Post MBA moves from public equities to private equities

Hi guys:

I've learned a lot from this forum and would really appreciate your insights on the following - If a person works in public equities investing for 2 years post-mba (assuming it's a concentrated strategy with long holding period, and detailed due diligence), but want to work in private equity later on, how can one think through such a move? The target PE firms are smaller /more niche (perhaps more focused on illiquid situations, turn-around, value creation, etc), and in smaller cities. It's okay to start from associate again. (Before you ask, for a variety of reasons, directly doing PE post-mba is not an open route here).

How can such a move be contemplated? Would it be possible? What skillsets should be highlighted?

Thanks