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Yes, Major Banks is a good career path. Working with a major bank is a great career and available to almost anyone who may have a passion for all things banking and finance. Common careers can include bank tellers, accountants, and bankers but can refer to any position within a financial institution.
Banking can be an excellent choice for people who desire a consistent schedule, who like interacting with people, and who pay close attention to detail. It’s a great career path for those just starting out as well, as there is plenty of potential for growth. Additionally, banking is an incredibly stable career path, so you can enjoy job security for a long time.
Here are 13 great jobs in Major Banks:
The 8 Best-Paying Jobs in Major Banks
Working in banking can be incredibly lucrative, especially if you have a lot of experience and education behind you. Here are some of the best-paying jobs you can land at major banks.
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Average Annual Salary: $144,000
A Chief Financial Officer or CFO is responsible for a bank’s financial operations, financial planning, and overall growth. They may oversee additional teams of analysts, but the primary responsibility of the job focuses on evaluating assets and liabilities and managing cash flow.
Chief Financial Officers typically have extensive knowledge of finance, financial markets, market trends, and the stock market. They must have knowledge of how the overall business works and keep in regular communication with other members of the executive team. Most CFOs have at least a Bachelor’s Degree in Business or Finance.
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Average Annual Salary: $118,000
Financial managers are individuals who are responsible for preparing financial reports and planning short and long-term financial policies within a bank. They may also make investment decisions to expand or maximize the bank’s profits. Financial managers may also be responsible for a team of financial analysts.
Financial managers have a lot of responsibility and often make many important financial decisions for the company. To succeed in this career, it’s important to have at least five years or more experience in the financial industry. Most financial managers also have a graduate degree in economics, business, or a related field.
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Average Annual Salary: $126,000
A portfolio manager is an individual who works with a handful of clients to determine how the bank and client’s money should be invested. They hold a lot of responsibility and trust so being able to form genuine relationships with your clients is a must in this field.
Portfolio managers must study market prices, stocks, and earnings, as well as have extensive knowledge of accounting principles. Portfolio managers that work for banks may also be responsible for providing investment portfolio management services to bank clients.
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Financial Analyst
Average Annual Salary: N/A
Financial analysts are those who evaluate the financial status of banks by studying the company’s historical financial data. This means they must be highly skilled in analytics and enjoy working with data. They must be able to report on this data and their analysis and report on it in a comprehensive way for the executive team.
Being a financial analyst means you are responsible for studying and examining market trends and financial risk and creating forecasts for investment opportunities. You may also make recommendations for capital structure, among other things. Typically, financial analysts work in financial companies, consulting firms, or accounting firms.
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Average Annual Salary: $58,000
Budget analysts are those individuals who are responsible for presenting options to companies to spend money more efficiently. This means you must also be able to analyze data and crunch numbers to understand how things are being budgeted, where to cut, and how to use money more effectively.
Budget analysts are responsible for conducting studies on how money is spent and making recommendations to the executive team in the company’s annual reports. These individuals must be able to provide improved plans for the business to meet necessary expenses while improving the overall budget.
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Average Annual Salary: $82,000
Being an accounting manager is a highly lucrative career. These individuals are responsible for general accounting and general ledger accounts. Depending on the area of your work, you may choose to specialize in fields such as real estate, personal finance, or taxes.
Accounting managers typically have a degree in finance as they are required to work with the company’s financial statements. They must have deep knowledge of investment banking, financial records, and how banking and banking transactions work.
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Accountant or Auditor
Average Annual Salary: $59,000
Accountants and auditors, while having different titles, typically perform very similar tasks when they work for a bank. These individuals are responsible for identifying any potential losses before they happen and giving recommendations to avoid them for long-term profitability.
Both accountants and auditors require additional education. You can become a certified internal auditor by passing an exam. Individuals working in these fields must have a degree in accounting or a related field in finance in order to work with accounting records.
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Average Annual Salary: $44,000
A loan officer is an individual who is responsible for advising and guiding their clients with everything related to taking out a loan. This can include loan applications or mortgage applications, as well as discussing loan payments. They are the client’s go-to expert when taking out a bank loan.
Individuals who work as loan officers typically work in banks, saving institutions, and mortgage companies. They are also responsible for evaluating the financial information of individuals to decide whether or not the bank wishes to issue them a loan.
7 Entry-Level Jobs in Major Banks
Banking is a large field and, because of this, offers jobs in many different career areas. If you’re a recent grad or looking to make a career change, here are some of the most popular entry-level jobs in banking.
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Average Annual Salary: $44,000
All banks must be managed and typically have a branch manager who oversees the day-to-day responsibilities of the institution. Assistant managers are individuals who provide support to those managers in managing the team, helping customers solve concerns, and filling in for the manager when they’re out of the office.
Assistant managers may be required to perform supervising tasks, including interviewing or training new employees, tracking employee progress and growth, assigning duties, and keeping the store organized and properly stocked. This is a great role to pursue if you’re interested in becoming a bank manager.
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Average Annual Salary: $61,000
Personal bankers are individuals skilled in finance which help clients manage their overall accounts and investments. These professionals work for banks where they assist new or existing customers who may need help setting up checking or savings accounts.
Personal bankers can also help clients manage investment opportunities such as retirement accounts, explore the types of loans their bank may offer, and plan for major life events such as a wedding or paying for a child’s college. Personal bankers must be highly personable and develop relationships with their clients.
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Average Annual Salary: $30,000
If you’re interested in getting into banking, but not so much the data and analytics part of things, a security guard role might be an avenue to pursue. Security guards are responsible for monitoring the premises of a bank to keep the building and its occupants safe from theft or other dangers.
Security guards may also greet customers, open doors, monitor surveillance videos, perform inspections of safety features on alarm systems, locks, and metal detectors, and be the person in charge in case of an emergency. If a theft does occur, the security guard would be the one to communicate with law enforcement.
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Average Annual Salary: $31,000
Tellers are individuals who work in banks that help customers access their accounts to withdraw or deposit money, as well as look into the balance of accounts, if necessary. This job requires customer service skills to welcome and assist customers.
Bank tellers typically also manage phone calls and emails, manage cash drawers, and offer certain bank products like credit cards or checks to customers that visit. Bank tellers can work both full-time and part-time depending on the bank’s needs, which makes it an ideal career for many.
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Average Annual Salary: $53,000
Fraud analysts are an important component of banks as they are a professional who investigates reports of fraudulent activity. This can include things like forgery, identity theft, and lost or stolen cards at a bank. They must process these reports by working with the client and law enforcement, if necessary.
Fraud analyst responsibilities include monitoring bank operations, developing methods for identifying potential fraud, investigating suspicious activity, and contacting management and customers, if necessary. If an account is found to have been compromised, the analyst will secure its access until they speak with the customer.
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Average Annual Salary: $61,000
Notary publics are individuals who are government-certified. They serve as a witness when individuals need to sign important documents. They are considered impartial parties and observe as the involved parties sign their necessary documents freely and without coercion.
The notary public is also responsible for signing those documents and applying for an official seal. This is necessary to prove the document is legally binding. This is important for real estate transactions, marriage certificates, and living wills. They may work independently or at a government agency, such as the town office.
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Assistant Underwriter
Average Annual Salary: N/A
Assistant underwriters are professionals in banking or insurance who work with more experienced underwriters in order to process certain applications. These applications can include mortgages, vehicle loans, and credit cards. This is a great entry-level job to get if you’re interested in becoming a more experienced underwriter.
Assistant underwriters may be responsible for gathering customer information, evaluating their eligibility for a loan, determining the loan and interest rate amount, and explaining all of this to the customer. This will vary based on your experience, but the benefit to this job is what you can learn as you go.
Why Choose a Career in Major Banks?
Working for a major bank provides many benefits. Banking is a stable career path that offers financial security as well as a number of skills that are applicable as you climb your way up in a banking career or if you choose to pursue a different career path. Here are some of the benefits of pursuing a career in banking:
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Competitive salary. There are a wide variety of major banks that operate across the country. If you are looking for a competitive salary as you build your skills, moving to a new institution is easy.
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Extensive benefits. A banking job brings a good amount of benefits, including health insurance, paid time off, and more.
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Growth and development. Banking is a career where you can grow. Not only are there a range of positions to choose from, but there are plenty of career development opportunities as well.
Education and Certification Requirements for a Career in Major Banks
Individuals who work in banking can obtain a variety of roles. The range is wide, so the education and certification requirements can vary depending on which path you choose. A banking career is a great choice for those who are strong in mathematics and enjoy working with people. Here are some common education and certification requirements:
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Consider an undergraduate study. Many individuals in banking obtain a Bachelor of Science in Finance, which provides a foundation in financial basics and topics like financial management and investment principles.
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If you’re interested in accounting, consider an accounting-specific degree. You may be able to find schools that offer a Bachelor of Science in Accounting which teaches accounting systems and multinational accounting.
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For higher-level banking careers, consider an advanced degree. Many employees obtain a Master of Business Administration or a Master of Science program in finance. An advanced degree can open new doors to new opportunities.
What Do People Working In Major Banks Do?
Many individuals are interested in a career in banking. Luckily there are a wide variety of opportunities available, ranging from entry-level to high upper management and executive teams. Those who work in banking will work with transactional details of many different people, as well as educate clients on smart money spending and investments.
Anyone pursuing this career should enjoy working with people in a service capacity. They should be trustworthy and honest and be able to adhere to the many rules and regulations that banks must follow. All in all, a career in major banks is a great path to take with a lot of stability and financial reward to be earned.
- Finance
- Energy
- Commodities
- Health Care
- Transportation
- Consumer
- Pharma
- Services
- Retail
Author
Caitlin Mazur is a freelance writer at Zippia. Caitlin is passionate about helping Zippia’s readers land the jobs of their dreams by offering content that discusses job-seeking advice based on experience and extensive research. Caitlin holds a degree in English from Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia, PA.
