Graduate finance jobs – why pursue a career in the financial sector

1. Jobs in the financial sector are fast-paced and dynamic

As an industry (and especially since the rise of new technologies), finance is constantly evolving.

With new financial sectors expanding, graduate jobs in fields such as FinTech are also increasing.

What this means for graduate finance jobs is that they tend to be both fast-paced and varied, regardless of whether you’re a target-driven salesperson or someone a little more behind the scenes, like an analyst or a project manager.

For someone who thrives under pressure and loves being kept on their toes, finance graduate jobs are a great choice.

You’ll be exposed to a stimulating, challenging environment early on in your career – forcing you to learn quickly, develop existing skills, and grow in confidence.

If you’re looking for a career that is fast-paced and stimulating, jobs in the financial sector should be on your radar.

2. Financial careers offer plenty of opportunities to learn

As well as being challenged in your day-to-day role, graduate finance jobs often provide opportunities to undertake training and gain qualifications.

An employer will even sometimes cover the costs associated with taking an exam or attending a course, as well as account for the relevant time out of the office as study leave.

This means that not only will you get the chance to learn about new things early on in your career, but you’ll be able to build up your CV with impressive credentials and set yourself apart from the increasingly competitive pool of recent graduates.

Finance sector jobs will help you to broaden your skill set and boost your CV – helping you to develop your career in financial services further in future.

3. Graduate finance jobs will give you the chance to progress quickly

You never stop learning in the fast-paced finance sector – so progression is likely to be very quick.

As a graduate, it’s unlikely that you’ll be given as much responsibility in any sector other than finance, meaning that it will be a steep learning curve from the very start.

And while most other industries focus on seniority (in terms of age) when considering progression, finance tends to focus more on skills and performance – giving graduates the freedom to move up the ranks extremely quickly if they put in the work.

If progression is important to you, you need to consider graduate jobs in the finance sector at the top of your list of careers.

4. A career in financial services will be rewarding

For many employees in the financial sector, knowing that the work they do will benefit others gives them great job satisfaction.

Although finance jobs pay well, and you’ll often be dealing directly with numbers, it’s not all about cash – and it’s definitely not all me-me-me.

There are countless different roles and sub-sectors within finance – and whether you get a graduate job working in pensions, education, insurance or banking, all will contribute to helping other people in some way.

And at the end of the day, who doesn’t want to feel great about the work they do?

5. There are a huge range of finance graduate jobs available

A great thing about the graduate job opportunities within the finance sector is that they are hugely varied. There are great opportunities for graduates with STEM backgrounds, including job opportunities for economics graduates.

I’m often asked whether finance graduate jobs require a degree in Maths or Finance, and my answer is absolutely not – within finance, you will be able to find a job that matches your skill set, whatever your background and degree subject.

Within the financial sector, there are a number of smaller sectors, which split into further divisions, teams, and eventually individual roles – and although some of these will be heavily maths-based, there are plenty of other jobs that will be better suited to candidates with other degrees – like humanities, IT or social sciences.

So whatever your skills and degree subject, you’ll be able to explore your options and find your perfect graduate finance jobs.