St John’s College (Hillcrest)
Auditor Kaitātari Kaute
Auditors examine and report on the financial records and systems of organisations to ensure they are accurate.
Most employers require you to be a member of Chartered Accountants Australia New Zealand (CAANZ).
Licensed auditors
Financial issuer auditors must be licensed. Financial issuers are corporations, investment trusts or government agencies.
To become a licensed auditor, the Financial Markets Authority requires you to:
- complete a commerce, business or accounting degree from an approved university
- be a member of CAANZ
- have a New Zealand Institute of Chartered Accountants (NZICA) Certificate of Public Practice and an NZICA Advanced Certificate of Competence.
Auditors may do some or all of the following:
- examine the financial statements and accounting methods of organisations to ensure they are accurate and comply with regulations
- find and report accounting errors
- check funds are used wisely and within the law, especially in government departments
- assess any risks to the business
- prepare audit reports, explain findings to managers, and advise on solutions to any problems
- check that organisations have followed audit recommendations.
Useful Experience
Useful experience for auditors includes:
- accounting
- communications work
- information technology work.
Personal Qualities
Auditors need to be:
- able to keep information private
- motivated and organised
- good at making decisions
- skilled at solving problems
- methodical and accurate
- able to work well under pressure
- good at communicating
- able to analyse and interpret data.
Skills
Auditors need to have:
- accounting and maths skills
- a good understanding of auditing and financial accounting systems
- knowledge of tax law
- knowledge of business management practices, including business ethics
- ability to use auditing and accounting software such as Xero, MYOB, iFirm or SAP.
Conditions
Auditors:
- usually work regular business hours, but may need to work evenings and weekends, or be on call
- work in offices at accounting firms, government departments and private businesses
- may travel locally or internationally to clients' businesses.
Subject Recommendations
A tertiary entrance qualification is required to enter further training. Useful subjects include accounting, business studies, English, maths with statistics and/or calculus, and economics.
Related Courses
Auditors can earn around $66K-$92K per year.
Pay for auditors varies depending on experience and what region they work in.
- Internal auditors usually earn $66,000 to $92,000 a year.
- Senior internal auditors usually earn $92,000 to $112,000.
- Audit managers can earn $102,000 to $184,000.
Sources: Hays, 'Salary Guide FY 22/23', 2023; and Seek, 2023.
Auditors may progress to work as:
- audit managers
- associate directors/partners
- audit directors, after gaining experience as associate directors/partners.
Auditors may specialise in:
- computer audits
- environmental audits
- tax services
- trust account audits
- trustee supervision
- risk management
- external audits – when an organisation contracts in an auditor
- internal audits – when an organisation is audited by an employee
- forensic accounting – investigating unusual financial transactions that could be illegal
- corporate governance support – making sure that management, boards, shareholders and other stakeholders know about professional accounting standards.
Years Of Training
3-6 years of training usually required.To become an auditor you need a commerce, business or accounting degree, majoring in accounting.
Most employers require you to be a member of Chartered Accountants Australia New Zealand (CAANZ).
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