If you’re trying and failing to get a job in an investment bank when you graduate from university, the new report from graduate market intelligence company High Fliers helps explain why. Every year, banks hire fewer and fewer people.
In 2020, High Fliers says investment banks in the UK now plan to hire 1,658 graduate trainees, a reduction of nearly 3% (or 47 people) on 2019.
Since the financial crisis, however, High Fliers says investment banks’ graduate recruitment has fallen off a cliff, with the number of vacancies down 40% since 2007.
While investment banks’ graduate hiring deteriorates, other sectors have stepped in to fill the gap. Public sector graduate hiring is up a massive 197% since 2007; technology hiring is up 140% and consulting hiring is up 69%. The really big recruiters of graduates in the UK, though, are the accounting and professional services firms, which are planning to hire 5,357 people this year, and which have hiked hiring 23% since 2007.
There’s a reason why people apply to investment banks rather than accounting and professional services firms though, and that’s the pay. In 2020, High Fliers says the average starting salary at a UK investment bank is £50k compared to £31.2k in accounting and professional services, and an average of £30k overall.
Sarah Butcher – Read more on efinancialcareers.com
