Steps for Becoming an Accounts Receivable Clerk

An accounts receivable clerk processes records for incoming funds from company clients. Although this job involves bookkeeping and accounting, it does not necessarily require a college degree in one of those subjects.

The term “accounts receivable clerk” usually applies in a large corporation with many clerks handling specialized tasks. In a small company, a bookkeeping or accounting clerk may handle both accounts payable and accounts receivable. But as a corporation gets larger, one person simply cannot handle all of the bookkeeping for company accounts. There may also be several accounts receivable and payable clerks for larger firms.

Clerks working in accounts receivable are not necessarily entry-level workers. On the flip side, they also are not certified public accountants. The typical profile of any accounting or bookkeeping clerk is that of a high school graduate.

Despite the lack of required postsecondary education, getting an advanced education is one of the best ways to compete in the job marketplace for accounts-receivable clerk jobs. For those going to school now, taking at least some college classes in bookkeeping and accounting would increase the chance of employment.

Some accounts receivable clerks also have a bachelor’s degree in accounting. While some graduates can get even better jobs even without a CPA license, this may be the route someone needs to choose to get in with the bigger companies and work towards better-paying positions. Some graduates with a bachelor’s degree in accounting or bookkeeping may also wish to take a part-time clerk job while they are attending graduate school to become a CPA.

The Bureau of Labor Services puts accounts receivable clerks in the category of “bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks.” All together, this is a huge job classification and had over 1.6 million jobs in May of 2010. The average median salary for that whole group was about $34,000.

Resources:

Bureau of Labor Statistics: Jobs and Salary for Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks

Accounting Jobs Today: Information on the Career and Qualifications of an Accounts Receivable Clerk


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