Financial services has long-lured the best and brightest graduates with the promise of big starting salaries and the prospect of earning much larger packages as your career progresses. Less emphasis may be on pay these days – with banks instead preaching culture and commitment – but most junior roles pay much more than equivalent positions in other industries. Here are some of the best high paying entry level roles in finance.
Investment banking division, analyst, $112k
In the UK, investment banking is – by some distance – the highest paying graduate job available. Salaries start at £45k ($75k), according to research from High Fliers, with law its nearest competitor, with average starting salaries of £39.5k. This, of course, doesn’t take bonus payments into account – average salaries are $75k, according to headhunters Dartmouth Partrners, but variable comp is a further £22k ($37k), taking total earnings to $112k. In year one…
Private equity analyst, $94-105k
The idea of an entry-level role in private equity is something of a misnomer – most firms don’t recruit graduates, but instead take on junior bankers with training and a couple of years’ experience under their belt. There are exceptions – Blackstone and Terra Firma both run graduate schemes, for example. However, assuming you get into private equity, the U.S. is the place to earn more money – salaries start at $75.5k there, according to research from Preqin, with total remuneration at $105k. In Europe, these figures are $66k and $93.7k respectively.
Hedge fund, level one investment professional, $90-115k
Again, only a handful of larger hedge funds, such as Man Group and CQS, have formal graduate recruitment programmes and instead focus on hiring people who would have made it to analyst level three or associate within investment banking. Headhunters Glocap, which conducts and annual compensation survey into the hedge fund industry, terms these ‘level one’ investment professionals. Salary alone for these individuals comes in at $90-110k, it says. Expect bonus payments to take this above the vast majority of other entry level positions in finance.
Quantitative risk analyst, $80-100k
Risk management salaries within investment banking and the broader financial services market have been on the up in recent years, with firms battling over a limited supply of senior staff who have reportedly named their own salary on switching positions. At the junior end, however, salaries have also been on the up and the pick of the bunch in terms of banks’ different risk functions is quantitative risk. Salaries alone start at $80-100k in New York, according to research by recruiters Robert Walters.
Regulatory reporting accountant, newly-qualified, $92k
Any record of accounting pay tends to start at the newly qualified level, but by this point most accountants have around three years’ work experience under their belt. Accounting and professional services salaries across the board average at £29.5k ($49.5k) at entry level, according to High Fliers. However, within financial services, and when a niche skill-set is added, accounting salaries for those who have freshly earned their stripes are decidedly higher – regulatory reporting salaries come in at $92k, according to Robert Walters, rising to $125k after two years.
Internal auditor, financial services, $92k
Internal audit is another area where financial services firms are struggling to attract talent currently. Salaries for newly-qualified accountants in this area start at $92k, according to Robert Walters, rising to $110k after two years.
Private banking relationship manager, Singapore, $65-96k
Singaporean private banks once famously started hiring hairdressers as relationship managers, such was the scarcity of talent and demand for employees in this area. This may have slowed, but banks in the region struggle to hire enough people to deal with the ever-growing pool of wealth and have had to start offering generous salaries at the junior level. Robert Walters’ figures suggest that salaries for junior relationship managers hired with no experience can nearly reach six figures, at $65-96k.
Compliance, product advisory, $60-100k
Starting salaries for middle office employees have generally lagged those in the front office, but as banks are forced to invest more and more into control and compliance staff, pay has started to rise. The highest paid entry level compliance position is within the product advisory field, says Robert Walters, with salaries coming in at $60-100k.
Actuary, $75-110k
The path to becoming an actuary is a gruelling one, with training typically taking anywhere between three to six years and which is usually provided by employers to the best and brightest maths graduates. Starting salaries of £24-35k ($40-60k) may not seem that appealing, but once you’ve earned your stripes this can swell to $75-110k, according to figures from recruiters Reed.