Bank tellers complete many of the principal transactions that happen at a bank. They routinely handle significant amounts of money and ensure the accuracy of financial exchange. This article will detail on the bank teller job description, and inform you about the major responsibilities of a teller, what skills are needed to be effective, the education and training required, and what the job outlook and working schedule are. You will understand what makes a good teller and how to increase your chances of getting hired as one, if desired.
What Does a Bank Teller Do?
Bank tellers will serve as the main contact for customers with their banks. These professionals will complete routine transactions such as deposits, withdrawals, transfers, and providing necessary records.
The work environment is calm and relaxed. They work regular office hours and receive ample time off. There are no qualifications mandatory in the bank teller job description beside a high school diploma or GED. The median salary is $26,410.
Bank Teller Job Description for Resume – Responsibilities
The following bullet points are all examples of what a teller is responsible for. If you wish to use some of these for your resume, make sure to personalize them to your experiences.
- Serve as the front facing employee of a financial institution
- Ensure financial accuracy by counting money at the start and end of the shift, double count money given to customers.
- Answer questions customers have about their accounts and verify the identity of these individuals.
- Order necessary materials for customers such as debit cards and checks.
- Remain knowledgeable about current interest rates on different types of accounts and promote featured accounts to customers.
- Use software to identify currency rates and exchange different currencies.
- Keep accurate records of all transactions completed during their shift.
Bank Teller Required Skills
Ethics skills. Some parts of the bank teller job description should go without saying, and that is that they deal with large amounts of money every day. The temptation could be there to be dishonest or attempt to take money from the bank. These professionals must be very ethical and honest to ensure sound financial transactions.
Awareness skills. While rare, banks are often the spot that robbers and people looking to take hostages will go. Because of this, these professionals need to be hyper-aware of their environment. Identifying potential risks and remaining calm in the face of danger is imperative.
Customer service skills. Bank tellers work with customers every day. They must have a knack for completing their job while being personable and making customers feel like a valued part of the business.
Business math skills. These professionals need to do math all day long. While there are computer programs and calculators to help with the math, a teller will be more efficient if they can compute problems involving probability, simple math, and statistics quickly.
How to Become a Bank Teller
They do not need education beyond a high school diploma or GED. There is optional training, but banks will provide all of the necessary instruction programs for their tellers. These professionals acquire expertise in the field simply by gaining more experience. A history of commitment to customer service will serve them well in this field.
Education & Training Requirements
Tellers need their high school diploma or GED. While some college courses, particularly in math, may be beneficial, they are not required for the position. Tellers will undergo training at their bank to learn how to do the tasks described above. A more experienced bank teller will teach them how to complete these tasks.
In training, they will also learn how to use various computer programs to help them in their work. There is no specific license in the bank teller job description that they need to obtain to practice. It is beneficial for people who would like to become one to practice math tasks they will have to use every day. This will make them better at their job by allowing them to do math with automaticity, thus increasing their focus on customer service.
There is optional training offered by the American Institute of Banking. This extra training shows potential employers that you are committed to this position and have taken the initiative to prepare yourself. If there are new skills to learn, the bank where you work will provide that training.
Work Experience
Unlike a loan officer, who requires experience in the financial sector, a bank teller is a perfect job to get without experience. Because banks provide the training necessary, it is possible that this could be someone’s first job. It is preferred that the applicant has prior customer service experience.
The first month or two of employment can be thought of as the training period. During this time, a new bank teller may have to take classes or online modules that the employer has created. They will also shadow a more experienced employee who can walk them through some of the typical work that needs to be done.
It is not necessary to gain experience during internships because this level of proficiency is not required. If you are interested in getting more information about a bank teller job description beforehand, try to contact one and learn more about what they do and what experience would have been helpful when they were starting in the job.
Work Schedules
One of the big perks of being a teller is that the hours are very consistent and stable. These professionals get every federal holiday off. They also only have to work banking hours. These are from 9 AM to 4 PM for the most part. On Thursday or Friday, some banks are open until 6 PM or 7 PM.
Working extra hours is extremely rare. Most professionals work full-time. However, about 25% of them will work part-time. This is an excellent job for someone who needs stable daylight hours.
Career Prospects
Bank tellers make about $12.00 an hour. The median annual salary is $26,410. Unfortunately, the projected job growth of tellers is to decline 8 percent by the year 2024. This is due to a couple of reasons. First, more people are doing their banking online. Second, banks are using technology to automatize some aspects of the process and allow fewer tellers to handle more customers. Thus, some aspect of the basic bank teller job description can change through time as new tech emerges.
There are several advancement opportunities. They can take additional training and courses to become licensed in different aspects of banking. For example, a bank teller could become a teller manager, an insurance salesperson, or enter higher-level management. Many banks will reimburse them for taking training and courses. Because of the advancement opportunities with training and the financial reimbursement for the training, it is definitely worth it to become a bank teller.
Conclusion
Bank tellers have a low level of stress and a high level of job satisfaction. They work in a comfortable environment and do not have to work evening, weekend, overnight, or holiday hours. While their annual wage is not very high, they receive more than minimum wage for an entry-level job.