Vault’s Verdict

One of the largest and most well known banks in the U.S., Bank of America is looking for well-rounded individuals with diverse backgrounds, strong academic records, and many extracurricular activities. The firm also values intellectual curiosity, integrity, and team players. For students, Bank of America offers an excellent rotational internship program, exposing interns to various industries and products. Interns also receive great exposure to senior leaders. There are many networking opportunities, and both formal and informal mentoring programs.

For full-time junior bankers, there are many opportunities to move within the firm, both domestically and internationally. Mentorship is also highly valued—for mentees seeking an experienced mentor and for mentors wanting to pass on their knowledge. In addition, several diversity and inclusion groups focus on retention through mentorship, education, and promotion readiness. The firm also has an expansive online learning environment for continued learning.

Bank of America offers team members lot of flexibility to work from home, and people feel comfortable and willing to take time off. Additionally, the bank promotes mental health, and focuses on well-being and individual happiness. To help employee wellness and well-being, there are a lot of resources available, including family planning and mental health counseling. Meanwhile, the compensation packages offered are generous, benefits are in line with the Street average, and perks are plentiful.

Another strong suit is diversity and inclusion. Bank of America recently implemented a number of new strategies to help promote a diverse culture, and also developed an Ally program for LGBTQ+ colleagues where volunteers take part in open dialogue. In addition, the firm has programs specifically designed for numerous other underserved groups, including women, minorities, and veterans. The bank’s environmental, social, and corporate governance initiatives are also significant. Underscoring the bank’s focus on green initiatives, CEO Brian Moynihan is head of the World Economic Forum Business Council that’s working to set ESG measurement standards.

Bank of America’s business outlook looks strong. The firm navigated all the uncertainty in the past year by staying disciplined and earning the trust of its clients. Its strong leadership team, client relationships, and balance sheet should allow the firm to continue to succeed and thrive in the foreseeable future.

Note: The firm did not participate in our 2022 Banking Survey; all comments are from our 2021 survey.

Hiring Process

“We’ve moved to a completely virtual experience that typically consists of three rounds. The first is a video interview where questions are pre-loaded and timed. Those interviews are reviewed by a cross-functional and cross-title panel of employees. Second and third round interviews are then conducted live virtually. We look for individuals who have diverse backgrounds, excel at their coursework, and have a good load of extra-curricular activities. Intellectual curiosity is also something we look for.”

“First round is a video interview on Hirevue. The second round is a Superday process. We’re working on broadening our hiring to non-target schools with the use of Hirevue. This brings in candidates of diverse backgrounds, educational history, socioeconomic status, etc.”

“The interview process is competitive yet fair with timely communication to applicants. The bank looks for well-rounded individuals who are smart and team-oriented and carry a tremendous amount of integrity.”

“Be prepared to speak with both newly hired and senior employees when going through the interview process.”

Interview Questions

“Interviews include a mix of technical finance questions  and situational questions (tell me about a time you had to lead a team, tell me about a time you had to complete a task under a time crunch, etc.).”

“What leadership roles have you undertaken while pursuing your education? How do you balance digital communication with conversation to establish and maintain relationships? How do you set yourself apart from others? What do you have to bring to our firm?”

“Why do you want to work at Bank of America? Why do you want to work in Global Transaction Services? Do you see yourself working in product management or sales and why?”

“Questions around current macro events and their impact on various aspects of the market are typical. Stock pitches are also common.”

Intern Experience

“Fantastic rotational program that allows participants to learn about various industries and products and meet a lot of great people. There are also a ton of networking opportunities and both formal and informal mentoring programs.”

“Being immersed in the fast-paced learning environment on the BofA trading desk was great.”

“Great exposure to senior leaders. Networking virtually was encouraged.”

“Rotational program allows you to get a feel for both sales/trading and different products. The team is very interested in juniors learning and growing.”

Career Development

“We have many self-directed learning courses that anyone can enroll in throughout their tenure, which is really beneficial to broadening your skill set. Internal mobility (should you want a change) is not only promoted but also encouraged. We want to retain the best people, and if someone doesn’t feel challenged enough, there are many opportunities to move within the firm (domestically and internationally) if they so choose. As a leader in financial services, the products and services we offer are second to none. Mentorship is also highly valued within the firm—both for mentees seeking an experienced mentor, and mentors wanting to pass on their knowledge. Only area of improvement would be to extend the duration of our analyst programs to 12 to 24 months from 9 to 12 months, where it currently sits.”

“BofA does a tremendous job promoting internal mobility and career development opportunities, including having full-time recruiters who solely focus on internal mobility. I directly experienced this in my internal transition more than eight years ago to my current role. Senior managers were extremely supportive and helpful in arranging these opportunities.”

“Lots of mobility, especially for junior professionals. Excellent two-year international exchange program for associates to work in another office in a different country. The 360 degree performance evaluation system can be time consuming.”

“Bank of America has an incredible mentoring program as well as several diversity and inclusion groups that focus on retention through mentorship, education, and promotion readiness. These programs make sure that new hires are aware of what is needed to progress. There is also an expansive online learning environment for continued learning, which lends itself well to overall career development."

Quality of Life

“There is a lot of flexibility in allowing employees to work from home, with additional efforts made during the pandemic. People feel comfortable and willing to take time off, and the bank very much promotes mental health. The firm’s focus on quality of life is visibly apparent.”

“Our employee benefits programs really do focus on well-being and individual happiness. There are a lot of resources available to us—family planning, adult care, and mental health and counseling, to name a few. Using vacation time is also encouraged. Work/Life balance is a real thing at Bank of America.”

“Good benefits in terms of sabbaticals and paternity/maternity leaves, good vacation policy, no forced vacations or forced work days, people genuinely care about one another and want others to succeed, good mentorship programs, good training programs, lots of volunteer opportunities.”

“Strong support programs for families and caregivers. Very good support for WFH during Covid. BofA is very focused on supporting teammates in all aspects of life outside of work, with countless benefits that extend far beyond the offerings of other firms.”

Salary and Benefits

“Good/standard comp package. Benefits are in line with the Street average.”

“Recently, we instituted a stock option plan for a wide majority of our workforce. That was a great addition to the typical salary and one-time incentive compensation we can receive. Increases each year aren’t guaranteed, but happen more often than not. The increases could be higher, however.”

“I don’t believe it’s the best comp package on the Street for junior employees, but I think it’s good.”

“Salaries and bonuses are competitive. Benefits and perks are plentiful, and include access to free counseling, exercise accountability programs for employees to partake in, excellent health insurance, and wellness education.”

Wellness Efforts

“The firm is very involved in wellness efforts and goes above and beyond to make sure employees are okay mentally and provided with resources for help.”

“There are a whole host of programs that employees can take advantage of, if they so choose. All are optional, but accessible. Employee wellness is paramount.”

“Dedicated to wellness. In-house HR professionals support any life events from natural disasters to family emergencies. There is nothing else like it.”

“BofA offers comprehensive benefits to support and encourage employee wellness.”

Diversity, Philanthropy, and Green Initiatives

“The firm is committed to green investments and is on the forefront of banks in this area. The firm is actively working on diversity issues and has implemented a number of new strategies to help promote a diverse culture. There’s still a long way to go, but changes are happening.”

“We've developed an Ally program for LGBTQ+ colleagues where volunteers take part in open dialogue. We have programs specifically designed to help veterans, including job placement services within the firm and rotational opportunities. Our ESG [environmental, social, and corporate governance] initiatives are second to none.”

“Bank of America has issued $10 billion in ESG bond issuances. It helped develop the standard for Green Bonds. This year, it issued the first $1 billion Covid bond to fund hospitals and PPE. Brian Moynihan is head of the World Economic Forum Business Council that’s working to set ESG measurement standards.”

“A good amount of focus here on diversity. The bank does a lot of positive things around diversity and inclusion, as well as green and philanthropic practices, including monetary and business practice commitments.”

Business Outlook

“BofA has been financially conservative following the great recession and has built a fortress balance sheet. I’m very proud of the outlook for BofA and the great culture that’s been built under Brian Moynihan.”

“Undoubtedly, every firm has been affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. Bank of America navigated the uncertainty by staying disciplined and by earning the trust of its clients. While nothing is guaranteed, the steps our firm has taken should set us up for future success.”

“I think the bank is in a relatively good position looking forward. I’m proud of the bank. Strong leadership and strong balance sheet, allowing the firm to to stand by clients and help them thrive.”

“The breath of revenue streams allows the bank to be well positioned in most any environment.”