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Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Internal Audit Intern

💰 $30,000 - $45,000

Internal AuditFinanceInternshipRisk Management

🎯 Role Definition

The Internal Audit Intern supports the internal audit department by assisting in planning, executing, and reporting audits of financial, operational, and IT processes. This role is designed for a highly motivated undergraduate or recent graduate pursuing accounting, finance, business, or information systems who wants hands-on experience with control testing, risk assessment, audit documentation, and audit analytics. The intern will work closely with audit managers and business process owners to evaluate the effectiveness of internal controls, identify control gaps, and help drive remediation actions while maintaining professional skepticism and confidentiality.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

  • Accounting Intern or Accounting Co-op
  • Finance Intern or Financial Reporting Intern
  • Compliance or Risk Management Intern

Advancement To:

  • Internal Auditor / Audit Associate
  • SOX Compliance Analyst
  • Senior Internal Auditor
  • Risk & Controls Analyst

Lateral Moves:

  • Compliance Analyst
  • Financial Reporting Analyst
  • Business Process Analyst
  • IT Audit Associate

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

  • Assist in developing audit programs and workpapers for financial, operational, and IT audits by mapping process flows, identifying key control points, and documenting test objectives to ensure comprehensive coverage of risk areas.
  • Perform control testing (design and operating effectiveness) across payroll, procure-to-pay, order-to-cash, treasury, and general ledger areas, executing testing steps in accordance with audit methodology and sampling plans.
  • Execute substantive testing on account balances and transactions, including vouching, tracing, recalculations, and reconciliations, to validate accuracy of financial reporting and operational data.
  • Conduct walkthroughs with process owners to validate process flows, identify control owners, and capture evidence for internal control documentation and risk assessments.
  • Prepare clear, concise audit working papers and documentation in the audit management system (e.g., TeamMate, AuditBoard) that support audit conclusions and compliance with professional standards.
  • Assist in SOX (Sarbanes-Oxley) 404 testing activities, including testing key controls, documenting deficiency observations, and supporting remediation tracking with process owners.
  • Use data analytics tools (Excel advanced functions, Power Query, ACL/IDEA, SQL, Python) to analyze large data sets, identify anomalies, trends, segregation of duties conflicts, and sample populations for targeted testing.
  • Participate in risk assessment meetings and contribute to the identification and prioritization of key risks and control gaps affecting business units and processes.
  • Draft audit findings and management communications, highlighting root causes, business impact, and recommended remediation actions with clear, actionable language for stakeholders.
  • Coordinate with external auditors and facilitate information requests by preparing supporting schedules, reconciliations, and evidence to streamline external audit procedures.
  • Track and monitor open audit issues and remediation plans in the issue-tracking system, following up with control owners to validate timely implementation and testing of corrective actions.
  • Support IT general controls (ITGC) and application control testing by documenting user access, change management, backup/recovery, and system development lifecycle processes.
  • Conduct vendor and third-party control assessments, including reviewing service agreements, SOC reports, and third-party attestations to evaluate outsourced risk.
  • Perform root-cause analysis on identified exceptions and control failures, working with process owners to recommend pragmatic process improvements and automated control solutions where appropriate.
  • Assist in continuous auditing/monitoring initiatives by building and maintaining automated audit tests and dashboards that highlight control exceptions and KPI trends in near real-time.
  • Support forensic or special investigations by gathering transactional evidence, performing data queries, and documenting findings with a chain-of-custody mindset and confidentiality.
  • Collaborate with cross-functional teams (finance, legal, IT, compliance, operations) to validate remediation effectiveness, incorporate audit recommendations into process changes, and ensure business acceptance.
  • Contribute to audit methodology and program updates by researching leading practices, regulatory changes, and emerging risks (e.g., cybersecurity, data privacy, ESG) that affect control design and testing.
  • Participate in pre- and post-audit meetings, present preliminary observations to managers, and help prepare executive-level summaries and dashboards for audit committee reporting.
  • Maintain a high standard of professional ethics, confidentiality, and independence when handling sensitive financial and operational information.
  • Assist in training and onboarding activities for new audit team members by documenting standard operating procedures and sharing best practices for testing and documentation.
  • Support month-end and quarter-close audit procedures when required, including close period cut-off testing and journal entry review.

Secondary Functions

  • Support ad-hoc data requests and exploratory audit analytics to answer targeted business questions and validate hypotheses raised during audit fieldwork.
  • Contribute to the organization's continuous audit roadmap by proposing analytics use-cases, automation opportunities, and potential process improvements.
  • Liaise with business units to translate audit findings into actionable remediation plans and to ensure clarity around control expectations and timelines.
  • Participate in sprint planning, status stand-ups, and agile ceremonies when working with audit technology or data teams to deliver analytics tools and automated tests.
  • Assist with audit quality assurance tasks, including peer review of working papers and ensuring adherence to internal audit standards and audit committee policies.
  • Help maintain the internal audit knowledge base, template libraries, and precedent files to improve efficiency and consistency across audits.
  • Participate in professional development and training programs to build technical acumen in accounting standards, audit techniques, and data analytics tools.
  • Support sustainability of audit operations by documenting lessons learned after each engagement and recommending process enhancements to the audit manager.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

  • Knowledge of internal audit methodologies, frameworks, and standards (IIA Standards, COSO framework).
  • Understanding of internal controls, risk assessment, and control testing techniques.
  • Familiarity with SOX 404 compliance, testing cycles, and remediation monitoring.
  • Proficiency in Microsoft Excel (pivot tables, VLOOKUP/XLOOKUP, INDEX/MATCH, Power Query) for data manipulation and testing.
  • Experience or coursework with audit analytics tools (ACL, IDEA) and basic SQL for querying large datasets.
  • Exposure to ERP systems (SAP, Oracle, NetSuite) and ability to navigate and extract financial data for audit purposes.
  • Basic understanding of financial statements, GAAP, and accounting cycle transactions for substantive testing.
  • Experience with audit management or workflow tools (e.g., TeamMate, AuditBoard, Galvanize) is a plus.
  • Familiarity with BI tools (Power BI, Tableau) for dashboarding and visualizing audit analytics results.
  • Knowledge of IT general controls, user access reviews, and application control concepts for IT audit support.
  • Strong documentation skills for preparing audit workpapers and writing findings that meet professional standards.
  • Ability to perform statistical and judgmental sampling, including designing appropriate sample sizes for testing.

Soft Skills

  • Strong analytical and critical thinking skills with an aptitude for interpreting transactional data and control evidence.
  • Exceptional attention to detail and accuracy when performing testing and preparing documentation.
  • Effective verbal and written communication skills for interacting with stakeholders and drafting clear audit reports.
  • Professional skepticism and ethical judgment when evaluating control effectiveness and potential misstatements.
  • Time management and organizational skills to prioritize multiple tasks and meet audit deadlines in a fast-paced environment.
  • Collaborative team player who can build relationships with process owners and work across functions.
  • Problem-solving orientation with the ability to propose practical remediation steps and process improvements.
  • Adaptability and eagerness to learn new tools, regulations, and audit techniques in a changing control environment.
  • Confidentiality and discretion in handling sensitive financial, operational, and personnel data.
  • Resilience and persistence when following up on remediation activities and resolving complex control issues.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

  • Currently enrolled in a Bachelor's degree program (junior/senior) or recent graduate (within 12 months) in Accounting, Finance, Business Administration, Information Systems, or related field.

Preferred Education:

  • Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, Business, or Information Systems; progress toward or intention to pursue CPA, CIA, CISA, or related certification is advantageous.
  • Coursework in auditing, financial accounting, data analytics, information systems, or risk management.

Relevant Fields of Study:

  • Accounting
  • Finance
  • Business Administration
  • Information Systems / Management Information Systems (MIS)
  • Data Analytics / Statistics

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range:

  • 0 to 1 year (student internship experience, co-ops, or relevant academic project work)

Preferred:

  • 1+ internship or co-op experience in internal audit, external audit, accounting, finance, compliance, or risk.
  • Exposure to audit software, data analytics projects, ERP reporting, or prior experience with control testing in an academic or professional setting.
  • Demonstrated experience with Excel-based analytics, basic SQL queries, or use of IDEA/ACL for sample selection and testing.
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