• About the FSA
  • Careers
    • Graduate development programme
      • Application procedure

If you are thinking of applying for our Graduate Programme and believe that you can make a valuable contribution to the FSA, please consider what we search for in suitable candidates.

Selection criteria

For the main Graduate Programme, we look for:

• at least a 2:1 honours degree in and above (or equivalent) in any subject;
• a minimum 300 UCAS points or equivalent (excluding General Studies);
• strong commercial awareness, gained through work experience (i.e. paid/unpaid internships and/or vacation, voluntary or part- time work); and
• the right to live and work in the UK without restriction.

Ideally, your degree and A-level subjects should have a high analytical or numerical content, as much of our work draws on these skills.

Please note: If you've previously applied and been unsuccessful during the selection process, you must wait 12 months before re-applying.

We don't just look at your academic achievements. We have identified other characteristics that are equally important – such as communication, leadership, motivation, teamwork, problem solving, analytical thinking, adaptability, flexibility and maturity… so get thinking!

In the meantime, here are some useful tips.

• prepare a list of your achievements – university, work, social or home;
• develop a strong understanding of what we do at the FSA, as you'll be expected to know this in significant detail – you’ll find all the information you need on the FSA website;
• relate practical experience gained through work elsewhere to convince us that you have developed relevant skills;
• identify a realistic working ambition;
• develop your ability to communicate the above ideas clearly and effectively.;
• research the financial markets and identify key developments, issues and concerns that either affect the FSA and the industry now or will do in the future. The Financial Times newspaper is a valuable source of information, together with websites such as www.ft.com and www.moneymarketing.co.uk. This area will form a large part of the final interview, so you should have detailed and well-structured opinions;
• you must have the right to live and work in the UK without restriction; and finally,
• you should be available to start permanent employment from at least September 2006.

The application

To apply, please read the privacy statement at the bottom of this page. If you accept this statement, you'll find yourself on our jobs search page. Either click on the link for the Graduate Development Programme, or type 'graduate' in the 'text search box' and select 'search and apply'. Then click on the Graduate Development Programme link to display information about the programme and how to apply.

The application form captures your personal contact details and your academic and employment history, together with your answers to the questions of why you've applied to the FSA and the Graduate Development Programme in particular. Please ensure that you include a full breakdown of your GCSEs and A-Levels by subject (or equivalents), date taken and grades achieved, together with your degree/MSc and predicted grades (if not completed). For those who have taken different routes to get to university, please highlight your equivalent qualifications. If you're currently employed, you must also provide a breakdown of your employment history and current salary.

Please note: We will not process any application that does not have all this information.

We look at your academic record, together with your achievements, activities and demonstration of key skills to decide whether to take your application further.

Once you’ve completed the form and sent it to us, we will send you an email to tell you we have received your application. Shortly after this, we will begin shortlisting candidates. If you meet our minimum selection criteria, we’ll invite you to the next stage of our selection process (depending on when you apply, this could happen within 24 hours of your submission).

Important note:

Due to a limit on the numbers we can process during our selection period, please submit your application as early as possible to avoid disappointment.

The selection process is fair and open, and is a two-way process, so it will enable you to find out more about us and decide whether the FSA is the right place for you. Apart from the final interview, the whole selection process is capability based. So in each exercise we will be looking for you to demonstrate the capabilities (key skills and behaviours) that we need in graduates.

For more information on the capabilities that we assess, see the FSA graduate capabilities.

 

Selection process

Stage 1: Telephone interview

This is a 40-minute telephone interview. It will focus on examples of where you have been able to demonstrate the graduate capabilities we are looking for. For example, talking to us about your approach to managing a project or piece of work, or how you worked as part of team to complete a task. You will also have the opportunity to explain why you've applied to the FSA and what attracts you to the Graduate Development Programme. To ensure the interview goes smoothly, please try to include a landline number in your application. This will reduce problems with poor mobile signals, failing batteries etc. Interviews will take place during the week beginning 3 July 2006.

Stage 2: assessment centre

Successful candidates will attend a one-day assessment centre at our offices in London on either 18 or 19 July 2006. The day will entail a technical interview, a discussion exercise, a written exercise, a group exercise and an ability test.

Technical interview

This is a one-hour technical interview with two FSA assessors. It focuses on the following key areas:

• Your knowledge of the FSA and our remit. To give you an example of what to expect, you'll need to know our history, role, accountability, the areas of the financial services industry we cover, how we operate and our approach to regulation.
• Your in-depth knowledge, understanding and, more importantly, opinions of key issues affecting the FSA and the financial services industry. We expect knowledge of recent and future issues — and how they relate to other matters, such as our statutory objectives.
• Why you want to join the Graduate Development Programme and the FSA.
• Your approach to teamwork, and how you make decisions and deliver outcomes.

Discussion and written exercise

The discussion exercise is designed to look at the way you interpret information in a work environment and how you draw appropriate conclusions, as well as being able to deliver these conclusions in a discussion with others. It involves three phases:

• analysis of an information file (30 minutes);
• discussion of conclusions with two FSA assessors (20 minutes); and
• a written report summarising the discussion (50 minutes).

Group exercise

The group exercise involves a group of five or six candidates. You are given information to analyse individually, then discuss as a group. We look at how you work in a team and communicate with others to come to a group decision.

Ability test

We use the Financial Appraisal Test to look at your ability to analyse information and solve problems.

Timescales

Please note: The application deadline will be midnight on Sunday 25 June 2005. Please ensure you submit your completed application before the deadline as there will be no exceptions.

The selection process takes place from June to July 2006 so please make sure you are available during these months. We will tell applicants our final decisions by the end of July 2006, and you will need to accept any offer of employment within two weeks of it being made.

All offers of employment are subject to:

• you achieving a 2:1 Hons degree;
• proof of A-Levels (or equivalent) achieved;
• receipt of acceptable references;
• proof of the right to work in the UK;
• security checks; and
• a satisfactory medical questionnaire.

There are two different start dates for the Graduate Development Programme; one on 1 September 2006 and the other on 29 September 2006.

Equal Opportunities

We are committed to giving equal opportunity and fair treatment in all aspects of employment — without regard to colour, race, nationality, ethnic origin, disability, age, sex, marital status, sexual orientation, trade union or Staff Consultative Committee membership.

This policy applies to all staff and job applicants. All conditions of service — including pay and employee benefits, training and career development — apply on a fair and equal basis. We are strongly committed to providing a workplace that does not tolerate any form of harassment, either by or against other employees.

 

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