Auditing

Auditors are an important and necessary function of the accounting field for financial institutions, tax accounting firms, and government entities. Auditors hold the responsibility to verify information, examine documents and reports, and analyze finances to ensure compliance with laws and regulations. Requiring a minimum of a bachelor’s degree in Accounting, an auditor position is often an entry level role for a new college graduate and starting pay on the low end starts at $36,000 per year.*

Auditors in the public sector work for the government to ensure small and large businesses are in compliance with tax regulations. They can also work for other state or federal government offices such as the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). In the private sector, auditors may work directly for a business being brought in by clients to evaluate financial practices. Auditors require access to all documents pertaining to the companies’ finances and they must provide detailed reports. They typically work Monday- Friday and likely work extremely long hours during tax season, which runs from January through April 15th each year.

To be a successful auditor one must be able to provide extremely exact information on reports and sort through data, reports, and numbers to determine if acceptable guidelines are in place and being followed. Companies hire auditors to ensure they are reporting gains and losses in accordance with the Internal Revenue Service’s guidelines and laws. Auditors must be good with numbers, have strong math skills, and be skilled at utilizing computer spreadsheets and software to examine data.