260, while the lower 10% earn around $20, 950. Top companies like BP America and the Big Four pay $23 to $26 per hour for accounting internships.
Accounting internships usually requires you to work from 8 Am to 5PM during summer months, but can be longer if there are tight deadlines.
Benefits of Doing Accounting Internships
Gaining internship experience is a great tool for anyone who wants to gain access to a particular career. Accounting is a very competitive field, where job opportunities are available only to those who have the most relevant experience to the position. Accounting internships are valuable tools that help you gain and develop accounting skills. In addition to offering firsthand experience, they help you add more qualifications to your resume.
As an accounting intern, you will be trained professionally to serve the needs of accounting department in a small, medium or large size company. You can get firsthand experience by assisting various accounting teams in various accounting tasks, including ledger maintenance and accounts payable. Completing an accounting internship program can increase your chance of landing a highly paid job in future.
Accounting internships are designed for undergraduate and graduate accounting students. You can learn about bookkeeping techniques to record company transactions accurately during the internship period. Accounting internships also gives you work and technical expertise, which is essential to thrive in the profession. It also helps you decide whether accounting is the right field for you or not. Not only will it do wonders for your resume, you will learn a lot about the organizations’ culture, policies and goals. Accounting internships provide you with an opportunity to learn how to work in a team and interact with others effectively to accomplish a common goal.
Often times, accounting internships lead to permanent jobs after you graduate. If you perform well during the internship, the chance of job offer is much higher. In the case that you don’t receive an offer, accounting internships are a great way to network and meet established professionals.
Accounting internships will help you apply the concepts you have learned in school to real world situations. Vice versa, getting experience in auditing, financial accounting, and management accounting will help you in the classroom.
There are many specialized positions in the field of accounting. Auditing, financial planning, tax, advisory, management, acquisition and litigation support are some of the major areas in accounting. Accounting internships can help determine which one you are interested in the most, so you can focus on that.
Other Important Information about Accounting Internships
Getting selected for an accounting internship is one of the stepping stones to success for aspiring accountants. In order to obtain an internship, you need to maintain strong grades, especially in your accounting courses. Having good communication and computer skills, especially Microsoft Office can help increase your chances of being selected for accounting internship programs.
A great source to find accounting internships is your school’s career center. Often times, accounting firms will partner with schools and host career fairs and info sessions for students. This is a great place to meet recruiters and leave a great first impression. You can also consult your accounting professors for advice, since they may have connections with accounting firms.
You can find an extensive listing of accounting internships here: Accounting Internships on Indeed.com.
You may also be interested in these accounting internships: