| Course | AC298 Associate's Capstone in Accounting |
|---|---|
| Unit | Unit 9 |
| Paper type | Career portfolio piece |
| Length | About 610 words, 5 pages double-spaced |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Purdue University Global |
| Program | Associate of Applied Science in Accounting |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for AC298 Unit 9
Reliability an Employer Can Check: A Unit 9 Career Portfolio Piece Pairing a Resume With a Capstone Project Sheet
[Student Name]
Purdue University Global
AC298: Associate's Capstone in Accounting
Unit 9 Career Portfolio Piece
[Instructor Name]
[Date]
The graduate, her work history and the capstone business are composite; the labor statistics, employer survey and control framework cited are real.
Resume
Corinne Hale. Columbus, Ohio. Email and phone on request.
Target role: Accounts payable clerk or junior bookkeeper.
Education: Purdue Global, associate's degree (AAS) in accounting, expected this spring.
Accounting experience:
1. Capstone project, Kiln Road Tile & Flooring year-end, composite case. Recorded a full December for a retailer, prepared adjusted statements and closing entries, analyzed eight ratios and wrote a credit recommendation.
2. Office assistant, a regional HVAC contractor, two years. Matched vendor invoices to receiving slips, entered about 200 bills a month and prepared the weekly check run for the owner's approval.
Skills: Accrual adjustments and month-end close; three-way matching of purchase orders, receiving records and invoices; bank reconciliation; accounts receivable aging; spreadsheet formulas and pivot tables; QuickBooks Online.
Strengths an employer can verify: the capstone package and its reference sheet, available on request.
Project Sheet: Kiln Road Tile & Flooring Year-End
Scope. One December closing a fiscal year for a sole proprietorship that sells tile and flooring for cash and on 30-day contractor accounts, using a perpetual inventory system.
What I produced. Fifteen summarized December transactions journalized and posted; an unadjusted trial balance that agreed at $896,800; seven adjusting entries, including inventory shrinkage from a physical count and an allowance set from an aging; year-end statements in classified, multi-step form with a capital rollforward; closing entries; eight ratios; a memo recommending a credit limit for a contractor.
Controls I used. Debits checked against credits after every entry; cash proved against bank activity; a reference sheet tracing every carried figure to its source, which caught a ratio built on gross rather than net receivables; and an ethics review of a request to delay two adjustments.
The reference sheet is the part of the project most worth showing an employer, because it is a working example of the review controls that keep a small company's books reliable when one person keeps them.
Software. Spreadsheet workbook with linked schedules; journal and ledger prepared to the format used in QuickBooks Online.
Using the Pair in an Interview
The resume earns the interview; the project sheet gives Corinne something specific to talk about once she is in the room. When an interviewer asks about attention to detail, she can describe the quick ratio the reference sheet corrected. When asked how she handles pressure from a manager, she can describe the ethics review and the recount she proposed instead of delaying the entries. Bringing a printed copy of the trial balance and one adjusting entry lets the interviewer test her on the spot, which is more convincing than any adjective on a resume. She should keep the composite label visible, so no one mistakes the case for a real client's books.
Why the Pairing
Employment of bookkeeping, accounting and auditing clerks is projected to decline over the decade, as software automates routine entry (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2025). The roles that remain reward judgment and control, not keystrokes. Employers surveyed each year rank problem solving, teamwork and written communication among the skills they most want to see on a resume (National Association of Colleges and Employers, 2024). The project sheet shows those skills in one place: the adjustments show judgment, the reference sheet shows control (Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission, 2013), and the memo shows writing.
References
Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2025). Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks. In Occupational outlook handbook. U.S. Department of Labor. https://www.bls.gov/ooh/office-and-administrative-support/bookkeeping-accounting-and-auditing-clerks.htm
Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission. (2013). Internal control: Integrated framework. https://www.coso.org
National Association of Colleges and Employers. (2024). Job outlook 2025. https://www.naceweb.org
The Purdue Global AC298 Unit 9 instructions
The ninth AC298 unit asks for a career portfolio piece, often a resume and a work sample built from the capstone. Aim the resume at a specific entry-level accounting role and keep it to one page. List education, accounting experience including the capstone, and skills an employer can test, such as reconciliations or three-way matching. The work sample or project sheet should state the capstone's scope, what you produced, the controls you used and the software. Label the case as composite or academic so it is not mistaken for client work. Explain how you would use the pair with an employer. Ground the choices in evidence about what employers look for in the field. Two to three pages covers both pieces. Cite labor market sources in APA 7.
Inside the AC298 Unit 9 example
The sample's resume gives a target role, expected AAS degree, the capstone and an office assistant job with invoice matching and check runs, and a skills list. The project sheet states the store's scope, lists every deliverable from the recording set to the credit memo, describes four controls and names the software. The highlighted sentence explains why the reference sheet is the part most worth showing. A section on interviews describes how Corinne can use the ratio correction and the ethics review as answers. A final section cites Bureau of Labor Statistics projections for clerk roles, an employer skills survey and the COSO framework to explain why controls and judgment lead the sheet.
Where the points sit in the AC298 Unit 9 rubric
Portfolio pieces are graded on whether they would help the student get hired for the target role. The resume should be focused, accurate and limited to one page. Skills should be specific and testable. The work sample should describe real work with its controls, not only its topic. Labeling the case honestly matters. Explaining how the pieces would be used shows professional awareness. Evidence about the job market strengthens the rationale. Clean formatting counts more here than in other units. Correct APA 7 citations for any sources complete the score for this unit. A resume an employer could verify in ten minutes, with the project sheet beside it, tends to outscore a longer one full of unsupported adjectives.
AC298 Unit 9 help from the desk
Many capstone resumes list coursework instead of skills, or spread to two pages for an entry-level role. Work samples describe the capstone's topic but not what the student actually produced or checked. Composite cases are presented as if they were client work. Certifications not yet earned appear without dates. The rationale ignores what employers in the field are hiring for. Formatting is cluttered. If you need a resume and project sheet built from your own capstone and work history, a member of our team can draft both for your target role.
Get an AC298 Unit 9 example written to your instructions
Share the accounting posting you would apply to, your work history in rough form and the Unit 9 instructions with their rubric. Within 24-48h a free first resume and project sheet come back, drawn from your own capstone work, with dates, figures and employer names held in brackets until you verify them. If your section wants a career plan instead, say so. The paper above is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Purdue University Global document.
More AC298 papers and Associate of Applied Science in Accounting samples
- AC298 Unit 1: Capstone Weak Spot Post
- AC298 Unit 2: Capstone Proposal and Scope
- AC298 Unit 3: December Transaction Recording Set
- AC298 Unit 4: Year-End Adjusted Statement Package
- AC298 Unit 5: Eight-Ratio Analysis
- AC298 Unit 6: Ethics Scenario Response
- AC298 Unit 7: Seminar Progress Check Script
- AC298 Unit 8: Credit Terms Recommendation Memo
- AC298 Unit 10: Capstone Presentation
AC298 Unit 9 questions, answered
Which accounting roles fit an associate program?
Postings for accounts payable and receivable clerks, payroll assistants, bookkeepers and accounting technicians commonly accept an associate credential, especially with software experience. Staff accountant roles more often ask for a bachelor's program. The sample's role ladder shows the entry title and what it can lead to, and your own plan can follow the same pattern.
Should I mention certifications I have not earned yet?
Only as planned, with a target date, and never in a way that implies they are held. A line such as pursuing a bookkeeping certification, expected month, year, is honest and signals direction. Listing a certification without the qualifier is a misstatement employers can check in minutes, and it undoes the reliability the rest of the resume claims.
Where can I find a free AC298 Unit 9 sample paper?
This page holds a complete AC298 Unit 9 career portfolio piece, a one-page resume for an accounts payable or junior bookkeeper role paired with a project sheet presenting the capstone as a work sample.
Why does the AC298 Unit 9 project sheet lead with controls?
Clerk roles are shrinking as software automates entry, so employers value judgment and review. The reference sheet that caught a ratio error shows exactly that kind of control.
Can the capstone appear on a resume in the AC298 Unit 9 sample?
Yes, labeled as a composite academic project. It sits beside real work experience and is backed by the project sheet, so an employer can see and test what was produced.