The work

Stockbrokers look after their clients investment portfolios, buying and selling shares to try and make sure clients get the best return for their money. Clients can be individuals, companies and large organisations.

Stockbrokers may be involved in:

• share dealing - where they buy and sell shares for clients on their instructions
• making the final decisions about what shares to buy and sell
• completely managing clients' investments, giving them advice on which companies to buy and sell in.
• Most shares are now traded electronically, making it faster. Accuracy is vital, as a simple mistake can wipe thousands or millions of pounds from clients' investments. Stockbrokers need to have an eye for opportunities, working closely with investment analysts to identify market trends. Their basic aim is to buy stocks low and sell at a high price.
• Also known as traders, stockbrokers specialise in an area. Every day is different, but typically starts at 7am. The Stock Market opens at 8am, and this can be the busiest period in the day, when stockbrokers start to process orders.
• Stockbrokers need to be up to date with all the business news, products, systems and changes to complex trading rules. They must be ready to respond to a political or economic event that will suddenly move a market. When this happens, trading can become frenetic, with huge sums made or lost in an instant.
• Although the work is fast paced, stockbrokers need to be able to keep calm and juggle tasks efficiently. If giving advice, they have to be able to explain complicated financial information clearly. They work closely with investment portfolio managers, reviewing clients' investments and making recommendations with the analysts on how to improve performance. Sometimes, stockbrokers may have to answer questions directly from a client.

Hours and Environment

A stockbroker's day will usually start before 7am. Most use the hour before the Stock Exchange opens to check overnight orders, read the business news and meet with analysts to try and predict what is going to happen each day. They work Monday to Friday. Hours are long and irregular.

Skills and Interests

Stockbrokers should be:

• able to cope well under pressure
• well organised
• able to think on their feet and make informed decisions quickly
• team players who listen to advice
• confident communicators
• self motivated
• able to learn and succeed
• numerate and literate
• able to work with all kinds of people
• good at languages - if they work for overseas clients - particularly German, Japanese and French.

Entry

While there is no upper age limit for entry to this profession, most stockbrokers are under 40. Although most enter as graduates, previous experience in certain industry sectors, such as telecommunications or life sciences, is attractive to employers. It also helps if applicants can demonstrate a solid understanding of how the European and global economy works.

Training

• Although there are no set academic qualifications for becoming a stockbroker, most people have a good degree - usually a 2:1 or a first - particularly in economics, law or accountancy. More and more, entrants also have postgraduate qualifications such as an MSc or MBA.
• It is also important to have some understanding of how financial markets work.
• Entry to degree courses is with at least five Olevels (A-C/1-3) and two A levels grades. It is useful to study subjects like English language, maths, economics, statistics, business studies, accounting, and communication skills. A second language is also useful.
• Many companies have very detailed selection procedures, which may include a number of interviews, psychometric and aptitude tests.

Opportunities

A stockbroker could work for:

• an investment bank
• a private bank
• a stockbroker.
• Large employers include Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Barclays Capital, Citigroup, Credit Suisse and Deutsche Bank.
• Current market conditions mean there are fewer jobs and more applicants, making the interview process tougher.

There's also more focus on the global markets, with financial centres in Europe, Asia, Africa and America. Large financial companies will have offices in each of these financial centres and there are normally opportunities for stockbrokers with good language skills to move around.

Annual Income

Further information

Securities & Investment Institute (SII) http://www.sii.org.uk