Career Guidance

Banking

Courtesy: www.indicareer.com

Looking for a Career Option in the Field of Banking? This section features Banking as a
career option, elaborated with reference to the job profile, personality traits required, the
courses and training involved, premier institutions and future prospects.

Banking has emerged as one of the most challenging sectors in the country. Openings are
available at various levels, from Bank Clerical to Probationary Officers (PO). There is great job
security and the salary is very good, besides the perquisites of loans for employees. It is a
lucrative career: till recently careers existed only in nationalised banks, but with liberalisation, a
host of private banks have been set up. As a result, demand for trained professionals has
increased substantially. The private banks offer better salaries but then the job security is also
less.

Personality Traits

A clear logical mind, alertness, ability to take initiative, friendliness, assertiveness, diplomacy,
capacity to motivate team members, efficiency, sincerity, drive, tact, sound knowledge of the
banking system with up-to-date knowledge of recent developments, adaptability, dynamism
and result-oriented outlook.

The person should have a mathematical aptitude. Employees joining as officers should be able
to lead, motivate and manage the bank staff. Good verbal and written communication skills
help in effective interaction with the clients as well as the staff. Integrity and honesty play a
major role in all dealings related to money, staff and clients. A person responsible for foreign
exchange transactions needs to have a sharp, quick and analytical mind.

Entry Process

Selection procedure for RBI

The Reserve Bank of India is the topmost financial institution in India which makes all the
policies and regulations for the other banks. It conducts tests for three types of entry level
positions:
 1. Clerical grade
2. Grade A officers
3. Grade B officers

The entry point for clerical staff is in the cash department as examiners of coins and notes.
They are promoted to the next grade when they successfully clear the relevant examinations
after 5-10 years of service.

There is an All India Exam conducted for class I posts. Graduates, Post Graduates, CA's,
MBA's in the 21-26 years of age group are eligible. The candidates are tested in logical
reasoning, mental ability, numerical aptitude and general English.

The examination is in parts.

i. Paper I is a written test comprising of General Mental Ability (Objective type).

ii. Paper II is a subjective one which has English Essays/Comprehension/Precise writing
etc. Paper III is on Economics and Social problems.

Selected candidates are short listed for an interview which forms the basis for the final
selection.

Selection procedure for other Nationalised Banks

Recruitment for the public sector banks is done through the Banking Service Recruitment
Boards (BSRBs). The advertisements for recruitment appear in newspapers as well as the
Employment News. Recruitment is done on the basis of a written test, which consists of:

i. Test of Reasoning
ii. Quantitative Aptitude
iii. General Awareness
iv. English Language
v. Descriptive Test

The test is qualifying in nature and the marks obtained are not added in the final merit list.
Except for the descriptive portion, all other sections contain objective-type questions. In
Reasoning, there is verbal and non-verbal sections. In English, the test is aimed at judging the
overall comprehension and understanding of the language. The descriptive paper can be
answered in English or Hindi. It judges the written expression of the candidates. All sections
must be qualified.

Foreign banks pick up their personnel management institutes, from interviews held in the
premier management institutes, from among finance professionals such as Chartered
Accountants, Cost and Works Accountants and Chartered Financials Analysts and also from
the fold of experienced personnel of the apex financial institutions and public sector
commercial banks. Private banks recruit Officer Trainees from amongst first class graduates,
Management Trainees from amongst MBAs, and also recruit experienced personnel from the
banking sector for middle and higher management positions.
One can do a specialised course in banking from a number of universities offering such
courses. The eligibility criteria is different for different courses and candidates are advised to
check these out directly from the universities concerned.

Placements And
Prospects

As banking is a growing industry, the job prospects are good. In nationalised banks, one can
expect regular promotions while in private banks it is performance that is rewarded.
Promotions may be swift for deserving candidates. But it is not necessary to be a banking
professional only to get into banks. As financial services are getting automated, the industry
requires a large number of computer experts, both in computer maintenance and software.
Private computer service contractors are also in great demand. It would be important to have a
BE or MCA degree for such jobs.

Foreign banks and private banks mostly operate through branches in the metropolitan cities.
Promotions are linked to a highly motivated, result-oriented and dynamic approach.

One reason to be excited about banking as a career is the rapid change taking place. Not only
is there fresh competition, but technology promises to change the face of banking forever. The
jobs are becoming comfortable, in the sense that the physical environment is pleasing and
computerisation has taken the load off tedious jobs such as balancing accounts. As
competition increases, a good banker will certainly be in great demand.

In the overall analysis, banking offers great scope for initiative and public service. Direct
contact with people in the discharge of their duties helps bankers to keep their fingers on the
pulse of the public. By their sincerity and efficiency they are able to win respect and standing in
society