Blog

From Apprentice to Equity Specialist: My First Two Years at Bloomberg

· career, bloomberg, apprenticeship

In September 2022, I walked into Bloomberg’s London office as a CAMS Specialist — 18 years old, fresh out of sixth form, with A-Levels in Business, Economics, and Computer Science but no practical finance experience. Two years later I was an Equity Specialist, Analytics, handling ~100 client queries a week and leading training sessions for new apprentices.

Year One: Learning to Learn

My first role — CAMS Specialist — was all about supporting the sales team on RFPs. I coordinated responses across internal teams, kept proposals on track, and learned how Bloomberg worked from the inside.

Key lessons from year one:

  • Ask questions early. The cost of pretending you understand is much higher than the cost of asking.
  • Find the people who know. Every organisation has them — the colleagues who’ve been there forever and know how everything actually works. Find them. Learn from them.
  • Own your mistakes. I got things wrong. Everyone does. What mattered was fixing them fast and not making the same mistake twice.

I also completed four weeks of foundational Terminal training (FT1), followed by four weeks of multi-asset class training covering Fixed Income, FX, Commodities, and Equities. Then three weeks of specialist equity training. By December 2023, I was an Equity Specialist.

Year Two: Finding My Voice

As an Equity Specialist, my work shifted from internal coordination to direct client engagement. I was now the person clients called when they needed help with the Terminal’s equity functions.

The learning curve was steep but exhilarating:

  • Resolving complex client queries at pace taught me to think on my feet
  • Delivering training sessions built my confidence in presenting
  • Leading the workflow redesign project showed me the impact I could have

I also joined the Apprentice Committee, helped organise events with a £10,000 budget, and represented Bloomberg at careers events — including being invited back to speak at my old school.

What I’d Tell My 18-Year-Old Self

  1. You belong here. Imposter syndrome is real, but it lies.
  2. Work ethic compounds. Showing up, doing the work, caring about quality — these things add up over time.
  3. Say yes to opportunities. The apprentice committee, the careers events, the extra training sessions — none of it was in my job description. All of it made me better.

Two years at Bloomberg taught me more than any classroom could. I’m ready for whatever comes next.