best career path to enter the private equity industry

hello everyone,
I wanted to ask you for those who have experience in this field what is the best career path to learn the best skills to enter the private equity world, and at the same time what is the fastest way to get in.
To give you some context I am a Masters student at an EU target university with a GPA of 3.7/4.0.
In your opinion, is it possible to achieve my goal not only by taking a classical route with a few years in IB or MBB, but also by joining a small PE firm, or is it compulsory to go through the world of IB and strategy consulting? 

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