How to make it as a trainee fund manager in Scotland: Part 1, the application process

Students with aspirations to break into Scotland's fund management industry should be encouraged by the fact that there are more positions available for 2011 than at any point during the last two years. However, competition is still tough, so what's the best way for breaking into the industry?

After a two-year hiatus, Scottish Widows Investment Partnership is rebooting its graduate recruitment programme for 2011, and intends to take on eight trainee fund managers this year - double its traditional intake.

"We have had a gap in graduate recruitment and this has been a negative for us, as we've lost that young talent coming through the business. We are keen to redress this and are taking double the number of graduates we ever have before this year," says Lynne Delgarno, director of HR at SWIP.

Elsewhere, Standard Life Investments (SLI) is likely to take on around 10 graduates, depending on business needs, and will be recruiting throughout the year. Baillie Gifford intends to recruit 7-8 for the front office, while Martin Currie will be hiring two or three graduates.

Clearly, opportunities are not exactly bountiful (particularly compared to the graduate recruitment targets of investment banks and Big Four accountancy firms in the City), and competition is tough.

SLI says it typically receives an average of 600 applications per place, while Baillie Gifford expects a total of 1,200 prospective candidates. So, how can you stand out?

The right degree subject?

It's easy to assume that a finance degree will mean your application is viewed more favourably, but this isn't necessarily the case.

Fund managers say they accept applications from all degree disciplines, but Baillie Gifford suggests that it's increasingly been taking on a larger proportion of students with arts degrees.

"There's no model applicant," says Richard Barry, HR manager at Baillie Gifford. "We're looking for an intellectual curiosity, which is essential for investment research. We want inquisitive, broad-minded people who can form unique opinions and influence others. This does not depend on what degree you've taken."

However, a high level of numeracy is required, argues Delgarno.

"We're open to applications from all degree disciplines, but certain subjects such as economics, accountancy and law lend themselves to fund management," she says. "We also find engineering students succeed, because they are highly numerate and also have a problem solving approach."

The application process

Most asset managers will expect you to apply via a CV and covering letter, before inviting a proportion of successful applicants to an assessment centre.

On the CV, graduate recruiters don't just want to see a list of qualifications and work experience, but they want to know what you personally have achieved during this time and why this is relevant to the fund management industry.

"We want to see a solid academic record, evidence of an interest in the finance industry, an ability to talk about motivations for moving into fund management and proof they have spent quality time researching both the industry and the firm - don't just regurgitate our website," says Barry.

Some fund managers, such as SLI, will also ask a number of questions about your motivations for becoming a fund manager. It's easy to think of these as secondary to your CV and covering letter, but this would be a mistake, suggests Kathryn McGown, HR consultant at the firm.

"A graduate CV can be something of a blank canvass," she says. "These questions are designed to test whether students have really researched the industry, and also demonstrate logical reasoning skills. They also assess communication skills, which are essential to fund management."

If you make it through the initial stages, you'll be invited to the dreaded assessment centre, designed to weed out the very best candidates.

"You'll be asked to take part in a number of different tasks which allow us to assess a mixture of competencies - these will be both in group and individual sessions" says Katie Crook, HR business partner at Martin Currie. "We typically invite 16-20 students to the assessment centre, and then around 6 to a final stage interview."

Should you manage to make it on to a fund managers' graduate training programme, there are ways and means of succeeding (or stumbling) during this process. We'll be offering advice on how to successfully navigate the training programme in the second part of this article on fund management graduate recruitment in Scotland