Want to make a good living taking on renegade trading rascals on Wall Street? That's the charge of the Securities and Exchange Commission, the federal agency whose reason for being is holding♏ Wall Street, and the entire financial investment industry, accountable for their trading and investment practices.

The SEC, headquartered in Washington, D.C., has been around since 1934 when Congress green-lit a federal agency that would better protect U.S. investors in the aftermath of the Great Depression. Decades later, the SEC's mission remains the same—"protecting investors, maintaining fair, orderly, and efficient markets, and facilitating capital formation," as the agency states on its website, meaning all SEC jobs will fall under this umbrella.

Because protecting those investors is a cumbersome, complicated, and arduous business, the SEC is constantly hiring skilled attorneys, accountants, investigators,🍒 and administrative help.

Advantages of SEC Careers

The benefits of working for the SEC are abundant. As an employee, you'll earn: 

• Competitive salary: The average pay for SEC employees was $215,697 as of May 2023. Salaries are capped at $213,881 for staff, but senior officers earn up to $281,416.
• Annual Leave: SEC employees with one to three years get 13 days of paid leave, while employees with four to 15 years get 20 days of paid vacation. If you're with the agency 20 years or more, you'll earn 26 days of paid leave.
• Paid Time Off: SEC employees also receive 11 paid holidays off annually. 
• Paid Health Benefits: The SEC offers comprehensive employee healthcare plans, which can pay almost 100% of all healthcare costs, plus a solid life insurance policy. 
• Full Retirement Benefits: SEC staffers are also eligible for the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Federal Employ🅺ees Retirement System (FERS), which is a three-part retirement plan: Social Security, basic annuity, and the Thrift Savings Plan. Employees pay Social Security taxes and contribute to the basic annuity.
• Subsidized Benefits: SEC employees can also be eligible for subsidized student loan payments of up to $10,000 per year, child care allowances, and transit subsidies to help with commuting costs (even if you travel to work by bike). 

Disadvantages of SEC Careers

On the downside, salaries and bonuses at SEC jobs might not compete with those in the private financial services sector. For example, SEC attorneys in the SK Grade 12 salary range may earn between $74,778 and $126,697, but entry-level new hires could earn less than that.

Also, 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:🙈geography plays𓂃 heavily into the equation. The SEC's positions are located in offices in 11 U.S. cities—Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Miami, Chicago, Denver, Fort Worth, Salt Lake City, Los Angeles, and San Francisco—along with its headquarters in Washington, D.C. If you don't live nearby one of those locations, you may have𒁏 to pack your bags.

Skillset Needed to Work at SEC

To be an attractive candidate for the SEC, candidates must often have a combination of relevant work experience and education. It's essential to have a firm grasp of the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:relevant securities laws, financial regulations, and legal frameworks. This includes the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Investment Advisers Act of 1940, the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Securities Act of 1933. More vaguely, it's crღitical to be knowledgeable about financial analysis, accounting concepts, and𓄧 financial statement interpretation.

Strong analytical and research skills are required for conducting investigations, analyzing financial data, and finding probable securities law violations. This includes having the capacity to examine and decipher intricate financial statements and records. This research often culminates with written reports, so it's important candidates demonstrate their ability to clearly and professionally transmit complicated matters. Drafting reports, letters, legal briefs, and other papers is a common task for SEC professionals.

Last, being ethically and morally uprigh♕t is essential when working for a regulatory organization like the SEC. Confidentiality and upholding professional standards are essential parts of the job. The SEC often has access to sen𝕴sitive and confidential information that must be maintained with utmost respect and delicacy.

How to Get in the Door 

On-Site Interviews

If you're a college student about to graduate and have great grades and a polished academic background, the SEC may come to you. The agency has many ways of connecting with college students, new graduates, and other potential hires, including internships, honors programs, and outreach through bar associations. Check with yꦐour college's employment offices for more detailౠs, or check out the .

Experience

The SEC is fairly picky about who they bring aboard. If you have deep experience in the securities sector, especially for law firms, investment or accounting companies, and 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:investment industry regulation outfits, the SEC will likely want to tal🎉k to you𓄧.

Academic Credentials

The SEC 🎉usually targets new hires with a four-year degree, usually with a law or business degree, and some direct experience in tho🦹se fields for staff positions (usually one year or more.)

Hit the SEC Website for New Job Postings

The൩ SEC regularly lists new job posts on its website. The agency offers video tutorials on who they are and what kind of career professionals they're looking for. The SEC also offers job connections on X (formerly ).

How to Apply to the SEC

The SEC makes i♕t fairly easy to apply for employment. First, identify the job you want, then follow the SEC online application process to the letter and wait for a response꧟.

The agency reviews your application and evaluates your qualifications, sending the highest-qualified applicants to the hiring official. If you're successful, you'll be contacted by the SEC's human resources department to schedule a job interview.

At the interview, the SEC will want to evaluate your 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:ability to be a team player and how to work within a strict workplace hierarchy (the SEC places a big premium on staffers getting along, as they often work so closely together, much more than at a trad♏itional law firm or investment bank.)

The SEC also favors hiring staffers who they've worked with before—usually on the other side of the table in a lawsuit, agency review, or other compliance-related issues. Insiders say they mostly earned their posts through networking and professional alliances, so be visible in your workplace or at college hiring fairs.

If you're chosen as the candidate for the job, you'll receive the job offer, and the background check process begins.

The Bottom Line

Getting a job with the SEC isn't easy, but it's surely not impossible, either. Stay connected with the SEC, work on your credentials, and network as aggressively as you can. Do that, and you stand a good chance of building a career at the Securities and Exchange Commission—hopefully, a long and rewarding one.