Credit Analyst as a Career
Description of the Job
A Credit Analyst is responsible for evaluating the financial health of a loan applicant to determine whether their application can be approved. Their duties include working with Junior Credit Analysts to investigate a loan applicant’s finances, helping business owners determine the financial risks associated with a potential client, and adhering to lending protocols to confirm or deny applicants their loan.
Fast Facts
- Number of hours per weekGenerally 40-45. Can be closer to 60 when deadline
- Average starting pay$56k national average, $60k-67k for Bay Area
- Amount of travel requiredNone to very little
Roles & Responsibilities
- Enter, update and retrieve information for credit applications.
- Determine the creditworthiness of applicants.
- Designate the degree of risk involved in extending credit by performing a cash flow analysis of each business.
- Ensure that all approved applications comply with bank criteria.
- Review deals involving junior Credit Analysts and assist them as needed.
- Assist with bank and client audits.
Skills Needed
- Knowledge of industry: credit analysts should be familiar with the industry they work in to create reliable reports and analyses, and also stay up to date with industry trends
- Computing skills: credit analysts often use financial and accounting software to make calculations and risk assessments
- Communication skills: credit analysts often work with company management and clients to discuss issues and explain certain information
- Attention to detail: the information that credit analysts handle is sensitive and crucial to the business, so careful attention is important
- Documentation and organization skills: credit analysts often are required to keep updated records of clients' information, so must keep it very organized.
- Knowledge in risk analysis: helps to foresee all possible challenges when handling financial data and making reports and recommendations
Steps to Enter The Field
- A bachelor’s degree is required for becoming a credit analyst, and common majors to have are finance, accounting, statistics, or a related field
- Any side or class projects that have to do with risk assessment can be helpful to demonstrate one’s skill in the area.
- Although not required, gaining certifications can boost your chances of becoming a credit analyst or progressing in your career. Some related certifications include Certified Credit and Risk Analyst (CCRA), Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA), and Certified Risk Analyst (CRA)
Landscape of the Field & Companies in the Field
- There are a wide variety of companies that credit analysts can be employed at. Some include:
- Commercial banks (Wells Fargo, JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America, etc.)
- Investment banks (JP Morgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, Morgan Stanley, etc.)
- Credit card companies (Chase, Visa, Mastercard, Citibank, etc.)
- Credit rating agencies (S&P Global, Moody’s, Fitch Ratings, etc.)
- Investment companies (BlackRock, Credit Suisse, UBS, etc.).
- Non-financial companies: these include any type of company in any industry. Credit analysts would work in the credit department of the company.
- Note that some companies are in two categories, such as Goldman Sachs who is a commercial bank, investment bank, and investment company.
External Resources to Learn More & Develop Skills
- Lessons about credit: Corporate Finance Institute provides a comprehensive overview of what credit it and useful terms and lessons. These would be helpful for a career as a credit analyst
- Lessons about Credit analysis: CFI provides another lesson with more specific information to credit analysis
- Description of the 5 “C’s” of Credit: There are 5 C’s when evaluating credit in the industry, and this gives an overview of them.
- Blog on becoming a credit analyst: Blog from University of Alabama on advice to become a credit analyst
Related Careers
- Auditors, Brokerage Clerks, Budget Analysts, Loan Clerks, Financial Analysts, Insurance Underwriters, Tax Examiners, Tax Preparers, Buyers and Purchasing Agents, Cost Estimators, Financial Counselors, Insurance Adjusters and Examiners, Loan Officers, Job Benefits and Analysis Specialists, Credit Counselors
Informational Interviews
Annie Loose
Company Name: First Republic Bank
Title: Credit Analyst
Years of Experience: 2
Biography
Hi! I’m Annie Loose, I graduated from Santa Clara with a Bachelor of Science in Economics in 2019. I’m a California native; I grew up in the East Bay in Moraga. Currently, I’m a Credit Analyst at First Republic Bank, based in San Francisco, where I started in October of 2020. More specifically, I am underwriting personal loans which entails performing a financial background check of sorts, trying to assess if the applicant is a prudent borrower based on their financial behavior and history. The role is multi-faceted, requiring a wide breadth of knowledge in lending, personal finance and banking in general. The product is still relatively new, about one year old, so there are still plenty of changes and updates that keep analysts on their toes! As someone who loves learning this has been a great role that has exposed to me to many topics that are applicable to many other roles and industries.
Overview
Steps took to enter field
Challenges & Favorite Parts
Advice
Michelle Coleman
Company Name: First Republic Bank
Title: Credit Analyst, Private Equity Finance
Years of Experience: 4
Biography
Michelle Coleman is a Credit Analyst in the Private Equity Finance group at First Republic Bank. She graduated from Santa Clara University in 2017 with degrees in Economics and Political Science. She first joined FRB as a Digital Channels Associate, then became a Portfolio Quality Analyst before becoming a Credit Analyst.
Overview
Steps took to enter field
Challenges & Favorite Parts
Advice
Gibson Cooper
Company Name: First Republic Bank
Title: Credit Analyst
Years of Experience: 4
Biography
Gibson Cooper is a Credit Analyst in the Private Equity & Venture Capital at First Republic Bank. Gibson graduated from Santa Clara University in 2017 as a Finance major and Entrepreneurship minor. Gibson started his career as a Credit Specialist at LendingClub before joining First Republic Bank as a Portfolio Quality Analyst, then become a Credit Analyst after 2 years.