Assistant Accountant

In your answer show how you are able to identify key issues and detect problems from relevant information, include your ability to break down and organize information to recognize cause and effect relationships.

One of the best interview tips is to ensure you have a good understanding of the organisation and its products and services and be able to relay this clearly and authoritatively. There is no need to be an expert at this stage but you should be able to talk confidently about the history of the organisation as well as its place in the market and key people.

Contingent liability is an obligation, relating to a past transaction or other event or condition, that may arise in consequence, as a future event now deemed possible but not probable. Thus such liabilities as may arise in future are called contingent liabilities. For example: guarantee to a bank for loan advanced to a third party, possible penalties, fines and penalties payable to the government or income tax authorities etc. Future losses from natural calamities are not contingent liabilities. They are not recorded in books of account. They do not appear on the liabilities side of the balance sheet. They are shown by way of a footnote at the bottom of the balance sheet.

My responsibilities included management of accounts receivables; customer statements, customer payments/collections, invoicing and reconciliations; accounts payables which included vendor statements, vendor bills, payments and reconciliations as well as credit management. In addition, I performed other clerical work such as mail handling, filing, organizing accounts, scheduling and MIS data maintenance.

I recently graduated with a bachelor’s degree in financial services. While I haven’t been able to put my technical knowledge to use yet, I was able to gain some expertise in accounting through the related coursework I had to take. I also have my Certified Bookkeeper designation from the American Institute of Professional Bookkeepers. This certification gave me knowledge about overseeing payroll and balancing accounts in a way that is honest and acceptable according to the different regulations set up by state and federal laws.

In your answer demonstrate your ability to clearly and effectively give information to individuals or a group, how you are able to adjust your communication style to suit your audience and simplify complex information to enable understanding.

This fairly standard interview question is a typical warm-up, since it’s an opening that breaks the ice and allows the hiring manager to get to know you better. That doesn’t mean, however, that it’s a throwaway question. You should answer thoughtfully by giving examples of things that happened in your life that led you to the accounting field. Were you the fifth grade class treasurer? Did you save for months to buy your first car? Whatever the scenario, give the interviewer some background about yourself and your studies.

Specify computer applications you are proficient with (Microsoft Office, Adobe, PowerPoint, Linux, Notepad), specific experience working in a computerized environment, and any projects you might have done using computers (presentations, etc.). Typing speed is also relevant.

As an accountant, you’ll be held to a very high standard of excellence, especially since even the smallest errors can lead to big financial issues. In response to this question, it’s important to discuss the importance of checking your work several times and establishing a system of checks and balances. It also helps to give an example of a time that you caught an error through double checking or another method.

In your answer discuss how you have set up effective procedures for information collection and review. Describe how you monitor projects and check the progress of delegated tasks.

Talk about experience doing tasks which required responsibility, such as problem solving, research, and tracking documentation problems and discrepancies.