Bursar Job Description Templates for Schools and Colleges
Bursar job description templates for private schools, small colleges, and career schools: 6 variants with pay, controls, and overtime notes. Free DOCX.
Bursar Job Description Templates for Schools and Small Colleges
6 free templates for the institutions that hire without a central HR office: college bursar, private school business manager, assistant bursar, cashier, collections, and career school. Download as DOCX.
The first bursar job description I was ever asked to review had been copied from a state university posting. It listed a staff of fourteen, four named systems, and a reporting line into a vice president. The school hiring for it had 190 students, one person in the business office, and a head of school who signed the checks personally.
That mismatch is the whole problem with this title. Bursar means a student accounts director at a small college, a full business manager at an independent K-12 school, and a ledger owner at a career school, and the three jobs share maybe half their duties. Copying the wrong one produces applicants who are wrong for you and a hire who resigns in March.
At FirstHR we write hiring templates for employers who have no HR department to hand this to. The six below cover each version of the role, with the classification, control, and screening language the generic versions leave out. You can browse the rest of our hiring templates too.
TL;DR
A bursar owns tuition billing, payments, refunds, and reconciliation of student receivables. The title covers three different jobs: college student accounts head, private school business manager, and career school ledger owner. Classification turns on discretion, not the title. BLS publishes no bursar wage series, so benchmark to the nearest classes. Six templates below, downloadable as DOCX.
What the Title Means Where You Work
Bursar is a setting-dependent title, not a fixed job. Before you write anything, decide which of three functions you are buying: the head of a student accounts office, the entire business office of a small school, or the ledger and refund owner at a career school.
The market is larger than people assume on the small end. The National Center for Education Statistics counted 5,819 Title IV institutions in its provisional 2023 to 2024 fall collection, released in August 2024, and a large share of those are small colleges and career schools where the business office is a handful of people. Add the independent K-12 sector and the population of employers writing this posting personally is substantial.
Small college or university
The classic bursar
Student accounts is a named office and the bursar is its head. Tuition billing, aid coordination, refunds, and reconciliation to the general ledger. The title means what the sector expects it to mean.
Private K-12 school
Bursar means business manager
At an independent school the bursar is often the whole business office: tuition, payables, payroll coordination, the board packet, and the employee files. Write the posting for the breadth, not the title.
Career or trade school
Rolling cohorts, refund math
Ledgers open and close continuously, withdrawal refunds are calculated constantly, and both the state licensing body and any accreditor will audit the file. Precision matters more than seniority here.
Large public university
Out of scope here
A state system posts through central HR against a classified pay band and a civil service description. If that is you, the posting is largely written already. These templates target the small institution side.
Name the Function, Not Just the Title
Candidates cannot tell from the word bursar whether they will run a team of six or be the only person in the office. State the enrollment, the office headcount, the reporting line, and whether the role owns the function or supports it, in the first paragraph. Every strong candidate is deciding whether the job is a step up or a step sideways, and they will assume the worst if you leave it blank.
What Belongs in a Bursar Posting
A bursar posting has to do four jobs: describe the institution honestly, filter for the one skill that separates candidates, state the classification and controls that protect you, and give a reason to apply. Most postings do the first and skip the rest.
The parts candidates read first
Institution type, size, and enrollment in two sentences
Who the bursar reports to and how big the office is
Whether the role owns the function or supports it
Systems in use, named specifically
The parts that filter applicants
Reconciliation to the general ledger, stated as a duty
Refund and aid disbursement timing responsibilities
Supervisory scope, or a clear statement that there is none
Degree and years of experience, marked required or preferred
The parts that protect you
FLSA classification stated on the posting
Background and credit check notice for a fiduciary role
Segregation of duties named as an expectation
Equal opportunity statement
The parts that win the hire
Salary or a good-faith range
Benefits and tuition remission for the employee or their children
Twelve-month calendar and any term-start overtime expectation
A named person and a real deadline to apply
The filter that matters most is reconciliation. Many candidates can post payments and answer a window. Far fewer can reconcile student accounts receivable to the general ledger, find a variance, and explain it in writing. Put that duty in the posting in plain terms and it does more screening work than any other line. Our guide to writing a job description covers the general structure.
6 Bursar Job Description Templates to Download
Download all six as one file or copy them individually. Each follows the same structure: institution overview, position summary, key responsibilities, required qualifications, a classification and compliance note, an equal opportunity statement, and how to apply. The bracketed fields are the only parts you need to change.
Download All 6 Bursar Job Description Templates
College bursar, private school business manager, assistant bursar, cashier, collections coordinator, and career school bursar. All in one download.
Bursar, Small College
Owns student accounts
The full higher education role: term billing, aid coordination, refunds, reconciliation, audit support, and a small team to supervise.
Bursar / Business Manager
Private K-12 school
For an independent school where one person carries tuition, payables, payroll coordination, the budget, and the board finance packet.
Assistant Bursar
Daily posting and volume
The non-exempt workhorse role: posting, deposits, payment plans, and the counter, with the overtime reality of term start spelled out.
Bursar Office Cashier
The service window
For the window itself, with drawer balancing, identity verification, the two-person deposit handoff, and paid count-down time.
Billing and Collections
The aged receivable
For past-due balances: outreach cadence, arrangements, holds, write-off recommendations, and documentation that survives a dispute.
Bursar, Career School
Rolling starts, refund math
For a licensed career or trade school, with aid disbursement timing, withdrawal refund calculations, and the audit file built in.
Template 1: Bursar, Small College or University
The full higher education role: term billing, aid coordination, refunds, reconciliation, audit support, and a small team to supervise.
Bursar, Small College Student Accounts Job Description
BURSAR JOB DESCRIPTION (SMALL COLLEGE OR UNIVERSITY)
Institution: __ ([City, State])
Reports to: [Chief Financial Officer / VP of Finance / Controller]
Department: [Student Accounts / Business Office]
Employment type: Full-time, 12-month
FLSA status: Exempt (administrative; see classification note)
Compensation: $_ per year
ABOUT [INSTITUTION NAME]
[Institution Name] is a [private / independent / faith-based] institution in
[City, State] serving [number] students across [number] programs. The Business
Office runs with a team of [number]. We are hiring a Bursar to own student
billing, collection, and reconciliation end to end.
POSITION SUMMARY
The Bursar owns the student accounts function: tuition and fee billing, payment
plans, receipt and deposit of all institutional funds, refunds, account
reconciliation, and the reporting the Business Office and auditors rely on.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
•Build and issue the term billing schedule for tuition, fees, housing, and
[meal plans], and confirm every charge posts to the correct account
•Receive, record, and deposit all payments (student, sponsor, third-party
billing, government drafts) into institutional accounts on the same [day]
•Administer payment plans, holds, and late fee policy consistently and in
writing
•Coordinate with Financial Aid on the timing of aid disbursement against
student charges, and issue credit balance refunds within required deadlines
•Reconcile student accounts receivable to the general ledger [monthly] and
investigate every variance
•Prepare the [1098-T] reporting file and coordinate its issuance
•Supervise [number] student accounts staff and cross-train the office so no
single person holds every step of a cash transaction
•Serve as the point of contact for students and families on billing questions
•Support external audit requests with documentation and reconciliations
•Maintain and document written procedures for every cash-handling step
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
•Bachelor's degree in accounting, finance, business administration, or a
related field
•[Number] years in student accounts, accounts receivable, billing, or general
accounting, including [number] years reconciling to a general ledger
•Working knowledge of [student information system] and spreadsheet reporting
•Understanding of student privacy obligations under FERPA
•Must clear a criminal history and credit background check appropriate to a
cash-handling and fiduciary role
•Written and verbal clarity in difficult money conversations with families
CLASSIFICATION AND COMPLIANCE NOTE (read before posting)
A bursar who exercises discretion and independent judgment on significant
matters (setting payment plan terms, recommending write-offs, designing office
procedures) generally meets the FLSA administrative exemption, provided the
salary threshold is also met. A bursar whose day is posting payments and
answering the window is applying procedures rather than exercising independent
judgment, and is non-exempt. Classify on the actual duties. Institutions that
participate in federal student aid also carry cash management, disbursement,
and credit balance timing rules, plus FERPA obligations on student records.
This is general information, not legal advice.
EEO STATEMENT
[Institution Name] is an equal opportunity employer and provides reasonable
accommodations for the essential functions of this role.
COMPENSATION AND HOW TO APPLY
Compensation: $_ per year, [benefits summary], [tuition remission]
To apply, email __ with your resume and a cover letter.
Template 2: Bursar / Business Manager, Private K-12 School
For an independent school where one person carries tuition, payables, payroll coordination, the budget, and the board finance packet. If the scope is broader than finance, compare it against the business manager templates.
Bursar / Business Manager, Private School Job Description
BURSAR / BUSINESS MANAGER JOB DESCRIPTION (PRIVATE K-12 SCHOOL)
School: __ ([City, State])
Reports to: [Head of School / Board Finance Committee]
Employment type: Full-time, 12-month
FLSA status: Exempt (administrative; see classification note)
Compensation: $_ per year
ABOUT [SCHOOL NAME]
[School Name] is an independent [religious / Montessori / classical / secular]
school in [City, State] serving [number] students in grades [range]. We have no
central district office and no separate HR department. The Bursar is the
business office.
POSITION SUMMARY
The Bursar runs the school's money: tuition billing and collection, the
Reports to: [Bursar / Director of Student Accounts]
Employment type: Full-time
FLSA status: Non-exempt (hourly, overtime-eligible; see note)
Compensation: $_ per [hour / year]
ABOUT THIS ROLE
[Institution Name] is hiring an Assistant Bursar to carry the daily volume of
the student accounts office: posting, reconciling, and answering the students
and families who need an answer today.
POSITION SUMMARY
The Assistant Bursar posts and reconciles student account transactions,
prepares deposits, resolves billing questions at the counter and by email, and
supports the Bursar on term billing and month-end close.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
•Post payments, adjustments, waivers, and third-party sponsor billing to
student accounts daily
•Prepare and verify daily deposits against the receipting system
•Answer student and family billing questions in person, by phone, and by email
within [target] business hours
•Set up approved payment plans and monitor them for missed installments
•Run the [aged receivable] report and flag accounts for the Bursar
•Assist with term billing runs, refund batches, and [1098-T] file preparation
•Maintain accurate account notes so any colleague can pick up a case
•Escalate anything requiring a policy exception rather than deciding it alone
•Follow every cash-handling and segregation-of-duties procedure exactly
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
•[Associate degree / bachelor's degree / equivalent experience: set your bar]
•[Number] years in billing, accounts receivable, cashiering, or student
services
•Accuracy under volume, with a demonstrated eye for reconciliation variances
•Spreadsheet competence and comfort learning a [student information system]
•Must clear a criminal history and credit background check appropriate to a
cash-handling role
•Patience and composure in conversations about money with stressed families
CLASSIFICATION AND COMPLIANCE NOTE
This role is non-exempt: hourly and entitled to overtime past forty hours in a
week. That matters more than it sounds, because student accounts offices spike
hard at the start of every term and staff routinely work past forty during
those weeks. Track hours honestly, budget for the overtime rather than
discovering it, and do not reclassify the role as exempt just to avoid the
premium. The administrative exemption requires discretion and independent
judgment on significant matters, and applying an established payment plan
policy is not that. This is general information, not legal advice.
EEO STATEMENT
[Institution Name] is an equal opportunity employer and provides reasonable
accommodations for the essential functions of this role.
COMPENSATION AND HOW TO APPLY
Compensation: $_ per [hour / year], [overtime policy during term start]
To apply, email __ with your resume.
Template 4: Bursar Office Cashier
For the service window itself, with drawer balancing, identity verification, the two-person deposit handoff, and paid count-down time named as hours worked.
[Institution Name] operates a service window where students pay, ask, and
argue. We are hiring a Cashier to run that window accurately and calmly during
[hours], with extra coverage in the [two] weeks around the start of each term.
POSITION SUMMARY
The Cashier receives and receipts payments at the window, balances a drawer to
the cent at the end of every shift, answers routine account questions, and
routes anything beyond routine to the Assistant Bursar.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
•Receive payments by [cash, check, card, money order] and issue a receipt for
every transaction without exception
•Balance the drawer at the close of each shift and document any variance
immediately, whatever its size
•Explain the current balance, due dates, and payment plan options from the
published policy
•Verify identity before discussing any account, and follow the release rules
for parent and third-party inquiries
•Prepare the shift deposit and hand it off under the two-person procedure
•Log every exception and escalate policy questions rather than improvising
•Keep the window area secure and never leave a drawer unattended
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
•High school diploma or equivalent
•[Number] year(s) of cash handling in a retail, banking, or campus setting
•Demonstrated accuracy: a clean drawer record matters more than speed
•Service manner that stays steady during the term-start rush
•Must clear a criminal history and credit background check appropriate to a
cash-handling role
•Availability during [extended hours] at the start of each term
CLASSIFICATION AND COMPLIANCE NOTE
This is a non-exempt hourly position. Time spent counting down a drawer after
the window closes is hours worked and must be paid, and it is one of the most
commonly missed items in a cashiering operation. Term-start weeks will generate
overtime; plan and pay for it. Student account information is protected: verify
identity before disclosing anything and follow the institution's rules on what
may be released to a parent or third party. Do not build a schedule that leaves
one person alone with receipt, deposit, and reconciliation. This is general
information, not legal advice.
EEO STATEMENT
[Institution Name] is an equal opportunity employer and provides reasonable
accommodations for the essential functions of this role.
COMPENSATION AND HOW TO APPLY
Compensation: $_ per hour, [shift differential], [term-peak overtime]
To apply, email __ with your resume and availability.
Template 5: Student Billing and Collections Coordinator
For past-due balances: outreach cadence, arrangements, holds, write-off recommendations, and documentation that survives a dispute. Pair it with the accounts receivable templates if the role reaches beyond student debt.
Student Billing and Collections Coordinator Job Description
STUDENT BILLING AND COLLECTIONS COORDINATOR JOB DESCRIPTION
Institution: __ ([City, State])
Reports to: [Bursar / Director of Student Accounts]
Employment type: Full-time
FLSA status: Non-exempt unless the duties genuinely meet the administrative
test (see note)
Compensation: $_ per [hour / year]
ABOUT THIS ROLE
[Institution Name] carries $_ in past-due student receivables. We are
hiring a Coordinator to work that balance down through structured outreach,
realistic arrangements, and clean documentation, without damaging the
relationship with students who intend to pay.
POSITION SUMMARY
The Billing and Collections Coordinator runs the aged receivable: outreach
sequences, payment arrangements, holds and releases, write-off recommendations,
and the handoff of accounts to an outside agency where policy allows.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
•Own the aged receivable report and work it on a published cadence
•Run the outreach sequence at [30 / 60 / 90] days with documented contact
attempts on every account
•Negotiate payment arrangements inside the approved parameters and paper them
•Apply and release registration, transcript, and diploma holds strictly per
written policy
•Prepare write-off recommendations with supporting documentation
•Manage the referral file to [collection agency] and reconcile agency
remittances
•Track recovery rate, days sales outstanding, and arrangement default rate,
and report both monthly
•Keep every contact note complete enough to defend the account later
•Coordinate with Financial Aid and Registrar before any hold affects a student
•[Number] years in collections, accounts receivable, or student accounts
•Familiarity with fair debt collection practice standards and state
requirements that apply to your institution's collection activity
•Documentation discipline: if it is not in the note, it did not happen
•Must clear a criminal history and credit background check
•The ability to be firm and humane in the same conversation
CLASSIFICATION AND COMPLIANCE NOTE
Classify honestly. A coordinator applying a fixed outreach script and preset
arrangement terms is non-exempt: hourly and overtime-eligible. A role that sets
collection strategy, defines arrangement parameters, and recommends policy may
meet the administrative exemption if the salary threshold is met. Collection
activity carries real legal exposure: institutions collecting their own debts
sit differently under federal fair debt collection law than third-party
agencies do, but state debt collection statutes, disclosure rules, and
consumer protection law still apply. Confirm your position with counsel before
writing the outreach scripts. This is general information, not legal advice.
EEO STATEMENT
[Institution Name] is an equal opportunity employer and provides reasonable
accommodations for the essential functions of this role.
COMPENSATION AND HOW TO APPLY
Compensation: $_ per [hour / year], [no commission on collected debt]
To apply, email __ with your resume.
Template 6: Bursar, Career or Trade School
For a licensed career or trade school, with aid disbursement timing, withdrawal refund calculations, and the audit file built in.
Bursar, Career or Trade School Job Description
BURSAR JOB DESCRIPTION (CAREER OR TRADE SCHOOL)
School: __ ([City, State])
Reports to: [Campus Director / Owner / CFO]
Employment type: Full-time
FLSA status: Exempt (administrative; see classification note)
Compensation: $_ per year
ABOUT [SCHOOL NAME]
[School Name] is a [licensed / accredited] career school in [City, State]
offering [programs] on a [cohort / rolling] start schedule. [We participate in
federal student aid programs / We do not participate in federal student aid].
The Bursar owns every dollar that moves between a student and the school.
POSITION SUMMARY
The Bursar manages student ledgers across rolling cohorts: enrollment
agreements, payment schedules, aid and cash disbursement timing, refund
calculations on withdrawal, and the records the school's licensing body and
accreditor will ask to see.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
•Set up each student ledger from the signed enrollment agreement, with the
program cost, payment schedule, and any aid clearly stated
•Bill by payment period and reconcile charges to attendance and progression
•Coordinate the timing of federal, state, and institutional aid against
charges, and issue credit balances within required deadlines
•Calculate withdrawal refunds under [the state refund policy / the
institutional policy / the return of federal aid calculation] and document
every step of the math
•Reconcile the student ledger to the general ledger [monthly]
•Prepare files for the annual [audit / compliance audit] and for licensing and
accreditation reviews
•Maintain written cash management procedures and keep duties separated
•Explain cost, financing, and refund terms to prospective students in plain
language, and never overstate what aid will cover
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
•[Associate / bachelor's] degree in accounting, business, or a related field
•[Number] years in student accounts, bursar operations, or accounts receivable
at a postsecondary institution
•Familiarity with [the school's SIS] and with the aid disbursement cycle
•Understanding of state licensing refund requirements for career schools
•Must clear a criminal history and credit background check
•Absolute accuracy on refund calculations, where errors become liabilities
CLASSIFICATION AND COMPLIANCE NOTE
A bursar at a career school ordinarily meets the FLSA administrative exemption
where the role carries discretion over procedures, arrangements, and
reconciliation, and the salary threshold is met. Two compliance points are
specific to this setting. First, schools participating in federal student aid
must follow the cash management rules on how and when Title IV funds are
disbursed and how credit balances are paid out. Second, state career school
licensing usually sets its own refund schedule on withdrawal, and it can be
more generous to the student than yours. Both get audited. Build the procedure
and document the math every time. This is general information, not legal
advice.
EEO STATEMENT
[School Name] is an equal opportunity employer and provides reasonable
accommodations for the essential functions of this role.
COMPENSATION AND HOW TO APPLY
Compensation: $_ per year, [benefits summary]
To apply, email __ with your resume and a cover letter.
Exempt or Non-Exempt: Both Answers Are Common
A bursar can be either, and the deciding factor is discretion rather than the title or the sense of responsibility. The general rule for administrative employees requires office work directly related to management or general business operations, plus the exercise of discretion and independent judgment on matters of significance, plus the salary threshold.
Applied to this role, the line is fairly clean. Designing the payment plan policy is discretion. Enrolling a student in the existing payment plan policy is not. Recommending which balances go to write-off is discretion. Sending the 60-day letter the policy requires is not. Our breakdown of exempt versus non-exempt classification works through the full tests, and the rules on overtime pay cover what you owe when the answer is non-exempt.
The exemption turns on judgment, not on the title
The federal administrative exemption asks two things beyond the salary threshold: is the primary duty office work directly related to management or general business operations, and does it include the exercise of discretion and independent judgment with respect to matters of significance. A bursar who designs the office procedures, sets payment plan parameters, decides which accounts go to write-off, and advises the finance committee clears that bar comfortably. A bursar at a very small school who posts payments, prints statements, and follows a policy someone else wrote does not, no matter how senior the title sounds or how much responsibility the role feels like it carries. Classify on what the week actually contains. Misclassification here is common because the word bursar reads as an officer even when the job is clerical. This is general information, not legal advice.
Segregation of duties belongs in the job description
The single most important control in any student accounts office is that no one person receives money, records it, deposits it, and reconciles it. That is easy to say at an institution with ten people in the business office and genuinely hard at a school where the bursar is the business office. Write the split into the job description anyway, because doing so forces the conversation about who holds the other half. At a small school the usual answer is that the head of school or a board treasurer reviews the bank reconciliation and the deposit log independently every month, and that this review is documented. Naming the control in the posting also signals to serious candidates that you run a real office, which is exactly the candidate you want.
Student financial records are protected records
Student account information is education record data. Institutions receiving federal funds are bound by FERPA, which restricts disclosure of personally identifiable information from education records without consent, and a billing statement is squarely inside that. The practical consequence for a bursar office is that a parent calling about a balance does not automatically get an answer: at the postsecondary level the rights transfer to the student, and disclosure to a parent depends on consent or a specific statutory exception such as dependent status. Build identity verification and a written release procedure into the role and say so in the posting. Institutions handling student financial aid information also carry federal information safeguarding obligations. This is general information, not legal advice.
Federal aid brings cash management rules
If your institution participates in federal student aid, the bursar operates inside a defined rulebook rather than a preference. Federal regulations govern how and when institutions disburse aid to student accounts, what charges those funds may be applied to, and the deadline for paying out a credit balance to the student. Refund calculations on withdrawal follow their own required method, and every step of that math gets examined in a compliance audit. None of this is optional and none of it is negotiable with a student who wants their money sooner or later than the rule allows. If you participate, say so in the posting and require familiarity with the disbursement cycle. If you do not participate, say that too, because it changes the candidate pool considerably.
The financial consequence is concrete and predictable. Student accounts offices spike hard in the two weeks around every term start, and a non-exempt assistant bursar or cashier will work past forty hours in those weeks. Budget the premium, put the expectation in the posting, and track the hours properly rather than discovering the problem during a wage claim.
Controls the Posting Must Name
Write the controls into the job description itself, not just into a procedures manual nobody reads. Naming segregation of duties, monthly reconciliation, and documented procedures as responsibilities does two things at once: it sets the expectation before hire and it signals that you run a real office.
For institutions that participate in federal student aid, the rules on disbursing funds govern how and when aid reaches a student account and how quickly a credit balance must be paid out. On the records side, FERPA restricts what the office may disclose, which is why identity verification at the window is a legal requirement and not a courtesy.
Control
How to write it into the job description
Segregation of duties
State that receipt, recording, deposit, and reconciliation are split, and name who holds the other half
Reconciliation to the general ledger
List it as a monthly duty with a variance investigation expectation, not as a nice-to-have
Written procedures
Make documenting and maintaining cash-handling procedures a named responsibility of the role
Independent review
State that the bank reconciliation and deposit log are reviewed monthly by the head of school or a board treasurer
Identity verification
Require verification before any account disclosure and reference your written release procedure
Aid disbursement timing
Where you participate in federal aid, require familiarity with the disbursement and credit balance rules
Refund calculation
For career schools, name the withdrawal refund method and require documented math on every calculation
Background and credit check
State it as a condition of employment for a fiduciary, cash-handling role
None of these lines make the posting longer than a candidate will read. They make it read like it was written by someone who has run the office, which is the difference between attracting applicants and attracting the right ones.
What to Pay a Bursar
There is no BLS wage series for bursars, because the title is not a standard occupational classification. Benchmark against the nearest classes instead, and pick the one that matches the duties you are actually buying rather than the title you plan to print.
National Medians for the Nearest Classifications
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey (May 2025), median annual wages were $166,570 for financial managers, $104,590 for postsecondary education administrators, $83,680 for accountants and auditors, $50,670 for bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks, and $48,500 for billing and posting clerks (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS national estimates).
Nearest BLS classification
Median (May 2025)
10th to 90th percentile
When it is the right benchmark
Financial managers
$166,570
$94,310 to $323,270
A bursar who is genuinely a finance officer at a larger institution
Education administrators, postsecondary
$104,590
$64,560 to $215,620
A director of student accounts with a team and policy authority
Accountants and auditors
$83,680
$56,020 to $144,090
The working bursar at a small college who owns reconciliation
Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks
$50,670
$36,000 to $74,550
A small school bursar whose day is full-cycle bookkeeping
Billing and posting clerks
$48,500
$37,290 to $67,710
An assistant bursar or student accounts specialist
Customer service representatives
$44,770
$31,750 to $63,590
A bursar office cashier working the service window
In practice most small institution bursars sit between the accountant and clerk benchmarks, roughly $50,000 to $85,000, and the spread inside that band is driven by whether the role reconciles and decides or posts and processes. Publish a good-faith range where pay transparency laws apply. Where you cannot compete on base pay, compete on the twelve-month calendar, tuition remission, and a decision timeline measured in days.
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Two sentences belong in every bursar posting: one making employment contingent on a criminal history and credit check appropriate to a fiduciary, cash-handling position, and one stating that student financial information is confidential and subject to a written release procedure.
Both are filters as much as protections. Candidates who will not clear a check stop reading, and candidates who will clear one read it as a sign of a well-run office. Several states restrict the use of credit history in hiring but carve out positions with access to funds, so confirm your state rule before you write the line. Our guides to running a background check and state background check laws cover the notice requirements.
Test Reconciliation Before You Hire, Not After
The single most useful screening step for this role takes twenty minutes: hand the finalist a short exercise with a subsidiary ledger, a general ledger balance, and a deliberate variance, and ask them to find it and write two sentences explaining it. Candidates who can do this are a different population from candidates who interview well about doing it. Every bursar hire that has gone badly in my experience went badly here, and it was visible before the offer.
Hiring a Bursar Without an HR Department
Small institution finance hiring fails in three predictable places: the money function sits with one undocumented person, the seasonal overtime nobody budgeted arrives anyway, and the onboarding paperwork for a fiduciary role scatters across four systems. Each has a fix that starts in the job description.
One person holds the entire money function and there is no backup
At a small school or college the bursar is frequently the only person who knows how term billing is built, where the deposit log lives, and which student has a private arrangement with the head of school. That concentration is a control weakness and a continuity risk at the same time. The job description is where you start fixing it: write documentation of procedures in as a named duty, require cross-training of at least one other person, and state that a monthly independent review of the bank reconciliation happens. Candidates who resist that language are telling you something useful. Candidates who have run an office this way before will recognize it as a sign of a serious employer and will ask better questions in the interview.
Term start turns a forty hour job into a sixty hour job and nobody planned for it
Student accounts work is violently seasonal. The two weeks around each term start generate the payment volume, the counter traffic, the hold releases, and the emergencies, and then it goes quiet. If your assistant bursar and cashiers are non-exempt, and they should be, those weeks produce overtime that is entirely predictable and should be in the budget rather than a surprise on the payroll register. Say it in the posting: name the peak weeks, state the overtime expectation, and describe how you staff them. Being honest about the rhythm of the job costs you nothing and prevents the resignation that arrives in week three when a new hire discovers what September actually looks like.
You hire for a fiduciary role and the paperwork is scattered across four places
A bursar hire carries more onboarding weight than most: a background and credit check appropriate to a cash-handling role, a signed acknowledgment of cash-handling and segregation-of-duties procedures, bank and system access authorizations, a confidentiality agreement covering student financial records, and the training record proving you covered privacy obligations before day one. FirstHR was built for exactly this. The onboarding wizard runs the same sequence every time, built-in e-signature handles the procedure acknowledgments and the confidentiality agreement, document management stores clearances and authorizations against the employee profile with renewal dates attached, and training modules cover privacy and cash-handling orientation with a completion record you can show an auditor. Applicant tracking is coming soon to FirstHR. Note that FirstHR is an onboarding and HR platform, not a payroll provider.
Once the offer is signed, the work becomes a repeatable onboarding checklist: acknowledgments, access authorizations, clearances, and a training record you can produce for an auditor without opening a filing cabinet.
Key Takeaways
Bursar is a setting-dependent title covering three different jobs: college student accounts head, private school business manager, and career school ledger owner. Decide which one you are hiring before writing a word.
Classification turns on discretion, not the title. A bursar who designs policy and recommends write-offs is exempt under the administrative test; one who applies someone else’s procedures is non-exempt and owed overtime.
Student accounts work spikes hard in the two weeks around every term start, so budget and disclose the non-exempt overtime instead of discovering it on the payroll register.
BLS publishes no bursar wage series. Nearest medians (BLS OEWS, May 2025) run $48,500 for billing clerks to $166,570 for financial managers, with most small institution bursars between $50,000 and $85,000.
Write segregation of duties, monthly reconciliation, and documented procedures into the job description itself, and name who holds the other half of each split at a one-person office.
Screen on reconciliation with a short practical exercise, and complete the background and credit check for this fiduciary role before the start date rather than during the first week.
A bursar hire carries more paperwork than most: procedure acknowledgments, a confidentiality agreement, access authorizations, clearances, and privacy training with a record. FirstHR runs that sequence the same way every time, with built-in e-signature, document storage against the employee profile, and renewal dates tracked so nothing expires quietly. Applicant tracking is coming soon to FirstHR.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does a bursar do?
A bursar owns the money that moves between students and the institution. The core duties are tuition and fee billing, receipt and deposit of all payments, administration of payment plans, coordination with financial aid on disbursement timing, calculation and issuance of refunds and credit balances, reconciliation of student accounts receivable to the general ledger, management of past-due balances, and support of the annual audit. At a small college that is a defined student accounts function with a small team. At a private K-12 school the title usually means business manager, and the same person also handles accounts payable, payroll coordination, budget preparation, and the board finance packet. At a career school the emphasis shifts to withdrawal refund calculations and aid disbursement timing, because both get audited. Write the posting for the version you actually have.
Is a bursar the same as a registrar?
No. They are neighboring offices that people confuse constantly. The registrar owns student records: registration, enrollment verification, transcripts, grades, degree audit, and academic policy administration. The bursar owns student money: billing, payments, refunds, and receivables. The two coordinate frequently, most visibly when a past-due balance triggers a registration or transcript hold, which is a bursar decision executed through a registrar system. If you are hiring for records rather than money, use a registrar job description instead. If your institution is small enough that one person does both, write the posting around whichever function dominates the week and name the second one explicitly rather than leaving it as a surprise.
Is a bursar exempt or non-exempt under the FLSA?
It depends on the duties, not the title, and both answers are common. The federal administrative exemption requires that the primary duty be office work directly related to management or general business operations and that it include the exercise of discretion and independent judgment with respect to matters of significance, with the salary threshold also met. A bursar who designs office procedures, sets payment plan parameters, recommends write-offs, and advises leadership on receivable strategy generally qualifies. An assistant bursar, a cashier, or a bursar at a very small school whose day is posting payments and following someone else’s policy is non-exempt: hourly and entitled to overtime past forty hours in a week. That distinction matters financially, because student accounts offices reliably spike into overtime during the two weeks around each term start. This is general information, not legal advice.
How much does a bursar make?
The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish a separate wage series for bursars, because the title is not a standard occupational classification, so benchmark against the nearest classes instead. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey (May 2025), the national median annual wage was $166,570 for financial managers, $104,590 for postsecondary education administrators, $83,680 for accountants and auditors, $50,670 for bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks, and $48,500 for billing and posting clerks. Most small institution bursars land between the accountant and clerk benchmarks, roughly $50,000 to $85,000, with the senior officer version at a larger college reaching the administrator and manager ranges. Set the range by which duties you are actually buying, then publish a good-faith range where pay transparency rules apply.
What qualifications should a bursar have?
For the full function, expect a bachelor’s degree in accounting, finance, or business administration, several years in student accounts or accounts receivable, and demonstrated experience reconciling a subsidiary ledger to a general ledger. That last item is the real filter: plenty of candidates can post payments, far fewer can find and explain a variance. Add working knowledge of your student information system, spreadsheet competence, and an understanding of student record privacy obligations. For assistant and cashier roles, drop the degree requirement to whatever your market supports and screen on accuracy and cash-handling history instead. Every version of the role should carry a background check appropriate to a fiduciary position, and most institutions extend that to a credit check for anyone with access to funds.
Should a small private school hire a bursar or a bookkeeper?
Hire a bookkeeper if the work is recording transactions someone else decides, and a bursar or business manager if the work includes deciding. The practical test is whether the person will build the budget with the head of school, set the tuition collection policy, sit with the board finance committee, and recommend when to write off a balance. If yes, that is a bursar role and it should be posted, paid, and classified as one. If the person will process what arrives and reconcile it accurately, that is a bookkeeper and the posting should say so. Getting this wrong in either direction is expensive: an underscoped posting attracts candidates who leave within a year, and an overscoped one attracts candidates you cannot afford and cannot keep busy.
What background checks should a bursar hire go through?
Run a criminal history check, and for anyone with access to institutional funds, a credit check as well, subject to state law limits on the use of credit history in hiring. Several states restrict credit checks in employment but carve out positions with fiduciary responsibility or access to money, which a bursar role plainly is. Verify employment history and speak to a supervisor who saw the candidate handle cash or reconcile accounts, not just a listed reference. School settings add their own layer: most states require criminal clearance for employees with student contact, and a bursar office has constant student contact. State the requirement in the posting so candidates self-select, complete clearance before the start date rather than during the first week, and store the documentation with its renewal date attached.
How do I hire a bursar for a school with no HR department?
Run a fixed sequence and start earlier than feels necessary, because finance hiring at small institutions is slow and the calendar is unforgiving. Post a specific job description that states the pay, the classification, the reporting line, and whether the role owns or supports the function. Screen on reconciliation ability with a short practical exercise rather than an interview question. Check references with someone who watched the candidate handle money. Complete the background and credit check before the start date. Then run onboarding as a checklist: signed offer, cash-handling and segregation-of-duties acknowledgment, confidentiality agreement for student financial records, system and bank access authorizations, and privacy training with a completion record. FirstHR handles that sequence with e-signature, document management, and training modules. Applicant tracking is coming soon to FirstHR.
