Retail banking

Retail banking refers to high-street banking, in which banks undergo transactions directly with consumers, rather than corporations or other banks.

What do Retail Banks do?

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Retail bank's services include: taking care of money, transfering money between accounts, providing loans, foreign exchange services, savings, financial advice, insurance, mortgages, etc.

Graduate Jobs in Retail Banking

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There are various career routes open to graduates in Retail Banking, such as:

Employers include UK clearing banks, building societies, foreign banks with a network of UK branches and finance houses.

Entry requirements for Retail Banking

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For most banks you will need a 2.1/2.2 degree to apply for most positions. Although a degree in almost any discipline is accepted by retail banking recruiters for entry to graduate schemes, graduates with the following degrees may have an advantage:

Retail banking is a fundamentally a customer-driven sector. Candidates with good quality communication skills tend to be highly regarded by potential employers.

Alliance & Leicester

Corporate Banking Interview Questions

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Alliance & Leicester recruit approximately 20 graduates each year for their corporate banking graduate scheme, based in both London or Manchester.

The application and interview process is as follows:

Telephone interview

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Your telephone interview will be conducted by a third party recruitment firm called Pareto. Someone from this firm will call you and ask if now is a convenient time to speak. If you say yes, they will talk to you about your application, ask you why you want to work for Alliance & Leicester and what your aspirations are of working at the bank.

You will then be asked three or four competency questions, or you will be asked to discuss what you belive are your key competencies and give examples to prove you have these skills.

If successful you will be informed at the end of this telephone interview, and invited to the next available Alliance and Leicester assessment centre.

Assessment centre

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The Alliance & Leicester assessment centre is held in Manchester, not at the Alliance and Leicester office, but instead at the offices of Pareto. The centre will start early, at 9:00am and finish at 6:00pm. If you are travelling from London it is advisable to stay the night in Manchester before your assessment day, rather than get the early train from London, and risk delays.

The dress code for the assessment centre is formal business dress (for more information see general interview advice.

The assessment centre consists of:

Presentation

Candidates are required to give a three minute presentation entitled "why Alliance & Leicester should select me for their graduate programme". Candidates will be told of this before the assessment centre and the presentation should be prepared in advance. Candidates are welcome to bring notes, cue cards, handout or props with them.

The presentation will take place in front of 3 or 4 assessors, but not the entire candidate assessment group.

Barclays

Barclays

[Edit] (see also - preparing for Barclays graduate interviews and assessment days)

Barclays is a financial services organisation providing banking products and services to personal customers, small and medium business and multinational corporations. The firm is a diverse financial services company with 147,000 employees in more than 50 countries across Europe, the Americas, Africa, Asia Pacific and the Middle-East.

Barclays has grown from a group of English partnerships to a global bank represented in Europe, the USA, Latin America, Africa, the Caribbean, Asia, the Middle East and Australasia.

The firm isn't only involved in high street banking but also provides financial services to small and medium sized businesses, multinational corporations and financial institutions.

Barclays Application Process

Barclays recruit graduates to join programmes in Commercial Bank, Retail Banking, Barclaycard, Finance, Treasury, Technology, Tax, HR and UKRB Marketing & Products. Each business area runs its own structured training programme lasting between one and three years.

Barclays Graduate Application procedure

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The application process for Barclays varies depending upon which scheme you apply for, but everyone has to fill out an Online Application (provided by third-party recruitment consultants GTI OS). This includes a one page CV upload and answering three generic questions:

  • Please tell us what attracts you to Barclays and excites you about working in the Financial Services sector (200 words max)
  • Please tell us what you think the key issues facing Barclays are at present and what the organisation could do to address these issues (200 words max)
  • Please tell us why you are interested in this particular graduate programme and why you think you would be a strong candidate for a place on the programme (200 words max)

Your online application is then reviewed, and, if successful, you are invited to sit a Numerical Reasoning test. This is a standard SHL Test, which is around the same level as the online tests for other graduate schemes.

If you are successful at the Numerical Reasoning test, you will be immediately invited to sit the Verbal Reasoning test (SHL again).

If you are successful at the Verbal Reasoning test, depending on the scheme you will either be invited to select a First Round interview date or go through a final CV screen for some of the smaller programmes

The First Round Interview varies, depending on which scheme you select but is likely to include testing (SHL again) competency based interviews, group exercises and presentations. There is also an opportunity to have a lunch or coffee with the current Graduates to meet a few of them and ask them questions

The First Round Interview varies, depending on which scheme you select:

Retail Banking and Marketing and Products

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  • 45 minute telephone interview
  • Assessment Centre

Commercial Banking

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  • Half day Assessment Centre: 30 mins paper-based Numerical Reasoning Test (SHL again, but slightly easier than the online tests); 1hr Competency-Based Interview; 1hr Biographical Interview.
  • The Competency-Based interview carries more weight that the Biographical interview - however, it's worth noting that they are both very similar to each other. Barclays does not go in for the scripted competency interviews, like the ones you might have over the phone with other banks, and it is much more of a general, genuine discussion of what you've done. For instance, they might pick something out of your CV, and then ask what skills you used.
  • Very informal lunch/tea (couple of trays of sandwiches, jug of OJ), you get the chance to speak to a couple of current Grads.
  • Whole thing lasts about 4 and a half hours.

Finance

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  • Half day Assessment Centre: Group Exercise and Competency-Based Interview.
  • Last approx. 2hr30.

Barclays Graduate Training

Each of the Barclays Graduate programmes offers different but relevant training to their area. For example for the Finance graduate scheme Barclays pay for the CEIMA or ACCA, for Commercial Banking either the AMT or CFA is available, Treasury, Marketing, Technology and HR offer candidates the opportunity to undertake relevant qualifications and all programmes give Graduates a £2,000 budget for their own personal relevant development.

Trainees on all of the programmes will be undertaking real jobs so there are all types of internal training available to help graduates get up to speed (presentation skills training, stakeholder management, and networking and influencing training). Although there's no hand-holding, graduates do get plenty of support. Barclays assigns a Buddy to each new Graduate recruit to help them settle in (this a current or recent graduate) as well as a Mentor and Line Manager.

Rewards & Benefits

[Edit] The Barclays benefits package includes:
•Competitive base salary
•Joining bonus
•Mobility allowance
•Performance-related bonus
•Personal training and development budget
•Private healthcare
•Save As You Earn (SAYE) share option scheme
•Contributory pension scheme
•25 days' holiday

Applying

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Candidates can apply online at www.inspiredbybarclays.com. Each business area runs its own application and selection process, so you will need to apply directly to each of the business areas you are interested in. Vacancies will only close once places are filled.

Barclays Internships

Barclays Summer Internship Programme is designed specifically for students who are interested in gaining real-world commercial experience while developing an understanding of what it is like to work at Barclays. Over the course of the eight-week programme, you will begin to understand the skills and capabilities you need to reach top positions within the group. Interns will also be paid a competitive salary during the length of their internship.

Interns are recruited on a first-come, first-served basis. It is wise to apply as soon as possible. Candidates need to apply to a particular business area, which you can find more information on here.

Locations

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Barclays have offices and branches all over the UK. However, most internships are based in Canary Wharf.

Internship Application Requirements

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Barclays are looking for students on track for a 2.1, with "energy", "initiative" and "ideas".

Internship Support

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Throughout the summer internship, Barclays run regular events that give interns an insight into how a global organisation works. Interns will be assigned a 'Buddy' – a recent graduate - who will act as a guide during each interns time at the company.

Barclays Interview Questions

The application, interview and assessment process for Barclays is as follows:

Assessment Centre=

[Edit] The assessment centre varies slightly for each of Barclays graduate programmes. Your assessment centre will consists of some of the following:

Interviews

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Competency Based
Interviews at assessment centres are usually competency based, although technical interviews may be used for some of the more numerical graduate schemes. Interviews usually last about an hour and consist of two interviewers asking questions against key competencies.

Point of note: Prepare personal examples of times when you have shown evidence of skills/leadership/ingenuity and other competencies, so that you are able to intelligently answer your competency questions. Your answers are expected to be fairly long, so you need a lot to talk about

Chronological Interview
Another style of interview that you may be asked to attend is a Chronological Interview, where you will be asked to talk about your life, from your schooling through to the present day. You may be asked to explain why you made certain choices, and why you think your background and experiences make you a suitable candidate for the job you have applied for. The chronological interview is less like a standard interview as the assessors are trying to see the reasoning behind each life decision. Candidates undertaking this assessment are asked to complete a career history form in advance.

Point of note: The interviews and the interviewers at Barclays are fairly structured and somewhat inflexible. For example, mature candidates may be asked back to their time at school during their chronological interview.

Group Exercise

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For the group exercise candidates are put into groups and given up to date market information and company announcements. They are then given a product to choose to promote based on the strategic direction and objectives of Barclays and in line with the priorities highlighted in the supporting documentation.

Presentation

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Presentation style and formats vary per assessment centre. In some assessment centres you are asked to prepare a presentation on the day after being given relevant supporting documentation to do this. However, for most of the graduate scheme assessment centres, a a specific topic and other information will be sent out in advance of the assessment centre, for you to pre-prepare a ten minute presentation on.

If you are asked to prepare a presentation on the day, you will be given about one hour to prepare. Presentation topics are commonly about you, your life experiences or why Barclays should hire you.

You will be assessed on content of the presentation as well as the delivery so will need to appear confident and engaging when speaking.

HSBC

HSBC is one of the world's largest banking and financial services organisations. The company has offices in 83 countries and more than 125 million customers, served by more than 300,000 employees worldwide.

Graduate Jobs at HSBC

[Edit] Approximately 250 graduates are hired each year for the following graduate jobs at HSBC:

There are also opportunities available for graduates to work for HSBC in Europe.

HSBC Graduate Job Application Requirements

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HSBC is looking for candidates with strong academic backgrounds - a minimum of 2.2 at degree level (2.1 for some graduate training schemes), or equivalent. Candidates should also have an interest in banking and the city.

HSBC Competencies

[Edit] HSBC recruiters look for candidates to demonstrate the following key competencies at interview:

You must be confident enough at interview and throughout your assessment day to demonstrate these skills and make yourself standout from your competitors.

Training at HSBC

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HSBC graduate programmes offer formal training courses and workshops, supplemented by on-the-job learning and other development activities. Many of the graduate programmes also offer the opportunity to gain a professional qualification, and may include time spent abroad, or in company run training facilities.

Now see - HSBC Graduate Scheme Interview Questions.

Also see - Competency based interview, general interview advice and the importance of internships.

HSBC Graduate Scheme Interview Questions

Approximately 250 graduate trainees are hired by HSBC each year, from about 15,000 applicants. Interviews and assessment days take place from January to March at the company's Canada Square assessment centre in London and Bricket Wood centre in Hertfordshire.

HSBC Interview/Assessment Process

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The interview process for HSBC is as follows:

Online Application

[Edit] The HSBC online application will ask you to provide basic personal information such as: Name, Address, Contact Telephone Number and University Qualification. You will also be asked to upload your CV. Make sure that your CV details the following:
  • All your work experience to date (voluntary, internships, part-time work)
  • Positions of responsibility
  • Extracurricular activities
  • Academic Details
  • Scholarships or other awards.

Candidate Questionnaire

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The candidate questionnaire is used to assess your abilities in terms of key competencies. These are skills or particular personality traits that HSBC recruiters think are important for employees to possess, in order to do the particular job you have applied for.

Online Numerical and Verbal Reasoning Aptitude Tests

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These aptitude tests each take about 20 minutes to complete. You are allowed to take the tests at any point within a five day time frame and because they're online, you'll be able to take them at a time and in a place that's convenient for you.

The tests are provided by SHL and you will be given the chance to take practice papers before you start the real thing.

Interviews

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If you are successful at the online testing stage, you will be asked to choose a date and time for an interview. This may be face to face, or you may be given a telephone interview.

Before the interview you should re-read your CV, application and remind yourself of the particular graduate programme you have applied for. You should also further research the firm and think about why you want to work there. You should also be prepared to talk about your skills, hobbies and interests and about yourself more generally.

First round interviews are competency based. You will be asked to talk about specific examples of when you've used your skills and experience, your leadership skills, and your ability to work with others (teamwork).

Telephone interview

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The HSBC telephone interview is a highly structured competency based interview.

You will be asked competency based questions such as:
  • Give me an example of a time when you were involved in a teams in the past? How were you involved?
  • Give me an example of a time when you have had to lead a team. How did you manage this team successfully?
  • Tell me about your experiences dealing with customers and clients. How did you behave towards their demands?
  • Tell me about your decision making process. How do you make decisions? Who do you turn to when making decisions?

You will need to give specific examples of experiences from your life, to answer these competency questions.

Your interviewer will feed on your answers and may often ask you to explain specific details in further detail.

Your interviewer will have a strict time limit to keep to. If they feel the example you're giving them isn't providing them with the information they're looking for, they may interrupt and ask for another one. Equally, they may feel you've given plenty of evidence, and move you on to the next question. Don't be offended if you get cut off during a response, just move on.

You will only be asked competency based questions during this interview. You "will" be asked questions like "why do you want to work for HSBC".

Face-to-face interview

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Wherever possible, your interviewer will be a line manager from your chosen business area. Face-to-face interviews are structured and competency based. You will be asked to talk about specific examples of when you've used your skills and experience to demonstrate particular capabilities that your interviewer is looking for candidates to possess.

Assessment Day

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The HSBC assessment centre comprises a case study and other exercises that give you the chance to display your skills and capabilities. You'll also have an opportunity to find out more about HSBC, the work you will be doing and the division you have applied for.

Most of the activities you will be involved in during the assessment day are simulated scenarios. For example, you will be asked to imagine being in a meeting with your new managers (your assessors) in which you need to make an important strategic decision. You'll also take part in a simulated customer or internal colleague meeting, where your assessor will play the role of a customer/colleague.

The assessment day will begin early (8:30am - 9:00am) and once you have met with your assessors/recruiters you will be asked to fill out some paperwork. You will then be taken to a meeting room for tea/coffee, biscuits and a welcome talk from a member of the HR team, with an opportunity to ask questions at the end.

Group exercise

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(see group exercise)

Candidates are separated into teams of four and be allowed to ask two questions as a group, about a pack of cards which has one or more cards missing from the deck. Your group must then work out which card is missing from answers you've received and a further five minutes of discussion time. You will then have a 15 minute break before then next activity.

After the break you will once again form groups of four and be asked to make something that resembles what you (your group) thinks of HSBC, using a box and a collection of art materials: pipe cleaners, paper clips, paper, card, etc. This test will last for one and a half hours. You assessors will be watching your progress. Furthermore, the finished product your team produces is not important. Assessors will be more interested in how you debate, how your group forms decisions, who takes leadership and whose ideas are used, than the finished product.

Once this task has been completed your group will be asked to present the product and design. This will be followed by questions from your interviewers and the other candidate teams.

This completes the morning half of the assessment. You will then have an opportunity to take a break and lunch will be provided. Take this time to talk to other candidates and if possible, talk to graduate trainees already working at HSBC. You will learn more from current trainees than from anyone else regarding what you will be doing once you have received an offer and what it’s really like to work for HSBC.

Once the afternoon assessment session begins the candidates will be split into two groups. Half will then be given one-to-one interviews, whilst the other half gives individual presentations. Presentations will be on a subject you will be told to plan for before the assessment day. The subject will almost certainly be your greatest achievement of last 12 months.

After this the two groups will switch and a final questions and answers session will follow, where candidates may ask anything about the company, recruitment process or training process at HSBC. The day is generally relaxed, and your interviewers and assessors will be friendly. They will not be trying to catch you out.


  • Remember that the subject of presentations is not as important as your presentation skills. Your greatest achievement of the last 12 months does not actually have to be an amazing achievement itself, but you do need to present with confidence, intelligence and personality and be able to answer questions as required.
  • During group exercises make sure you keep to time limits. Working within deadlines is a very important skill for employees to possess, and something HSBC recruiters will no doubt be looking out for.
  • Remember to maintain your enthusiasm throughout the whole day. Interviewers will be looking for candidates who can work hard at all times, not just in the morning, or during an exercise that may be particularly enjoyable.
  • You do not need any specific technical banking knowledge to be successful at this stage (or any stage) of the assessment process.

Now see - General interview advice, Competency based interview and ask questions on the WikiJob forums.

Lloyds TSB

Lloyds TSB Profile

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Lloyds TSB employs over 80,000 people in 20 countries worldwide. The Lloyds TSB business covers pensions, investments, corporate markets and insurance, as well as retail banking.

Graduate Schemes Available

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Lloyds TSB hire about 160 graduates each year for a general graduate programme, called the "Graduate Leadership Programme" that allows for specialisation in one of several key work areas.

The "Graduate Leadership Programme" provides training, rotational placements and the opportunity to study to gain qualifications. The programme lasts for two years and is available in the following work areas:

Selection Criteria

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UCAS points aren't part of the selection criteria for Lloyds TSB graduate schemes. The minimum academic requirement is an expected or achieved 2.1 in any discipline.

For the Business Specialist Programme it depends on the programme you apply for, but generally the academic requirements for this programme are between 200 and 260 UCAS points or equivalent. You do not have to have a degree, but of course you can apply if you do.

Training

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Graduate trainees typically finish their training within two to three years of joining Lloyds TSB, when they would be expected to obtain a management position. For the Corporate Markets scheme, the programme typically last for two years. The Finance Professional Programme is linked to the CIMA qualification, which typically takes around three years.

Whichever programme you choose, you'll have a week-long residential induction to introduce you to Lloyds TSB. During this induction there will be talks from guest speakers, group dinners with key people from Lloyds TSB and the chance to network and make contacts with other new and existing graduates.

After the induction your training will be tailored to your chosen scheme. Your development will be supported by an experienced graduate, a senior manager and a graduate development manager.

On the Finance Professional Programme, you'll gain full funding towards the CIMA qualification. On the other programmes, you'll be able to use up to £3,000 to gain further qualifications, attend conferences or invest in personal development.

Many graduate trainees go on to obtain the Diploma in Management Studies.

Training Locations

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For the Graduate Programmes, including the Corporate Markets Programme, your base will depend on the specific business area you join, though most of Lloyds TSB's operations are located in London and Bristol. Insurance & Investments operates from centres in Edinburgh and Newport, South Wales. Industrial internships will almost certainly be located in London, Manchester or Bristol.

Full mobility is a requirement for all Lloyds TSB graduate programmes. All graduate trainees should be prepared to move temporarily within the UK and sometimes overseas during their training. The Business Specialist Programme is the only graduate scheme that does not require you to be fully mobile (i.e. live temporarily anywhere in the UK, even at short notice) but you will be expected to be fully mobile within the region in which you’re placed (or across regional borders if applicable).

Training Salary

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If you’re based in London you will also receive a London allowance, which is currently £3,450.

Internships

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Industrial Placements typically last for 12 months.

Summer Internship placements typically last between 10-12 weeks.

Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS)

Application Process

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The application process is as follows:

Telephone Interview

[Edit] RBS screen candidates with a telephone interview at the first stage. Your interview will be with a member of HR and will last 35-40 minutes. It is a mix of career motivation questions and competency based interview. Questions that you are likely to be asked include:
You can reasonably expect questions about the service line to which you have applied. For example, commercial banking:

The telephone interviewer will be writing your answers down, so you may be asked to repeat yourself several times. The questions will be read from a list, so the interview may feel scripted. Consequently you should be prepared to do most of the talking and not expect too much input or chemistry from the interviewer. Don't be afraid to repeat yourself - your responses to each question are marked separately. The interviewer may not be a HR representative from RBS, but rather a call centre representative. Do not hesitate in asking the operator/interviewer to repeat what they have typed as your response. If there are any errors in what the interviewer has documented, make sure you correct them.

Ability Testing Centre

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If you are successful at the telephone interview stage, you may be invited to an Ability Testing Centre, but this may be included in an all-day Assessment Centre instead (see below). This lasts around four hours and consists of the following:

Assessment Centre

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If successful at the Ability Testing Centre then you will be invited to attend an Assessment Centre. (Note: Some programmes only have an all-day Assessment Centre, which includes the Ability Testing Centre activities). This is a half-day and consists of the following:

Competency Based Interview

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The interview is relatively straight forward, following a typical competency based interview style. Career motivation questions are asked at the start of the interview, but RBS don't typically probe too much into your understanding of the bank/sector for the more generalist schemes such as Business Services Leadership. (Note this is NOT the case for all schemes).

Individual Presentation or Role Play Exercise

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For the presentation you have 25 minutes to read a detailed case study and prepare presentation material on flip-chart paper. You then give a 10 minute presentation to an assessor and spend another 10 minutes answering the assessor's questions about the proposals/ideas you have presented.

The Role Play exercise involves a scenario where you are working as a team and someone who you have been working with is not producing the required high standard of work. You get given a brief about your role, the team you work in and more information in the form of emails. You are then given time to make notes and prepare a plan to bring in with you to the Role Play Exercise, which lasts around 20 minutes. An actor will enter, masquerading as your troublesome colleague, and you then need to extract an agreement from them by the end of the meeting.

Group Exercise

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In the Group Exercise each group member (usually 4-5 candidates per group) is given a different proposal to look over and time to prepare notes on it. Each person must then present a quick summary of their proposal to the rest of the group, doing their best to sell it at this early stage. Following these short summaries, the group has approximately 20 minutes to discuss the pros and cons of all the proposals and come to an agreement on TWO which they would like to go forward with. It is important to demonstrate both good teamworking and influencing skills during this exercise.

List of Banks and Building Societies

The following is a list of retail banks and building societies, or firms that provide similar services. If you would like to create a new profile for any of the firms listed below, simply click on it and begin writing.

Banks

Building Societies

Nationwide Building Society
Britannia Building Society
Yorkshire Building Society
Coventry Building Society
Chelsea Building Society
Skipton Building Society
Leeds Building Society
West Bromwich Building Society
Derbyshire Building Society
Principality Building Society
Cheshire Building Society
Newcastle Building Society
Norwich & Peterborough Building Society
Dunfermline Building Society
Stroud & Swindon Building Society
Nottingham Building Society
Scarborough Building Society
Kent Reliance Building Society
Progressive Building Society
Cumberland Building Society
National Counties Building Society
Furness Building Society
Cambridge Building Society
Leek United Building Society
Manchester Building Society
Saffron Building Society
Hinckley & Rugby Building Society
Darlington Building Society
Newbury Building Society
Monmouthshire Building Society
Melton Mowbray Building Society
Market Harborough Building Society
Ipswich Building Society
Barnsley Building Society
Marsden Building Society
Tipton & Coseley Building Society
Hanley Economic Building Society
Mansfield Building Society
Teachers' Building Society
Loughborough Building Society
Chesham Building Society
Dudley Building Society
Vernon Building Society
Scottish Building Society
Bath Investment & Building Society
Chorley & District Building Society
Harpenden Building Society
Holmesdale Building Society
Stafford Railway Building Society
Beverley Building Society
Buckinghamshire Building Society
Swansea Building Society
Earl Shilton Building Society
Shepshed Building Society
Penrith Building Society
Ecology Building Society
Catholic Building Society
City of Derry Building Society
Century Building Society