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The UK finance sector is quite simply huge. Despite upturns, downturns, booms and busts, the finance sector continues to be one of the most sought after destinations for newly qualified graduates.
Graduate salaries in banking are among the highest in the UK with institutions across the sector offering competitive salaries in a bid to attract and retain the best candidates.
But this has led to increased competition for jobs. In accountancy, for instance, there are around three graduates for every job and as many as 50 applications per vacancy for some of the more prestigious graduate programmes.
Nearly all businesses work on the basis of profit and loss, and it’s these in the finance departments who keep this in check so all the other areas of the business can be budgeted for correctly. That puts those in finance right at the very heart of every business
The UK finance sector covers a wide range of areas and equally varied are the numbers of different job roles that are available from across the industry.
- Bank Cashier - processing payments or issuing currency face to face or from a call centre
- Risk Manager - using complex modelling systems to determine potential risk to a client’s assets and trading position
- Financial Adviser - providing strategic financial advice to private and corporate clients
- Stock Broker - managing the investment portfolio of private clients or companies by buying and selling stocks and shares
Competition for jobs may be high but once you get your foot in the door the finance sector can provide a rewarding career. Sure, the hours can be longer than the standard 9 to 5, but the financial rewards easily make up for this.
The majority of roles are on a full-time basis. However, flexible working and part-time opportunities do exist although they are primarily limited to front-of-house positions in a bank or call centre.
Wondering what to do now? Check out our expert career advice, find out more about the Finance industry or search for the latest Finance jobs.