A career in banking and finance opens up many avenues for young graduates. With the exponential growth in this sector in the last few years and the entry of foreign players in the Indian banking market post-liberalisation, the scope for a career in banking and finance has increased manifold. More and more graduates are joining this field and even in these times of economic slowdown, banking industry in India is growing.

Thus, a demand for banking and finance courses has also increased accordingly. Both private and government institutes in India offer regular and correspondence courses in banking and finance to students.

A banking course trains an individual in various skills. Need less to say that commerce and economics graduates are better suited to pursue such a course. The curriculum o f such a course includes planning, funding operations, man-management, resource management, managing of loans and profit generation. It is different from an accounting course though some fields overlap in both the courses. The curriculum of a banking course is designed as per the demands of the industry. The subjects included are strategic planning, international finance, operations management, micro and development finance, marketing and information technology. The basic course would include an overview of the subjects while a specialized course would deal in one of the many fields of banking.

Once an individual completes the banking course, he can look to get a job in a bank as a middle level executive officer. After the banking course, one is expected to know about monetary control, foreign exchange, currency values, treasury management and other related fields of study. Of course, the practical knowledge comes only with working more in the field.

For those who have completed their graduation in commerce or math or even other streams and look to make a career in banking can also pursue banking courses through correspondence. Many institutes offer post graduate diplomas in banking and finance through distance learning. These are especially beneficial for those who are working or are living in areas where no institute offers a regular course in banking. These courses are also specifically designed to cater to the demands of the industry. They produce industry-oriented professionals. Correspondence courses in banking and finance are available in various core areas at both the degree and the diploma level.

If one opts for a diploma course through correspondence, one could also be doing a postgraduate degree course or working in the sector simultaneously. For a postgraduate diploma course in banking, one needs to hold a Bachelors degree from a recognized university. It is only after the completion of the degree that one can apply for correspondence PG diploma courses in banking and finance institutes. However, the actual admission process and selection varies from one institute to another. All institutes have different criteria of selecting students. Thus, it is advisable to contact the individual institutes or visit their websites to find out the actual criteria.

Whether you do a regular course or a diploma course, once the course is complete, you can start looking for jobs in both the public sector as well as the private sector. Banks regularly advertise jobs in newspapers and employment weeklies. The Reserve Bank of India and other nationalized banks hire banking professionals in clerical positions and Grade A and Grade B officers. There is a preliminary test held for these posts after which the candidates are selected for interview and discussion. Government banks hire banking graduates as Probationary Officers. There are other fields of banking too where jobs are available for banking graduates. These include Merchant Banking, Investment Banking, Treasury and Forex Department, Department and Foreign Exchange, etc. In private banks, the scope is even wider with banks hiring on positions such as credit control managers, corporate banking executives, relationship managers and customer care executives.

Outside India also, job opportunities for banking graduates are tremendous. Many international banks hire qualified professionals for various profiles on competitive salaries. Foreign banks operating from India also hire banking graduates. Thus, banking courses have become very popular in the recent past and more and more students are opting for such courses. They open up an array of opportunities for young graduates willing to make career in this lucrative field.