Accountant II

UWMSN University of Wisconsin Madison; Madison (WI); Hybrid; USD 60,000 - 85,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Generous vacation, holidays and sickle

Competitive insurances and savings

Retirement benefits

Job summary

The University of Wisconsin–Madison's Wisconsin Office of Rural Health is seeking a skilled financial professional to support program managers and the director. You will handle accounting tasks, prepare reports, manage budgets, and ensure policy compliance across state grants, a fee-for-service program, and smaller funds.

This role requires strong communication with School of Medicine, campus entities, and external partners, plus the ability to implement new systems and processes to improve

Qualifications

• At least 2 years of accounting, bookkeeping, or financial duties such as budgeting and reconciliations.
• Proficiency with Excel/Sheets/Smartsheets, including complex formulas and pivot tables.
• Experience in grants management or university/government environments is preferred.

Responsibilities

• Organizes and updates financial statements, journals, ledgers, and reports in an automated system.
• Prepares and analyzes financial data, identifies discrepancies, and recommends solutions.
• Provides budgets and projections based on data and policies.
• Develops and maintains automated financial systems and controls.
• Responds to internal and external stakeholders with accounting information.
• Assists with reconciliations, journal entries, schedules, and reports.
• Prepares and/or approves financial transactions and payments.

Skills

Oral & written communication

Organizational skills

Analytical thinking

Invoice investigation

Regulatory compliance

Detail-oriented

Education

Bachelor’s degree preferred in Accounting/Finance/Business

Tools

Microsoft Excel

Google Sheets

Smartsheets

Workday

Job description

Job Summary

The Wisconsin Office of Rural Health is looking for an independently functioning but team-oriented person to provide financial support for our program managers and director, who together manage a variety of federal and state grants, a fee-for-service program, and various smaller funds. We also rely on this person to be a liaison to the School of Medicine and Public Health and campus, to ensure our compliance with policies and to provide us with policy expertise in the areas of financial reporting and budget management, invoicing and transaction tracking, travel and expense reimbursement, purchasing, event payments and refunds, and gift processing. The person in this position will perform highly responsible financial tasks under the general supervision of our director. Our work is providing programming, technical assistance, and funding to healthcare providers across the state, and our accountant interacts with a wide variety of people and dynamics in support of our mission. This position executes and guides financial and accounting transactions in multiple finance functional areas. This role will be responsible for creating and reviewing financial transactions, preparing financial reports and budget management. The incumbent participates in day-to-day financial operations of the office to ensure accuracy of financial transactions and reports and will guide other staff where needed. The position recommends and implements fiscal policies and participates in the development and implementation of new systems and processes to improve customer service, efficiency, and internal controls. Most of these will be digital in nature, so they must be proficient with online applications and processes, and be willing to learn.

Additional Position Details

This position may require some work to be performed in-person, onsite, at a designated campus work location. Some work may be performed remotely, at an offsite, non-campus work location. Monday through Friday 9:00a.m. - 5:30p.m.

Selected Candidate Will Have

• Strong oral & written communication skills to explain and present complex financial data and information through a variety of reports to key stakeholders such as Principle Investigators, Program, and Department leadership.
• Strong organizational skills with the ability to prioritize workload, effectively manage multiple projects and deadlines, and independently follow-through on tasks unsupervised.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills to manage complex budgets and financial transactions.
• A willingness and interest in investigating and analyzing invoices, charges, and payments to identify discrepancies and facilitate a timely resolution.
• Ability to interpret and apply financial regulations and compliance policies.
• Detail-oriented with a strong commitment to accuracy and integrity in financial reporting.
• Ability to work directly with high level professionals in healthcare facilities, and engage in an empathetic manner to various cultural settings (rural and small town, tribal, urban, etc).

Key Job Responsibilities

• Organizes, prepares, and updates financial statements, monthly and year-end journal entries, accounts, ledgers, and reports for various financial needs within an automated financial system to ensure accurate recording and reporting of financial transactions.
• Prepares and analyzes financial data, reports and records, identifies discrepancies, investigates, recommends, and implements solutions as needed.
• Provides and prepares budgets and projections based on existing data and established policies and procedures.
• Develops and maintains automated financial systems, recommending controls to ensure system reliability and data integrity.
• Answers questions and provides accounting related information to internal and external stakeholders according to established policies and procedures.
• Assists with accounting and reviewing reconciliations, journal entries, schedules, and reports.
• Prepares and/or approves financial transactions and payments.

Compensation

The expected salary range for this position is $60,000 up to $85,000 for highly experienced candidates and actual pay within this range will depend on experience and qualifications.

• generous vacation, holidays, and sick leave
• competitive insurances and savings accounts
• retirement benefits

For more information, refer to the campus benefits webpage and the SMPH FAASLI Benefits Flyer 2026.

Required Qualifications

• At least 2 years of demonstrated experience in accounting, bookkeeping, or financial duties such as budgeting, financial projections, preparing reconciliations, journal entries, and more complex financial reporting.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Excel, Google Sheets, or Smartsheets, including complex formulas and pivot tables to create financial dashboards.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in a highly regulated environment such as a university or government organization. Two or more years of experience in a relevant sector is strongly preferred.
• Familiarity with the financial management of grants and complex accounting tasks related to award management. Two or more years of experience in this work is preferred.
• Experience and expertise with online enterprise applications, like Workday, is strongly preferred.
• Experience working with complex automated accounting systems and processes, including databases and queries, is preferred.
• Experience and expertise with online communication tools, like Zoom and Teams (both video conferencing and chat).

Education

• Bachelor’s Degree preferred; focus in Accounting, Finance, or Business preferred

Employment Eligibility and Background Checks

University sponsorship is not available for this position, including transfers of sponsorship and TN visas.The selected applicant will be responsible for ensuring their continuous eligibility to work in the United States (i.e. a citizen or national of the United States, a lawful permanent resident, a foreign national authorized to work in the United States without the need of an employer sponsorship) on or before the effective date of appointment.This position is an ongoing position that will require continuous work eligibility.If you are selected for this position you must provide proof of work authorization and eligibility to work.The department will not be able to support a request for a J-1 waiver. If you choose to pursue a waiver and apply for our position, neither the UW nor UWMF will reimburse you for your legal or waiver fees.Employment may require a criminal background check. It may also require your references to answer questions regarding misconduct, including sexual violence and sexual harassment. The University of Wisconsin System will not reveal the identities of applicants who request confidentiality in writing, except that the identity of the successful candidate will be released. See Wis. Stat. sec. 19.36(7). The Annual Security and Fire Safety Report contains current campus safety and disciplinary policies, crime statistics for the previous 3 calendar years, and on-campus student housing fire safety policies and fire statistics for the previous 3 calendar years. UW–Madison will provide a paper copy upon request; please contact the University of Wisconsin Police Department.

Institutional Statement on Diversity

Diversity is a source of strength, creativity, and innovation for UW-Madison. We value the contributions of each person and respect the profound ways their identity, culture, background, experience, status, abilities, and opinion enrich the university community. We commit ourselves to the pursuit of excellence in teaching, research, outreach, and diversity as inextricably linked goals. The University of Wisconsin-Madison fulfills its public mission by creating a welcoming and inclusive community for people from every background - people who as students, faculty, and staff serve Wisconsin and the world. The University of Wisconsin-Madison is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to, including but not limited to, race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, age, pregnancy, disability, or status as a protected veteran and other bases as defined by federal regulations and UW System policies. We promote excellence by acknowledging skills and expertise from all backgrounds and encourage all qualified individuals to apply. For more information regarding applicant and employee rights and to view federal and state required postings, visit the Human Resources Workplace Poster website. To request a disability or pregnancy-related accommodation for any step in the hiring process (e.g., application, interview, pre-employment testing, etc.), please contact the Divisional Disability Representative (DDR) in the division you are applying to. Please make your request as soon as possible to help the university respond most effectively to you.

Company Culture and Opportunities

Work with purpose, make an impact, and grow your career. The University of Wisconsin–Madison is committed to equity, inclusion and employee well-being as we proudly work to improve the lives of people in Wisconsin and beyond. UW–Madison offers a wide range of professions that cover various interests and skill levels. We employ everything from accountants to arborists, chefs to custodians, editors to electricians, graphic designers to groundskeepers, HR associates to HVAC technicians, librarians to locksmiths, mechanics to medical assistants, painters to police officers, web designers to welders, and absolutely everything in between! No matter what you are looking for professionally, chances are you will not only find it but will thrive at it while working at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.