Careers at Royal Bank of Canada
The RBC (Royal Bank of Canada) is a 150-year-old global financial institution expanding across Canada, the United States, and 27 other countries. They are one of Canada's biggest banks with over 88,000+ employees and 17 million clients.
RBC's purpose is to inspire its employees to build a better future for their clients and communities.
The bank has a strong value-driven culture. Understanding these values is an important step in the application process. The 5 core values are:
- Client First
- Collaboration
- Accountability
- Diversity & Inclusion
- Integrity
In Canada, the RBC's main goal is to be the number one leader in financial services. In the U.S RBC aims to be the preferred partner to corporate, institutional and high-net-worth clients and their businesses. In other global markets, they wish to be the first choice for financial service partnerships and expertise.
Royal Bank of Canada Application Process
RBC is an international employer - applying for RBC needs to be a well-planned and prepared process. The application involves the following stages:
- Online application
- Online assessment
- Interview
Understanding the format of the application process can give you an edge over other candidates as it will allow you to prepare as much as possible.
Royal Bank of Canada Online Application
Once you have decided the division and role you'd like to apply for, you will be required to submit an application on RBC's careers website.
The core divisions to apply for are:
- Personal & commercial banking
- Wealth management
- Capital markets
- Investor & treasury services
- Technology & operations
- Insurance
- Corporate functions
- RBC ventures
The typical standard information is required as well as a resume/CV and cover letter.
You will also be asked job-specific questions. For these questions, you should reflect on the job description and try to use keywords from it to make your application stand out.
Royal Bank of Canada Aptitude Tests
Once you have submitted your online application, you will be required to complete a series of online assessments (also known as aptitude tests).
Aptitude tests will help RBC assess if you have the required skills to succeed in the position you've applied for. The assessments test your numerical and verbal reasoning skills as well as your situational judgement.
In order to do well in the online assessments, it is important to practice under timed conditions. This will allow you to build confidence and prepare for the format of the tests. To be considered for shortlisting it is important to try and achieve the top 50% of test-taker marks, but the scores for each job will vary. This is why practice is very essential.
Royal Bank of Canada Numerical Reasoning Test
A numerical reasoning test assesses your ability to work with numerical data under pressure. Although there are elements of high school-level math involved, the test is not so much focused on examining your math skills (although sharpening your math is a good first step when practicing), the assessors are looking at how well you can answer mathematical questions under pressure.
Numerical reasoning tests replicate what it's like to work at RBC - having to answer math questions and work out quick calculations on the spot. For this reason, you are typically given a minute to answer each question and they get progressively more challenging.
Royal Bank of Canada Verbal Reasoning Test
A verbal reasoning test assesses your ability to read, evaluate and interpret written information - you will need to identify things like assumptions, facts, inferences and be able to draw conclusions for text passages. Answers are multiple-choice and the test is also timed.
Verbal reasoning is an important skill at RBC as they are looking for employees who can interpret information well. The test replicates workplace scenarios such as if you were given a business report to read and summarize for a team - this would often require verbal reasoning, and so it is a useful skill across many divisions.
Royal Bank of Canada Situational Judgement Test
A situational judgement test assesses your choices when given business situations and scenarios similar to your role. It's a good indicator for RBC to judge your choices if you were placed in that situation at work and how you would respond.
Emotional intelligence, your ability to rationalize and communicate are just a few of the important skills being tested. Although in some cases there are no obvious right or wrong answers, it's important to be strategic and remember the values of RBC.
Other aptitude tests at Royal Bank of Canada
You might be asked to take part in a few other aptitude tests depending on the role you apply for. These could be an abstract reasoning test, personality assessment or EDPT test.
Abstract Reasoning Test: For this test, you are asked to work out the pattern from various shapes or images and asked to spot the trend.
Personality Assessment: You might be given a personality test that assesses your responses to statements based on how much you agree or disagree.
EDPT Test (programming roles only): for computer and IT-based roles, you may be asked to take part in an EDPT test that examines your ability to use computing logic.
Royal Bank of Canada Interview
If you are successful and pass the online assessments, the next stage of the process is several interview rounds. This involves meeting various managers and answering questions in a formal interview style setup. The questions will be based on motivations, behaviours, and situations you might experience in the role.
You'll likely be given a brief phone interview and then asked to attend one or multiple in-person interviews.
The interviews will be behavioural-based interview questions. RBC recommend following this framework to answer the questions:
- Describe the situation, the action you took and what the outcome was
- Listen carefully and ensure you are answering the question
- Explain using examples from previous jobs or life experience
If successful, you will likely meet with your manager and other potential members of the team.
