financial crime analyst Review

There are various different departments I get to work in, for either 4 or 6 months. ultimately, I review the activity of customers which could potentially cause the bank to breach and regulation or legislation is in place. I work to ensure the bank meets it's reporting duties regarding money launderers, tax evaders, human traffickers and so on. Making sure the bank mitigates the risk of financial crime is ultimately the end goal of the job.

I have learned loads of new skills, such as analysis and problem solving. I have developed my report writing skills and developed my professionalism in multiple aspects. I have networked massively with some senior stakeholders in the business and developed a lot of my own personal attributes such as organisational skills so that I can thrive in a corporate environment.

I enjoy the programme massively, it is a unique experience and opportunity to enter a really exciting and niche area of banking. The apprenticeship really sets you up for a professional career by helping you become qualified and experienced in the day to day jobs available within financial crime prevention.

There are a lot of great ideas in the programme, some which are executed well and some which are not. The programme is fairly new so a lot of things are tried out for the first time and ran with and ultimately tested, so in a sense things aren't as structured as they could be and we don't always know what to expect and when to expect it. Management can also sometimes delay providing us with information and whilst some of this is secrecy I think half the time some members of management do not have a clue about what's happening and try to cover this up.

There is a lot of support form the employer, in both a health aspect and a work aspect. The management is very good for addressing any issues you have and are always available if you need to discuss something with them on a 121 basis. The management are very caring and the mentors of each rotation are very intelligent and skilful within their profession so you do receive the best of the best.

There is barely any support from BPP University. The course is very independent and relies on your own imitative and drive to ensure your assignments are completed. There is a workshop available before each assignment however this is used to provide basic general knowledge and not based around any of your assignments specifically so you must ensure you are capable and want to complete the course and know you cannot rely on anyone but yourself.

The qualification is so useful for my job role. It helps me to know all the relevant and vital I may add legislation which forms the basis of my job. When writing reports the knowledge of the areas studied allows me to apply the theory into practice and use key and logical phrases to make sure my report is convincing and backed by solid reasoning.

Santander does offer various extra-curricular activities, there are sports teams within the business as well as a choir being available on a Sunday. There are often emails sent around the business inviting individuals to take part in different events, clubs etc. There is a massive charitable culture at Santander and someone is always raising money for charity at one given time. There are various opportunities to help out parts of the community on a regular basis which are accessible through the website and can contribute to your annual assessment.

Yes

Santander is a very good employer. It is very inclusive for all types of people. There is a massive embrace network and they are considered to be one of the best female employers which is supported by the abundance of female managers and senior stakeholders. Furthermore, they have very good employment opportunities and staff benefits as well as employing caring and genuine people that you can easily get a long with.

Try and be yourself in an interview and always prepare beforehand on how to approach someone. Look at what is needed for a role and compare these to your own skills. Go the step further and research about the individual who will be interviewing you. Creating a linkedin page with all your experience and listed skills can be very useful and create an online profile to really impress someone.