Accounting Assistant (AAS)
Associate of Applied Science
Career-Technical Program
Interest Areas:
- Business Admin. and Management
The Accounting Assistant program prepares students for occupational opportunities in the field of bookkeeping including payroll clerk, accounts receivable clerk, accounts payable clerk, and full-charge bookkeeper. Bookkeeping and related fields involve the day-to-day analyzing and recording of business transactions, preparing payroll, preparing financial reports, filing state and federal forms, analyzing data, and making decisions. Students will complete general education, general business, and accounting specific courses that will lead to an intermediate technical certificate, an advanced technical certificate, or an associate of applied science degree. Emphasis is placed on manual and computerized accounting applications, current business taxes, credit, collection, and payroll. During the final semester of the A.A.S. degree, students will participate in an accounting internship which is the capstone course for this program. The internship will include tips on job hunting, 135 hours of an off-campus internship, resume writing, interviewing skills, and occupational relations.
Note: To meet industry recommendations, students must possess keyboarding skills of at least 35 wpm with 95% accuracy. NIC will assess this skill in the CAOT-120 course.
Contact Information:
Career & Technical Professional Programs Division
Hedlund Building, Room 101
Phone: (208) 769-3226
Program Requirements
| Semester 1 | Credits | |
|---|---|---|
| ACCT-110 or ACCT-201 |
Small Business Accounting or Principles of Accounting |
3 |
| ACCT-150 | 10-Key Skill Building | 1 |
| BUSA-101 | Introduction to Business | 3 |
| CAOT-120 | Word Processing/Word I | 1 |
| CAOT-130 | Spreadsheets/Excel I | 1 |
| CAOT-131 | Spreadsheets/Excel II | 1 |
| ENGL-101 or ENGL-101P |
Writing and Rhetoric I or Writing and Rhetoric I |
3 |
| Credits | 13 | |
| Semester 2 | ||
| ACCT-111 or ACCT-202 |
Small Business Accounting II or Managerial Accounting |
3 |
| ACCT-113 | Payroll Accounting | 3 |
| ACCT-140 | QuickBooks | 3 |
| CAOT-121 | Word Processing/Word II | 1 |
| COMM-101 | Fundamentals of Oral Communication | 3 |
| GEM 3 - A.A.S. Mathematical Ways of Knowing | 3-5 | |
| Credits | 16-18 | |
| Semester 3 | ||
| ACCT-243 | Accounting Ethics and Fraud Examination | 3 |
| ACCT-244 | Credit and Collections | 3 |
| ACCT-246 | Current Business Taxes | 3 |
| CAOT-115 | Outlook | 1 |
| ENGL-272 | Business Writing | 3 |
| GEM 6 - A.A.S. Social and Behavioral Ways of Knowing | 3 | |
| Credits | 16 | |
| Semester 4 | ||
| ACCT-242 | Cost Accounting | 3 |
| ACCT-248 | Accounting Internship | 4 |
| BUSA-211 | Principles of Management | 3 |
| BUSA-265 | Legal Environment of Business | 3 |
| ECON-201 | Principles of Macroeconomics | 3 |
| Credits | 16 | |
| Total Credits | 61-63 | |
Course Key
- GEM
- AAS Institutionally Designated
-
- Gateway
-
- Milestone
Program Outcomes
Upon completion of the program, students will be able to:
- Demonstrate appropriate work relationships and habits, communication skills, and computation skills used in business.
- Analyze and record financial transactions in a manual and computerized accounting system utilizing generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP).
- Prepare financial statements according to generally accepted accounting principles.
- Process payroll transactions in accordance with current payroll reporting requirements.
- Complete accounting cycle tasks using general ledger accounting software.
- Identify internal controls to reduce risk.
- Utilize current income tax resources to prepare personal income tax returns.
- Demonstrate professionalism through acceptable attitude, organization and time management skills, and attire.
- Describe current law, practices and policies for establishing, managing and collecting on both consumer and business credit accounts.
- Solve organizational cost accounting problems using tools for identifying cost behaviors and by applying cost accounting techniques.
In addition to the program outcomes, students will meet the following North Idaho College General Education (GEM) Requirements: Written and Oral Communication; Mathematical Ways of Knowing; Social and Behavioral Ways of Knowing; and an additional program-designated or selected course from any of the GEM requirements.