Good evening all, I have recently been hired into a credit analyst program in which I will spend two months in training, and then will be doing credit analysis for a large bank. I have had my eyes on doing either a masters program or the CFA program for a while now, but this job will take me out of the state and delay entry into any kind of masters program for at least a year or two. My question is twofold: first, would there be any point in completing the CFA curriculum if I did not intend to get into investment research/asset management? And second, does anybody here do similar work? Thank you for your time, dmiller385
Sounds to me like the answer is “no,” but credit analysis is investment research as long as it involves more than data entry into a software that tells you what to say.
Have you considered the possibility of this path? Credit analysis -> commercial lending, which opens the door to: - Mezzanine debt funds - Private placements
I started as a credit analyst, switched to the relationship management side as a corporate lender, and got my charter along the way, so yes, you can do the CFA and you can advance in this field.
I am a credit analyst in project finance & LBO to a lesser extent. Switching to front office by the end of the year though. I personally think that credit analysis is a very underrated way to get into something very interesting. Also on the plus side the bullshit amount of your work is minimal (unless you are doing ratings the whole day). In my department credit analysts sit next to and interact constantly with front office people as well as clients. But watch out for structures in which the credit department is not on the same floor or sometimes even in the the same building as the front office people.
Credit analysis is a fantastic way to start off a career. I completed a 2-year program at GE Capital, went into corporate lending, then commercial banking, and now work for an investment firm advising institutional clients. Credit programs teach you most of what you need to know to thoroughly understand financial statements and lending… pretty much what a huge chunk of the CFA level I was all about. I would say you made a great decision to enter a credit program (just stay away from small ticket lending).