The banking sector has evolved into an industry that employs highly skilled individuals. Today, degreed individuals are preferred for many entry-level jobs and an undergraduate degree is no longer sufficient to climb the career ladder further. Solid knowledge in advanced banking concepts and how a bank operates as a business are required at a minimum. 

The Higher Certificate in Banking Services is an entry-level higher education qualification aimed at equipping you with the required knowledge and skills to operate successfully in a specific junior/entry-level role within the banking sector. 

Once you have completed the programme, you will be able to:

• demonstrate an understanding of financial legislative requirements and apply the applicable law in a banking services environment
• demonstrate an understanding of how banks and other financial services providers operate in the financial system
• demonstrate knowledge and insight into the products and services offered by banks and related financial services providers
• apply knowledge and skill to operate responsibly in a selected discipline within the banking services sector.

DESCRIPTION AND PROGRAMME PURPOSE

The Higher Certificate in Banking Services is an entry-level HE qualification designed to equip students with the knowledge and skills required to operate successfully in a specific entry position in an organisation that promotes banking services.

The South African banking sector is still viewed as a world-class, strong regulatory and supervisory environment, with adequate capital, technology and infrastructure, employing over 200 000 people. There is a continuous drive in the sector to employ qualified individuals, or to upskill internal staff, based on the regulatory and supervisory requirements.

However, banking as an industry has been widely disrupted for a while already, and this is expected to continue. With major technological advancements comes a focus on the sale of more universal, but also non-traditional banking products as well as a drive for compliance and risk management, and challenges like fraud and financial crime. In an industry that is changing at an unprecedented pace, and where traditional financial institutions transform, and new competitors enter the market, individuals need to be equipped with skills and competencies that are future-fit and get their heads around completely new roles and job profiles.

The purpose of this qualification is to expose students to current content within the banking sector, and hence enable them to grow into a junior role in banking. It is possible to specialise in various areas of retail banking, such as sales, retail credit, fraud, etc. In this way, students are introduced to an exciting area of banking as a stepping stone to a further career in the financial services industry. 

The curriculum is designed to ensure that students are familiar with the contexts in which banking services are promoted. Firstly, a general understanding of the legislative environment, as well as of the sector and suitable products/services for its customers, is developed. Secondly, students are familiarised with, and given appropriate skills and knowledge, in order to operate in a specific field in an entry level environment of the  organisation. The Higher Certificate in Banking Services appears on the Financial Sector Conduct Authority’s (FSCA) list of recognised qualifications for FAIS Fit and Proper purposes.

WHO SHOULD ENROL

The programme would be suitable for:

• a school-leaver who wishes to enter a junior position in banking services.
• a person who has achieved another qualification in an applied area of practice or a non-vocational area, and who seeks a more banking services-orientated qualification.
• an employed person wishing to enhance, develop or formalise his skills and knowledge with a qualification in this area.

PROGRAMME OUTCOMES

Successful completion of this qualification should enable the student to:

1. Demonstrate an understanding of financial legislative requirements and apply the applicable law in a banking services environment.
2. Demonstrate an understanding of how banks and other financial services providers operate in the financial system.
3. Demonstrate knowledge and insight into the products and services offered by banks and related financial services providers.
4. Apply knowledge and skill to operate responsibly in a selected discipline within the banking services sector.

PROGRAMME STRUCTURE

Note: Please refer to the timetable to establish in which cycles the module is available

For entry into the Higher Certificate, candidates require a Senior Certificate (SC) or a National Senior Certificate (NSC), as certified by Umalusi, with a minimum mark of 40% in English, the language of instruction at Milpark Education.

Other certificates

Any applicant who has a certificate other than a South African National Senior Certificate has to provide:

• a SAQA Certificate of Equivalence, if they want to enrol for a Higher Certificate, Advanced Certificate, Diploma or Postgraduate qualification (www.saqa.org.za)
• or a USAF Exemption Certificate, if they want to enrol for a Bachelor’s degree (https://mb.usaf.ac.za/).

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) applications

Milpark admits a small number of students onto its programme via Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL). Applicants interested in applying via RPL will be considered individually by the relevant Head of School.

Distance Learning (DL) Cycles

Distance Learning (DL) Semesters

Downloads 

Information Pack

Fees & Funding

Textbooks

Timetable