Financial Management & Comptroller

What does the Financial Management & Comptroller career field do?

Provides financial decision support, services, and resources to support the Air Force’s war-fighting mission. Performs, supervises, manages, and directs financial management activities both at home station and deployed locations. Provides customer service. Maintains financial records for pay and travel transactions. Maintains accounting records and prepares reports. Determines fund availability and propriety of claims. Accounts for and safeguards cash, checks, and other negotiable instruments. Processes commitments and obligations, payments, and collections. Serves as financial advisor to commanders and resource managers. Compiles, analyzes, and summarizes data. Prepares and executes budget execution plans. Performs audits and implements fraud prevention measures. Related DOD Occupational Subgroup: 154100.

Duties and responsibilities

• Provides customer service. Advises, interacts, and coordinates with organizations on financial matters. Interprets and supplements financial directives. Prepares, verifies, computes and processes, and audits pay transactions. Processes, verifies, audits travel claims, estimates travel costs, determines fund availability, and performs follow-up on outstanding travel orders for travelers.
• Processes financial transactions. Performs follow-up on commitments, outstanding obligations, and processes disbursement and collection transactions. Disburses, collects, and safeguards cash, negotiable instruments, and certified vouchers. Prepares accountability records and reports.
• Determines propriety of funding and certifies fund availability. Records, reconciles, and verifies entries into automated systems based on accounting documents. Certifies and processes payment and collection vouchers. Maintains appropriated funds, accounting records, and files. Schedules, prepares, verifies, and submits financial reports.
• Provides customer service and financial analysis for various organizations, vendors, and the Air Force Financial Services Center. Reconciles funding authorities with accounting records.
• Analyzes accounting reports and financial data to identify trends for evaluating effectiveness and efficiency of Air Force activities. Develops and compiles factors for improved planning, programming, and budgeting. Prepares budgets and execution plans and reports. Analyzes financial execution, identifies, and explains variances, and prepares narrative justification to support financial requirements.
• Reviews financial data for accuracy and resolves discrepancies. Receives, reconciles, and distributes funding authorities. Examines funding and reprogramming actions to determine financial implications. Reviews reimbursement program status.
• Performs audits and reviews as required by directives. Administers the Air Force Management Control Program.
• Utilizes financial management decision support techniques to deliver sound financial advice to all levels of leadership.

Specialty qualifications

Knowledge. Knowledge of fiscal law, accounting and payment principles/procedures, contingency operations, financial management systems, and basic computer applications, pay and travel entitlements, Air Force organization, reporting requirements, analysis techniques, financial management policies, procedures and regulations, management principles and controls, budgeting principles, financial management decision support techniques, visual, oral, and written presentation techniques, and Air Force missions.

Education. For entry into this specialty, completion of high school with courses in mathematics, accounting, business law, ethics, and computer applications are desirable.

Training. The following training courses are mandatory as indicated:

• For award of AFSC 6F031, completion of the basic financial management and comptroller apprentice course.
• For award of AFSC 6F051, completion of the Financial Management Journeyman Course (FMJC).
• For award of AFSC 6F071, completion of the financial management and comptroller craftsman course.

Experience. The following experience is mandatory for award of the AFSC indicated:

• 6F051. Qualification in and possession of AFSC 6F031. Experience in financial management such as customer service, document and voucher processing, computation, systems, funds control, reporting, reconciliation, and follow-up.
• 6F071. Qualification in and possession of AFSC 6F051. Experience in performing or supervising activities of financial management such as customer service, financial analysis document and voucher processing, computation, systems, funds control, reporting, reconciliation, and follow-up.
• 6F091. Qualification in and possession of AFSC 6F071. Experience managing or directing financial management activities.

Other. The following are mandatory as indicated:

• See attachment 4 for entry requirements.
• For entry into this specialty (retraining only), certification by the Wing Comptroller Superintendent that the individual is acceptable for entry and recommendation for acceptance by the MAJCOM Functional Manager, Financial Management (6F0XX) and/or AF Career Field Manager. This requirement does not apply to ANG.
• For entry into this specialty, the member must have the ability to obtain the required Department of Defense Financial Management (DoD FM) Certification IAW the FY2012 National Defense Authorization Act. Reference DOD Instruction 1300.26 for requirements.
• For entry, award, and retention of this AFSC:
• No record of conviction by a civilian court for offenses involving larceny, robbery, wrongful appropriation, or burglary, or fraud.
• Never received nonjudicial punishment under the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) for offenses involving acts of larceny, wrongful appropriation, robbery, or burglary or fraud as delineated in UCMJ Articles 121, 122, 129, and 132 or never been convicted by military courts-martial for these same offenses.
• For award and retention of these AFSCs, must maintain local network access IAW AFI 17-130, Cybersecurity Program Management and AFMAN 17-1301, Computer Security.

Civilian career paths

Comparable civilian careers for this field pay roughly $25,020–$134,180 per year (median salaries; varies by role and location):

• Accountants and Auditors: $73,560
• Bill and Account Collectors: $38,100
• Billing and Posting Clerks: $39,590
• Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks: $42,410
• Budget Analysts: $78,970
• Cashiers: $25,020
• Compensation and Benefits Managers: $125,130
• Compensation, Benefits, and Job Analysis Specialists: $67,190
• Compliance Officers: $71,100
• Customer Service Representatives: $35,830
• Financial and Investment Analysts: $83,660
• Financial Examiners: $81,430
• Financial Managers: $134,180
• Financial Quantitative Analysts: $83,660
• First-Line Supervisors of Office and Administrative Support Workers: $58,450
• Human Resources Managers: $121,220
• Management Analysts: $87,660
• Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks: $47,020
• Regulatory Affairs Specialists: $71,100
• Tellers: $32,620
• Treasurers and Controllers: $134,180