CAREERS IN FINANCE

A career in finance can be established in any country, economic sector, industry sector, business or government and
the range of career opportunities is enormous. For example, commercial banking provides an wide range of options
including retail finance, corporate lending, international banking, treasury and information technology, to name but a
few. Investment banking also offers specialist finance opportunities including mergers and acquisitions, project finance,
securitisation, underwriting and venture capital.
For those interested in portfolio management, there are many fund managers, including superannuation funds,
operating in Australia. And those people interested in working directly with clients might find that personal financial
planning is another career opportunity to explore.
Small, medium and large businesses all require people skilled in finance to manage their assets, liabilities and cash
flows. Government departments and authorities also require finance graduates to assist with the financing of capital or
recurrent expenditures.
Finance is global and there are possibilities for working in a range of developing and advanced financial markets.
During your studies you may find certain areas of finance that particularly excite and interest you. Research the types
of organisations that provide career opportunities in your areas of interest; understand the structure and culture of
the organisations and carefully consider the organisation’s guidelines for graduate employment. Most large employers
include a link to this information on their website. Some examples include:
ANZ Banking Group – www.anz.com.au/about-us/careers
Commonwealth Bank – www.commbank.com.au/about-us/careers.html
National Bank of Australia – www.nab.com.au/about-us/careers
Westpac Banking Corporation – www.westpac.com.au/about-westpac/careers
Goldman Sachs – www.goldmansachs.com/careers
Macquarie Bank – www.macquarie.com.au/careers
Reserve Bank of Australia – www.rba.gov.au/careers
Australian Prudential Regulation Authority – www.apra.gov.au/aboutAPRA/workingatAPRA
Department of Treasury – www.treasury.gov.au/About-Treasury/recruitmentandcareers
Telstra Corporation – www.telstra.com.au/careers
BHP Billiton Limited – www.bhpbilliton.com/careers
KPMG – www.kpmg.com/au/en/careers
Copyright © 2019. McGraw-Hill Education (Australia) Pty Limited. All rights reserved.

Ernst & Young – www.ey.com/au/en/careers

TIPS FOR ONLINE APPLICATIONS

Before you start

• Allow yourself plenty of time as each application
can take between two and four hours at a minimum!
Read the application instructions carefully, to
determine whether you:
– have the appropriate/minimum software and
hardware to undertake this process
– have the option of downloading a copy of the
application form to assist you in preparing all
relevant information and in filling out the form
– have to fill out the form in one sitting, or whether
you have the option of saving, exiting out and
returning to the form when you are ready
– 
know what information you will be required
to include in the application form (course/unit
details, results etc.) so you can have this handy
when you are completing the forms
– 
know whether additional information (cover
letters, etc.) can be attached if desired.
• Obtain a copy of your academic transcript.
• Collect all the information you require, for example
course/unit details. Also have electronic access to
your résumé to cut and paste into the application
form.
• If you need to use computer labs or library
computers, book ahead of time.

Viney, Christopher, and Peter Phillips. Financial Institutions, Instruments and Markets, McGraw-Hill Education (Australia) Pty Limited, 2019. ProQuest Ebook Central,
xxxii
http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/uwsau/detail.action?docID=5798433.
Created from uwsau on 2024-05-07 08:28:10.

vin22943_prelims_i-xxxiv.indd xxxii 01/21/19 11:13 AM


Working on the application
• Print out the application form to use as a draft.
Complete responses offline and cut and paste into
the application.
• Remember to fill out all the fields.
• Save regularly as you progress through the application
form if possible.
• Proofread your applications—not all online
application forms have spell checks.
• Leave plenty of time to submit the applications
electronically. Typically, employer websites experience
a huge rush towards the application deadlines. You
may experience delays or be unable to submit due to
technical problems if sites are overloaded.
• Make sure your email address and mobile phone
numbers are correct! All too often students
record these inaccurately—it is vital that you are
contactable, particularly if employers wish to
schedule you for testing/interviews. If they can’t
reach you, they won’t bother trying again, given the
numbers of applications they will be processing.
• If you don’t receive acknowledgment, or you are
unsure whether your application has been received,
contact the relevant recruitment coordinator to
confirm receipt of your application.
• If you are having any problems with the technology
Copyright © 2019. McGraw-Hill Education (Australia) Pty Limited. All rights reserved.
or have questions regarding the form, contact the
graduate recruiter in that organisation as soon as
possible.
Viney, Christopher, and Peter Phillips. Financial Institutions, Instruments and Markets, McGraw-Hill Education (Australia) Pty Limited, 2019. ProQuest Ebook Central,
http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/uwsau/detail.action?docID=5798433.
Created from uwsau on 2024-05-07 08:28:10.
vin22943_prelims_i-xxxiv.indd xxxiii
Careers in finance
• Print out a copy of the application for your records
(and make a note of any contact you have with
the organisation)—it will help if and when you are
invited to an interview.
• In addition to proofreading, reread your application
before you hit the ‘send’ button. Does it present you
in the best possible way? You will not get another
chance to revise it!
Distinguish yourself from other applicants
Employers advise that the best way to make your
application stand out are the simple things:
• Fill out all the fields.
• Proper business language should be used as you
would for a paper-based application. Just because
it is an online form doesn’t mean that you should
use more informal or text language, or insert
symbols, for example smiley faces.
• Check your spelling, or get others to check it for
you—spell checks don’t pick up everything.
• Answers to in-depth questions should be carefully
thought out and tailored to each employer, not
a generic cut-and-paste answer. Use proper
paragraphs, not just a list of dot points.
These tips may seem obvious, but you’d be amazed
at the number of applications which are not successful
because they haven’t followed this advice!
xxxiii
01/21/19 11:13 AM
Copyright © 2019. McGraw-Hill Education (Australia) Pty Limited. All rights reserved.

Viney, Christopher, and Peter Phillips. Financial Institutions, Instruments and Markets, McGraw-Hill Education (Australia) Pty Limited, 2019. ProQuest Ebook Central,
http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/uwsau/detail.action?docID=5798433.
Created from uwsau on 2024-05-07 08:28:10.

vin22943_prelims_i-xxxiv.indd xxxiv 01/21/19 11:13 AM