Apr 06, 2021Apr 06, 2021

Should I go into private credit out of undergrad?

IB
Intern in IB - Gen
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Incoming SA at a MM, and I am really interested in going into private credit / direct lending in the long term. I am fairly sure that is where I want to be longer term, so I don't care as much about getting siloed into debt. Are there any other potential downsides to doing so straight out of undergrad versus doing 2 years in IB? Would comp scale differently one way or the other? Am I losing out on valuable skills that would make me a better DL associate? I know this has been discussed some around private equity, but not sure how things might change on the credit side of things.

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Comments (6)

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Apr 8, 2021 - 8:32pm

I think it's fine if you feel like you are competent at modeling and proactive and hungry. I have found that (some) analysts from undergrad are not as strong technically and not as hungry (putting together data lists, going through materials, setting up meetings, moving things along) as associates, but it depends on the person. 

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  • IB
  • Intern in IB - Gen
  • Anonymous
Apr 8, 2021 - 9:01pm

Do you know what that recruiting timeline would look like? Would that be going on right at the end of the summer when I would be accepting a return offer or is it earlier / later than that?

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  • Anonymous
Apr 8, 2021 - 11:52pm

I think this hits nail on the head...

Analysts coming out of undergrad generally display somewhat lacking ability in the soft skill department - which typically gets developed through drinking from a fire hose in an IB culture environment. Just know that no one on the buyside takes time to teach you this stuff, as most are used to taking it for granted given the traditional pipeline.

Unless it is a major brand like Ares/GSO/KKR, I would suggest just experiencing banking if only for just a year or two

Authored by: Certified Hedge Fund Professional - Investment AnalystCertified Hedge Fund Pro

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