Accounting Specialist

University of Northern Colorado • Greeley, CO

9d • Onsite

About The Position

The Accounting Specialist is a key support position within the College of Osteopathic Medicine (COM) and plays a critical role in ensuring the effective fiscal operations of the college. Reporting to the Business Operations Manager, this position exists to provide accurate, timely, and compliant accounting and purchasing support that enables the COM to fulfill its academic, clinical, research, and accreditation-related missions. The Accounting Specialist supports faculty, staff, and students by coordinating and processing a wide range of financial transactions, while serving as a liaison between the College of Osteopathic Medicine and central administrative offices such as General Accounting, Budget, Purchasing & Contracts, and Accounts Payable. This role is essential to maintaining sound financial stewardship in a complex environment that includes instructional programs, clinical activities, faculty practice plans, student-related expenses, grants, and strategic initiatives associated with launching and sustaining a medical school. This position is responsible for processing and monitoring transactions related to travel, procurement cards, reallocations, fund approvals, purchase orders, check/ACH requests, invoices, journal entries, and deposits, in accordance with university policies, state regulations, and medical education requirements. The Accounting Specialist must be proficient in the financial systems used by the university (such as Banner, budget and reporting tools, and document management systems) and use this knowledge to resolve issues, ensure compliance, and support financial reporting and audits. In addition to transaction processing, the Accounting Specialist contributes to the overall fiscal health of the College of Osteopathic Medicine by reviewing account activity, identifying discrepancies or trends, and providing analysis to support decision-making. The position supports the Business Operations Manager by helping assess how resources are allocated and spent, identifying opportunities for operational efficiencies, and ensuring that funds are used effectively to support students, faculty, and the long-term sustainability of the College.

Requirements

• A Bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution is required. Preferred fields of study include Accounting, Finance, Business Administration, Public Administration, or a closely related discipline that provides a foundation in accounting principles, financial analysis, and fiscal management.
• A minimum of two (2) years of professional accounting or financial support experience is required. Qualifying experience should include responsibility for functions such as fund or account management, budget monitoring, purchasing or procurement processes, reconciliation, transaction processing, and application of fiscal policies and procedures.
• Valid U.S. work authorization at the time of application.

Nice To Haves

• Experience in a higher education, governmental, healthcare, or similarly regulated environment is Preferred.
• Additional appropriate experience may substitute for the degree requirement on a year-for-year basis.
• In lieu of a bachelor’s degree, a minimum of four (4) years of progressive accounting or financial management experience may be accepted. Qualifying experience should include hands‑on responsibility for accounting functions such as fund management, budget monitoring, purchasing, reconciliation, and compliance within a higher education, governmental, healthcare, or similarly regulated environment.

Responsibilities

• Record, track, and analyze financial transactions using Banner, budgeting tools, spreadsheets, and other accounting systems.
• Monitor, reconcile, and produce regular financial reports for College of Osteopathic Medicine funds, which may include state appropriations, clinical and programmatic funds, grants and research-related funds, faculty development funds, departmental cash funds, and Foundation-supported accounts.
• Process journal entries, labor redistributions, and budget adjustments as necessary to ensure accurate accounting and proper fund management.
• Processes and supports routine purchasing and procurement transactions in accordance with university policy; does not exercise final purchasing or contracting authority.
• Support fiscal year-end closing activities, including reviewing and closing purchase orders, reconciling expenditures, and ensuring compliance with university deadlines.
• Prepare historical and ad hoc financial reports for the Business Operations Manager, Dean, and College leadership to support budgeting, forecasting, accreditation planning, and strategic decision-making.
• Maintain working knowledge of all financial systems used by the university, including those related to accounting, accounts payable, purchasing, and budgeting, in order to identify and resolve discrepancies and improve efficiency.
• Serve as a primary fund approver for the College of Osteopathic Medicine, verifying FOAP availability, appropriateness of expenses, and compliance with university, state, and College policies.
• Guide and assist faculty, staff, and student-facing programs in understanding and following fiscal policies, procedures, and timelines.
• Review procurement card (p-card) transactions and supporting documentation after departmental review to ensure purchases fall within approved scope and policy.
• Process and track travel-related transactions, including candidate recruitment, student activities, clinical travel, and accreditation-related travel reimbursements.
• Process reimbursement requests, invoices, check/ACH requests, deposits, cash advances, petty cash, purchase orders, and electronic internal orders.
• Assist with capital asset purchases, inventory tracking, and property control activities related to instructional, clinical, or research operations within the College.
• Process financial transactions related to student awards, gifts, incentives, prizes, and honoraria in compliance with policy.
• Serve as the initial point of contact within the College of Osteopathic Medicine for contracts, MOUs, affiliation agreements, clinical agreements, vendor agreements, sales-related documents, and intergovernmental agreements.
• Coordinate with Purchasing & Contracts and other central offices to ensure agreements are properly reviewed, executed, and compliant with university requirements.
• Advise faculty and staff on procurement options, including determining whether purchases require competitive solicitation, are covered under existing university contracts, or may be purchased at the department level.
• Assist College leadership and program staff with purchasing strategies related to instructional materials, simulation equipment, clinical resources, and professional services.
• Review and manage accounting and purchasing forms to ensure completeness, accuracy, and compliance prior to submission.
• Determine appropriate corrective actions for purchasing issues, including whether purchase orders should be reopened, amended, or replaced with new requisitions.
• Maintain approval queues and ensure timely processing of transactions.
• Help faculty and staff understand financial authority levels, approval limitations, and documentation requirements.
• Provide training, guidance, and updates to College faculty and staff when accounting or purchasing processes change.
• Serve as a resource to new employees, including faculty, chairs, directors, and administrators, to support understanding of financial reporting, compliance, and university expectations.
• Collaborate with the Business Operations Manager during chart of accounts changes, reorganization, or expansion of programs to request new funds or orgs and realign expenses and revenue.
• Coordinate with central accounting teams and other college/unit accounting staff to align practices, share best practices, and support consistent application of fiscal policy.
• Perform other related duties as assigned in support of the College of Osteopathic Medicine’s academic, clinical, and strategic objectives.
• Other duties as assigned

Benefits

• health, dental, vision, life and long-term disability insurance
• a selection of several defined contribution retirement plans
• sick leave
• other leave options may be available based on position
• tuition waiver benefits
• dependents and spouses of UNC Employees who are employed at 0.5 FTE or above are eligible for undergraduate dependent tuition grants of up to 50%.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level