How To Get A Banking Job In Nigeria

Banking job in Nigeria is a job for those who aspire to be the best in all they do, the environment in this industry is highly competitive. A moment of weakness on your part could place you on the sidelines. Being good on the job is not rocket science, it is something that happens with your commitment, passion and loyalty to the system.

But to be in contention for beating the competition, you have to get the job first; and that is the purpose of this article. From my personal experience, it cannot be said that getting employed by a bank is difficult or easy. The reason is because there are a lot of variables which compels banks to recruit.

Depending on the variable, which is never constant from year to year, it directly determines the processes involved and the duration of the selection exercise.

There are two major forms of recruitment obtainable in the industry, they are:

1. Executive Trainee
2. Experienced hire

Executive trainees are the sets of candidates comprising of fresh graduates between the ages of 24-26. A banking career in Nigeria usually starts from this level.

QUALIFICATIONS FOR EXECUTIVE TRAINEE HIRE

To be in position to apply for a bank job as an ET, you will have to possess the following requirements:

1. Should be between the ages of 24-26
2. Should possess a degree (BSc or HND) not less than second class upper
3. Gone through NYSC
4. Possess good communication skills
5. Smart and young

Now these are the basic qualifications for ET, if you possess the above requirements congratulations you have passed the first step. The second step is the unwritten requirements and this is where you have to do your homework. You have to prepare a great CV and a cover letter that will sell you better. Consider yourself as someone convincing and telling the bank what you are and what you can offer, the interview time does not last more than 10mins, but your resume and credentials stays in their possession after you are long gone, so how you arrange your CV and credentials represents you.

Remember to use professional email address for your CV, what I mean is using your full name in your email, not some odd and informal expressions like [email protected] or [email protected]. Ensure that your date of birth does not conflict, cross check what you have on your WAEC certificate with your birth certificate.

HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR APPLICATION

There are different avenues one can submit applications, in this digital era all banks have a human resources page on their websites that accepts job applications. There are times were it has to be hard copy in designated branches. Again it depends on the need and the sense of urgency. The key here is to get the right information at the appropriate time.

THE BANK WILL CONTACT YOU

After submitting your application, it may take some time to be contacted by the bank for either aptitude test or interview. Either step that comes first depends on the urgency of the process. There are situations where aptitude test will be bypassed and it may just be series of interviews. Make sure your phones and emails are reachable at this stage.

THE TRAINING SCHOOL

After going through aptitude test and interviews, successful candidates are enlisted for the banks’ training school, every bank has a name for their training school, and it usually takes between 3 to 6 months depending on the bank.

During this period, the bank will train you on all their processes and duly equip you with requisite knowledge on how to beat the competition in the industry.

There are also series of examinations and written test in the school, failing any test or exam at any stage of the training may mark your exit from the process, which is why you have to be at your very best.

Successful completion of the program translates into a brand new career for you, that makes you an executive trainee (ET) of the bank and this is the starting level.

EXPERIENCED HIRE

The experienced hire in the banking industry is when a banker is switching to another bank. The process is not the same with the executive trainee, this is because they are already in the system with some years of experience.

The qualifications are:

1. Bachelors degree or HND (second class upper)
2. Additional qualification is an added advantage
3. Must have some years of banking experience
4. Must be cleared from the previous bank (integrity wise)

There may be other requirements depending on the bank, but these are the basic requirements for experienced hire. Successful candidates are usually placed one step above their current level but never below.

These are just my personal experience in the industry, and I hope it helps one step further in actualizing your dreams of becoming a banker. Congratulations in advance.