undergradly.
Major · Business, Management & Marketing

The technical side of where most of the jobs are shrinking

Accounting Technology/Technician and Bookkeeping trains students in the operational work behind financial record-keeping: transaction posting, account maintenance, payroll processing, and accounting software. About 5,742 degrees are awarded annually across 492 colleges, with the associate's degree the far more common credential.

Schools offering
492
Annual completions
5,742
Typical degree level
Associate's + Bachelor's
Median earnings (5yr)
$69k

About this major

Accounting Technology/Technician and Bookkeeping sits at the operational layer of financial work. Where the Accounting major prepares students for professional-level analysis, compliance, and licensure, this program focuses on the mechanics: posting transactions to accounts, maintaining record-keeping systems, running payroll processes, and operating accounting software. The CIP definition describes it as preparing individuals to provide technical administrative support to professional accountants and financial management personnel — which is a precise statement of scope. Students spend their time learning how money moves through an organization at the transaction level, not at the strategic or policy level.

The field attracts students who want a direct, applied connection between their coursework and their first job — people who are comfortable with structured systems and numerical detail, and who are not necessarily looking to become licensed CPAs. The closest tracked career destinations include bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks at a $49,210 median wage; payroll and timekeeping clerks at $55,290; and tax preparers at $50,560. These are support-level financial roles, not professional accounting roles, and the distinction matters when evaluating where this program leads.

The field's footprint is meaningful but narrower than the broader Accounting major: about 5,742 completions per year across 492 colleges, with the associate's degree the dominant credential. The top programs by completions are concentrated in community colleges — Ivy Tech Community College, CUNY campuses, College of the Canyons, and Suffolk County Community College among the leaders. The five-year median earnings figure for this major ($68,793 overall) runs above the tracked career medians, suggesting that bachelor's completers in particular tend to land in roles adjacent to or above the clerk-family destinations.

Section 3 · Careers

Where this major leads

Occupations most often associated with this major, from the federal BLS+O*NET crosswalk. Job-growth projections and median wages are national.

Occupation Median wage Job growth Typical education
Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks $49k -5.8% Some college, no degree
Payroll and timekeeping clerks $55k -16.7% High school diploma or equivalent
Tax preparers $51k +4.5% High school diploma or equivalent
Brokerage clerks $63k -9.5% High school diploma or equivalent
Statistical assistants $51k -2.5% Bachelor's degree
Section 4 · Earnings

Earnings at a glance

Median graduate earnings from the federal College Scorecard, 5 and 10 years out.

Median 5-year earnings

$69k

Associate's vs Bachelor's — early-career earnings

Associate's

$49k

Bachelor's

$74k

Who this major is for

You may thrive here if you want a direct path into financial support work without the four-year commitment of the full Accounting program. This major suits students who are detail-oriented and systematic, who find satisfaction in accurate, well-organized records rather than ambiguity and strategy. It also fits someone already working in a small business or administrative role who wants formal credentials in the financial operations side — payroll, transaction recording, software systems. The associate's credential is widely available across community colleges, which means geographic flexibility and lower upfront cost are real factors in the program's favor.

Think twice if your goal is the professional accounting track — the CPA credential, public accounting firms, or roles like accountant and auditor ($81,680 median wage). The full Accounting major is designed for that path; this program is not. Think twice also if the job outlook data gives you pause: most of the directly tracked occupations show declining demand over the next decade, with payroll clerks projected at -16.7% and bookkeeping clerks at -5.8%. The decline reflects automation of routine financial processing, and students entering this field should have a clear plan for how the credential fits into a longer career arc — whether that means transferring to a full accounting program, building toward the tax-preparer path (the one tracked occupation with positive growth at +4.5%), or pairing the credential with industry experience that adds differentiation.

Section 6 · Where to study

Top colleges for Accounting Technology/Technician and Bookkeeping

Ranked by annual completions at the associate's or bachelor's level — a proxy for program scale.

College Location Assoc. Bach. Total
Ivy Tech Community College Indianapolis, IN 199 0 199
College of the Canyons Santa Clarita, CA 126 0 126
Ultimate Medical Academy Clearwater, FL 124 0 124
Rowan University Glassboro, NJ 0 101 101
Suffolk County Community College Selden, NY 91 0 91
CUNY Borough of Manhattan Community College New York, NY 89 0 89
Connecticut State Community College New Britain, CT 84 0 84
Purdue University Global West Lafayette, IN 78 0 78
SUNY Westchester Community College Valhalla, NY 77 0 77
CUNY LaGuardia Community College Long Island City, NY 77 0 77
Section 7 · Explore sideways

Related majors to explore

Accounting

41,743 completions/yr

Accounting and Finance

1,209 completions/yr

Data Processing and Data Processing Technology/Technician

897 completions/yr

Accounting and Business/Management

780 completions/yr

Tool and Die Technology/Technician

182 completions/yr

Accounting and Related Services, Other

151 completions/yr

Laser and Optical Technology/Technician

78 completions/yr

Auditing

19 completions/yr

Considering this direction?

We've taken a hard look at the debt, earnings trajectory, and degree-level tradeoffs for the Accounting Technology/Technician and Bookkeeping field. Read our verdict before you commit.

Is Accounting Technology/Technician and Bookkeeping worth it? Read verdict
Section 9 · Frequently asked

Common questions

What do students in this major actually learn?
The curriculum covers the mechanics of financial record-keeping: posting transactions, maintaining accounts, running payroll, and operating accounting software packages. Students work through general accounting principles and practices — not the full theoretical depth of the Accounting major — with an emphasis on applying those principles in day-to-day business operations. The CIP definition frames the program as preparing individuals to provide technical administrative support to professional accountants and financial managers, which is an accurate description of where the coursework lands.
Is an associate's degree enough, or do I need a bachelor's for this major?
The earnings data shows a gap: associate's completers report five-year median earnings around $48,978 while bachelor's completers reach roughly $74,286. The tracked careers in this field — bookkeeping clerks, payroll clerks, tax preparers, brokerage clerks — list their typical entry education as a high school diploma or some college, not a degree. That means an associate's is often sufficient for entry-level positions. The bachelor's path in this specific program likely functions as a stepping stone toward roles outside the clerk cluster, or as a bridge into the full Accounting major's career track.
What jobs do graduates from this major end up in?
The closest tracked occupations are bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks ($49,210 median wage); payroll and timekeeping clerks ($55,290); tax preparers ($50,560); and brokerage clerks ($62,940). These are the financial support roles, not the professional accounting roles. The five-year median earnings for this major ($68,793 overall, $74,286 for bachelor's completers) run noticeably above the tracked career medians — which suggests a meaningful share of graduates, particularly at the bachelor's level, end up in roles outside this tracked cluster, likely adjacent to the broader accounting profession.
Is the job market strong for this field?
The honest picture is mixed, leaning negative. Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks — the largest adjacent occupation — shows -5.8% projected job growth. Payroll and timekeeping clerks project -16.7% growth. Brokerage clerks sit at -9.5%. Statistical assistants show -2.5%. Only tax preparers project positive growth at 4.5%. Automation of routine financial record-keeping is the driver behind these contractions. Entry-level bookkeeping and payroll processing are among the tasks most affected by accounting software and AI-assisted tools. Students entering this field should account for this in their planning.
Should I study this major or the full Accounting major instead?
That depends on what you want the credential to do. The full Accounting major — 41,743 annual completions versus 5,742 here — is the track toward the CPA credential, professional accounting firms, and roles like accountant/auditor ($81,680 median wage). This major is a narrower, more operational credential aimed at support-level financial work. If your goal is the professional accounting path, the Accounting major is the cleaner route. This program makes more sense if you want a shorter path to entry-level financial support work or are testing accounting as a field before committing to a longer program.
What is the transfer picture for this major?
The top programs by completions are almost entirely community colleges: Ivy Tech, College of the Canyons, Suffolk County CC, CUNY campuses, Connecticut State CC, and Westchester CC together account for a large share of annual completions. This concentration at community colleges makes the major a natural candidate for transfer. Students who start here and want to advance toward a full Accounting or Business Administration bachelor's degree — and the professional career track that comes with it — are following a well-worn path. The associate's credential can hold value at that stage as evidence of practical coursework completed.