Seeking Advice For Jobs In Finance Sector

Originally Posted by lonewalker

Hi Jerry,

What kind of finance job are you looking at?

1) Bankers?
2) Traders?
3) Insurance Agents/ Financial Planners?
4) Brokers?
5) Financial Analyst?
6) Fund managers?
7) Accountants?


Finance sector is wide. Perhaps you would want to scale down the area of your interests.

It is obvious he has no idea what finance is about. He's just going on some vague idea that he likes investments and that means finance industry.

Originally Posted by maze

Why is it that every engineer likes to claim to have passion in investments and analyzing financial numbers because people around them have investments and therefore they want to enter banking sector?

Want to join banking just be upfront and admit that you love money and wish to pursue a field that lets you reap big material rewards instead of a low paying engineering job.

There's no need for this standard BS about being passionate in Finance, people who are really passionate in analyzing financial numbers can join any MNC as risk analyst, business analyst, sales intelligence support or even pursue a career in teaching & coaching in finance.

Nothing against TS, it's just that as an interviewer I have heard this same old story from so many people from non-Finance (usually engineering) background in the past 2 years that I sometimes wonder if there is some engineering professional body that teaches them to say the same thing.

So if there is one interviewee come to you and say he/she wants to join banking because he/she is obsessed with money, will you consider to hire him/her? Will you be impressed by the straightforwardness? Be frank dude...

Originally Posted by Unregistered

So if there is one interviewee come to you and say he/she wants to join banking because he/she is obsessed with money, will you consider to hire him/her? Will you be impressed by the straightforwardness? Be frank dude...

Most interviewers will not accept honest answer although they know its true. That being said, I think people who want to join finance & banking ought to come out with a more credible story.

Quite lame to say that you suddenly have passion in investments because your friends, parents, relatives around made investments or do business.

One possible story is to say you did some long term project in your current work that involve working with finance, bankers closely and after you got to understand what they do you realise finance might be the calling.

Originally Posted by rbh

Most interviewers will not accept honest answer although they know its true. That being said, I think people who want to join finance & banking ought to come out with a more credible story.

Quite lame to say that you suddenly have passion in investments because your friends, parents, relatives around made investments or do business.

One possible story is to say you did some long term project in your current work that involve working with finance, bankers closely and after you got to understand what they do you realise finance might be the calling.

Best answer I've heard: (1) Singapore is a finance and banking hub, so it makes sense to build a career in this sector. (2) Analytical skills in engineering are transferable to finance. (3) It's fair to say everyone strives for a good living, and finance is the sector that is able to provide just that for capable diligent people.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Best answer I've heard: (1) Singapore is a finance and banking hub, so it makes sense to build a career in this sector. (2) Analytical skills in engineering are transferable to finance. (3) It's fair to say everyone strives for a good living, and finance is the sector that is able to provide just that for capable diligent people.

Above only works for fresh grads entering banking. People who mid-career switch, (1) and (3) not applicable and will be shot back with a "You mean you just realise that after working for so many years?"

(2) is only useful to answer if people question your ability on technical skills, but no use in explaining why he want to change industry.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Above only works for fresh grads entering banking. People who mid-career switch, (1) and (3) not applicable and will be shot back with a "You mean you just realise that after working for so many years?"

(2) is only useful to answer if people question your ability on technical skills, but no use in explaining why he want to change industry.

So what's your best answer if you were the engineer?

Originally Posted by Unregistered

So what's your best answer if you were the engineer?

Something along the line what rbh mention above saying you get some exposure to banking in your current work.

Not 100% convincing, but better than jerrykoh82's reason about friend doing business and like financial metric

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Something along the line what rbh mention above saying you get some exposure to banking in your current work.

Not 100% convincing, but better than jerrykoh82's reason about friend doing business and like financial metric

How many people have truly worked on long projects with dealings with finance and bankers? So, even if you don't have such experience, do you smoke your way through?

Originally Posted by Unregistered

How many people have truly worked on long projects with dealings with finance and bankers? So, even if you don't have such experience, do you smoke your way through?

Yup, smoke ur way through if needed, of course you need to do a bit of research around like ask finance colleague usually what their working liaison is with bankers.

Then try to spin a story with the info. You don't need in depth knowledge, just some surface stuff to at least show you have a proper thought process and make your passion sound more believable.

Of course no matter how you prepare always got danger will get caught, but this is still better than a totally childish story like I like investments because my ________ (insert person) do business and dabble with investment.

Straight away kena red flag as "I dun know anything about finance and just want to get in because people around me in finance/investment/banking look rich & cool"

It's all about being specific and interesting.

Example:

My father is a successful business man. I grow more and more interest in finance seeing him making business with many other people. ----> Failed.

My father expanded his loan shark business at his 40 (interesting point). I have been so amazed to learn that there is much profit on the difference between the interest he earns through the loans disbursed to customers and the interest he pay to his deposit customers (your finance sparks). So i decided to join finance...bla bla bla ----> Much better.