Banking jobs are an excellent fit for anybody interested in personal finance, business, and math. Banks typically provide excellent benefits, opportunities for advancement, and an office environment to work in. Plus, there are a variety of positions that include customer-facing roles and analytical duties. If you like the idea of working indoors and dealing with numbers, you may want to try a career in banking.
How to Become a Banker
Start by identifying the type of banking career that appeals to you most, and develop your skills to advance your career.
Pick Your Path
You can work in retail banks and credit unions nationwide, commercial bank divisions with a focus on business needs, investment banks that help firms raise capital, and other types of institutions.
Develop Your Skills
Before you get a job as a banker, it’s critical to be good with numbers. Study math, statistics, or business to build a strong foundation—but don’t ignore “soft” skills. If you can score an internship with a bank or an organization in financial services, you’ll gain valuable experience and meet people who can help you move forward. Customer service and sales skills are also helpful.
Satisfy Requirements
You can potentially work as a teller with a high school diploma or GED, but personal bankers typically need a college degree.
For investment banking, loan origination, or financial planning, you may need advanced degrees, designations, or licenses to land a job or get promoted. That said, you can often begin in an entry-level position and meet those requirements through on-the-job training and employer-paid programs.
Get Hired
It’s easy to apply for open positions—and that’s an effective strategy for entry-level roles. But you can also try to create your own opportunities by contacting banks and credit unions that you think would be a good fit and asking about available positions. Go through the interview process with several potential employers to learn more about your career path and the industry in general. At the same time, you’ll sharpen your interviewing skills. For higher-level positions, use your network, if possible. Ask for informational interviews, which can potentially uncover opportunities that are not yet published in job listings.
Move Up and Branch Out?
There’s nothing wrong with becoming a personal banker and enjoying a long career in one place. But if you have the desire, you can move into management or director roles, regulatory compliance, or accounting. Taking on additional responsibilities typically leads to higher earnings.
Retail Banking
The household name banks you’re most familiar with are probably retail banks. Retail banks, located in almost every city, help individuals and businesses with essential financial needs like checking accounts, savings accounts, loans, and more.
When you become a retail banker, you can find job opportunities nationwide. You’ll excel if you have customer service skills and you’re good with numbers.
Tellers
Retail banks and credit unions are an excellent place to start your career. You can start as a bank teller with a high school diploma or GED and continue your studies or move on from there. But you don’t have to move on—life as a teller can be a satisfying lifelong career. Tellers work with the local community and develop relationships with customers.
Personal Bankers and Loan Officers
With some work experience and a college degree, you can help customers with more complex needs. You might promote bank products and services that help them manage their finances and assist customers with obtaining home and auto loans. You can also help local businesses with basic banking needs and financing.
Sales Skills
Becoming a personal banker requires more than just helping customers make deposits and withdrawals. You also need basic sales skills and the willingness to promote your bank’s services. You shouldn’t need to mislead or take advantage of anybody. Instead, you would learn to arrive at mutually beneficial solutions that truly help customers while bringing in profitable business.
Your customers need banking services, and the goal is to help them satisfy that need.