What To Look For In a Correctional Officer Course

Are you interested in a loan officer job? These specialized positions mostly work in banks or lending institutions. The job is very similar to a mortgage broker job. In fact, the two overlap in many ways. There are a number of career opportunities, but you will need some specialized skills and knowledge to get these jobs.

Education and Skills

While you can't get a degree in loan management, you can get a degree in business, finance, or economics. However, you may be able to get a loan officer job with any bachelor's degree if you have some knowledge and experience in the following areas:

• principles of marketing and promoting services/products
• accounting
• customer/project evaluation
• economics
• data analysis and reporting
• mathematics

In addition to knowledge of these areas, it also helps to have very good writing and grammar skills, good time-management skills, and an excellent eye for detail. Most loan officers work directly with customers, so you will also need to be able to clearly communicate information to them. You will need to be able to make decisions based on the information customers give you. Being an officer is also partially a sales position - you want to convince customers they should apply for a loan through your institution, not another.

A Loan Officer's Work Environment

As an officer, you'll work primarily indoors at a bank or other lending institution. You will most likely have your own office where you can meet with prospective customers or those who have a loan with your bank. Most work a standard workweek, although some may be required to work on Saturday (most banks are closed on Sunday). While most of these jobs do work directly with the public, some mortgage broker jobs and high-level loan officer positions do not. These positions usually deal with the very large loans. Officers spend a lot of time using computers, so some computer skills are required.

Job Duties

These job duties mainly include working with customers to determine what type of loans they qualify for. They will interview the customer, evaluate the information given, and decide if the customer qualifies for a loan or not. In some cases, they will also make the final decision; in other cases, he or she will present the information to another officer and make a recommendation. Their will also work with customers who want to refinance or who need help making payment arrangements.

Specialization

While a loan officer may deal with many types of loans, most prefer to specialize. Mortgage brokers deal only with home mortgages, while commercial brokers handle only business loans.

The Job Market

The loan officer and mortgage broker job market is expected to increase at an average pace through 2018. The average salary in 2009 was around $55,000, and that salary is expected to increase slightly over the next five years.

A career as a loan officer offers a good salary, indoor work environment, and the chance to work with the public. You also have the chance to advance to working at a larger branch, working as a supervisor, or making final decisions regarding large loans.