How to Break into Direct Lending

Hey guys/gals,

I was wonder how do you break into direct lending?

1. Can you get a job in direct lending straight out of college or do you have to start your career in IB or CB and then transition into it?

2. How do you network to people/what do I type in on LinkedIn to find people with this job?

3. What type of internships should I be doing/applying for? Will a credit analyst internship help prepare me?

4. What resource should I use to prepare me for a career in direct lending?(books, websites, course, etc)

5 Comments
 

When you transitioned was there something that you had to study/prepare for or did FI prepare you for your role in direct lending? Also, we're there any colleagues of your that go a job at your firm right out of college? or do you know/have you heard if it would be harder to break into from college? Thank you for replying!

 

If you intern in AM, you can land directly into a DL team. At that point you have no experience but learn the ropes on the job. I know some people at my firm that interned on the private side and got a FT offer and returned back in that team, so no you don’t necessarily need to have this wealth of knowledge that I’m assuming you’d build up from starting of in the SS.

 

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