Agency Collateral Management Review

My role is in Agency Collateral management, within the cooperate investment bank. Agency collateral management is working on behalf of our specific clients, looking after their assets in the market ensuring they're making the most money from them and making sure that we have enough securities to cover the value of their loans to make sure they are not at risk of loosing money in the market. I have been asked to help with a lot of projects in my team re designing the team mail box and helping make new contact lists. I have also picked up responsibilities that only I deal with.

I have developed a lot of personal skills in my job role, confidence is a key part of working at JP Morgan and being willing to put yourself out their and get your name known. Networking is highly recommend at JP Morgan to get your name around but to do this you need strong communication keys which I have learnt in the few months I have been here. Working in my team has also taught me how to deal with people of different ages, different genders and how to get along with these people well and how to built relationships with people that aren't similar to you.

I am really enjoying the programme so far, I feel like I am a valued member of the team and I have built a very strong relationship with my team members. I do not feel like it stands out that I am an apprentice and that I am younger than the other team members. The company as a whole is very welcoming of apprentices and people tend to know who you are because of the apprenticeship scheme. This programme has gone above and beyond my expectations and I really do feel like the work I do makes a difference to my team and my department.

I feel very valued by JP Morgan, as mentioned above the apprenticeship programme is very well known around the campus and in other regions as well. People are interested to hear about apprentices and their experiences and are keen to help out in any way they can. I feel the amount of talks/events the apprentices are invited too is amazing and a lot of different departments email us to invite us too talk that they are putting on.

The programme is very well structured, starting off with the boot camp where we got to know about colleagues and build a relationship and network with them before going into the office. This allowed us to ensure that if we had any worries or questions we didn't want to either go to our managers or [This section of the comment has been removed by a member of the RateMyApprenticeship Team because it did not meet our site terms and conditions] who run the programme, you could go to the other apprentices instead. We then joined our teams and had a few quiet weeks with our teams settling in before any apprenticeship events/talks began. These talks and events then carried on being frequent for the first few months of the apprenticeship, yet still allowing us enough time with our teams to learn our job role. The events then become less frequent which allows us to really get to know our role. The events then pick up a little more throughout the programme, these events are ones you offer to do so you can attend if it fits around your work load. The support from mentors/management/[This section of the comment has been removed by a member of the RateMyApprenticeship Team because it did not meet our site terms and conditions] is also very strong and their is always someone to talk to if you have any worries or questions.

BPP who run our apprenticeship give us a lot of support. Our lecturers are available to email at any point if we have any queries about the actual lecture of something that was mentioned in the lecture and they tend to reply with 1-2 working days which is really helpful. There are also other departments at BPP that you can contact with any general queries and they tend to answer within a day answering your question, or referring you too the correct person. We also have a Skills Coach who works at BPP who helps us with any queries regarding our portfolio side of the apprenticeship and gives us feedback on our evidence we submit for the portfolio for any improvements.

The general attitude from the employer is really positive, there is a lot of time that is spent in ensuring that the younger generation brought into JP Morgan get the best from their time here. There are mentor programmes and talks to make sure you're getting the best from your mentor. Management also around monthly one to ones catching up on your progress, any worries you have and any queries you would like to raise with your manager. There are also plenty of contacts around for HR and we have had talks from specific people in our HR department who we know if we want to go to any one specifically.

I personally live near by JP Morgan Bournemouth campus so I didn't have to relocate, but I do pay rent at home, and I leave about 40 minutes drive away so I do have to commute. However what is really great is the work buses that JPM put on for staff for a set amount per month. I also have a good social life and I treat myself with going on holidays and meeting up with friends a lot. My salary covers all of these things and I believe the salary for an apprenticeship is really good.

JP Morgan have a large network outside of working hours. They have a lot of sports team, football, running clubs, rubgy etc. They also have BRGS (Business resource groups) which are anything to do with Women in the workplace, Veterans, Working Families. These all run through lunch time and after work hours, and there are lots of events these BRG's run which anyone can get involved with. I am part of Next Gen, which helps the next generation into JPMorgan achieve their goals and give them advise on how to achieve these. The company also runs events which apprentices get involved in, such as the round the island boat race and helping build things at schools both of which the apprentices are advised to get involved in.

Yes

JP Morgan is very supportive of its apprentices, they really want you too do well and do a lot of support you in order for you to reach your goals.

Be yourself, there is a large stigma about apprenticeships and that you have to be excelling in Math's and Business to get into a bank. When this isn't completely true, whilst grades are something they look at in the initial application it isn't a final decision, if they like who you are and can see that you are determined you are definitely in for a chance. Another bit of advise I would give is to take every opportunity offered to you, because you might not ever be offered it again. If you're asked to a project or run a meeting or go to a client conference, go.