Bursar Job Description
To ensure that students pay their tuition and registration fees in a timely manner, colleges, universities and secondary schools rely on their bursar's office to follow-up with payments and reconcile invoicing and billing issues. Bursars are mainly responsible for overseeing the maintenance of accounting books showing accounts receivable and payable activity for the educational institution.
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Function
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Bursars are responsible for developing and implementing financial policies and systems that track and record school expenditures and revenues. In addition to maintaining and processing the school's financial records, bursars communicate with parents, students, faculty and administrators regarding the status of student accounts. They also work closely with the school's financial aid office to put together payment plans that enable students to pay school tuition and registration fees. Other duties include issuing refund checks, bookstore vouchers and campus parking permits.
Education
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Most bursar positions require an associate degree with work experience or a bachelor's degree in accounting, finance or a related discipline. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Outlook Handbook states that a college education is becoming increasingly important for bookkeeping, accounting and auditing clerk positions.
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Skills
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Excellent project management, organizational and leadership skills are required in a bursar role, since these professionals often oversee administrative staff and handle duties that extend to other educational departments. In addition, bursars must have strong oral and interpersonal communication skills, and be comfortable presenting in front of large and small groups. The ability to calculate complex numbers and figures, and work with accounting and bookkeeping software is helpful. Bursars should also possess a basic knowledge of generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP).
Salary
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According to Salary.com, the median annual wage for bursars in the United States was $63,722 as of November 2009. Earners in the 25th percentile earned a median salary of $52,125 and earners in the 75th percentile earned a median salary of $79,112.
Potential
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According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the job outlook is favorable through 2018 for professionals whose primary job is to process and track payments, receipts and other billing documents. Jobs for these workers are projected to increase 10 percent, adding approximately 212,400 positions during the 2008 to 2018 decade. Bursar professionals with accounting and recordkeeping duties will be needed to support educational institutions that must comply with government laws, maintain accurate data and create transparent accounting and auditing processes. Job growth may be negatively affected by technological advances in accounting and scanning software that automate accounting and recordkeeping tasks.
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References
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