Once you bag your GCSEs, Scottish Standards or equivalent qualifications, you are already set up with some artillery for entry into the world of banking and finance. If you don’t fancy continuing with formal education, there are certainly opportunities out there to get into the working world and career development at this stage.
A handful of GCSEs (usually around five, with a minimum of a C grade in maths and English) will mean you have the qualification entry requirements for Intermediate and Advanced Apprenticeship opportunities with some banks and professional services firms.
Finance apprenticeships: what’s on offer?
An Intermediate or Advanced Apprenticeship in banking will allow you to work in a branch, a contact centre or even within operations. The advantage of taking one of these paid apprenticeship options is that, as well as being able to gain real work experience under the guidance of seasoned colleagues(plus earn a wage), you’ll be supported in study for a Business and Professional Banking Qualification. A professional certificate or qualification will lay the foundation for you to go on to further qualifications which could be necessary for more senior roles in the industry.
A banking apprenticeship will focus on work either in a branch, or perhaps in a bank’s contact centre. There may also be opportunities within operations. Some of the specific areas to specialise in could include:
- Customer services,
- Providing financial services,
- Some technology services roles,
- Business support.
Intermediate and Advanced Apprenticeships can set you up for further progression onto a Higher Apprenticeship scheme or a school leaver scheme. The knowledge and experience you’ll begin to clock up will also stand you in good stead for managerial roles in the future, perhaps as a branch manager or team leader in a contact centre, depending on where you first got started. Once you’re in, banks are great places to build a career.
If you fancy sticking with formal education a little longer and heading onto college to earn some A-levels (or equivalent qualifications) before getting into banking and finance, your options for getting started in the industry could grow even further. Higher Apprenticeships and School Leaver Programmes offer the opportunity to develop careers in areas like tax, audit, technology and HR, with salaries and professional qualifications, and even degrees!
For years I have studied American finance regulations. All the information in this blog is sourced from official or contrasted sources from reliable sites.
Salesforce Certified SALES & SERVICE Cloud Consultant in February 2020, Salesforce Certified Administrator (ADM-201), and Master degree in “Business Analytics & Big Data Strategy” with more than 13 years of experience in IT consulting.