Best tools to prep for a private credit job
TL;DR
Private credit is direct lending to companies, often mid-market, often sponsor-backed. The core work is credit underwriting, covenant design, and continuous monitoring. Learn to build a debt schedule and read a credit agreement.
What private credit does
Instead of buying a company, the fund lends to it. Returns come from interest, fees and covenants rather than an exit multiple. That changes what analysts spend their day on.
You will read credit agreements, model downside cases (base, downside, stress), track covenants quarterly and produce short credit memos. The IC memo looks different from a PE memo: recommendation, borrower, sponsor, capital structure, covenants, downside recovery.
How to prep
Learn to build a simple debt schedule. Understand the difference between senior secured, unitranche and mezzanine. Read one real credit agreement and highlight the covenants. Model a covenant breach and what happens next.
How this shows up on the job
You are on origination calls, pulling financials for underwriting, updating the borrower's downside case, and helping produce the quarterly monitoring memo. Every one of those runs on structured borrower data and a memo trail your IC can audit.
How Reuben AI helps
Reuben AI runs the private credit workflow end to end: origination pipeline, underwriting memos, covenant tracking and LP reporting on one platform. Students can start on the Free workspace.
Sources
Frequently asked questions
Is private credit safer than PE?
Different, not safer. Downside is usually smaller but so is upside. Recovery in a stress case matters far more than in equity.
What is a covenant?
A promise in the loan agreement. Common ones limit leverage or require minimum interest coverage. Breach means the lender can act.
Do I need to know Excel deeply?
Yes. Debt schedules are Excel-heavy. Fluency helps a lot.
What is a unitranche loan?
A single loan that combines senior and subordinated debt into one tranche with one blended rate. Common in mid-market direct lending.
How different is the IC memo?
Similar structure, but the emphasis is on downside protection and covenants rather than exit value.
Learn on the platform you will use on the job.
Start with the Free workspace to practise IC memos, LBOs, DCFs and private-capital workflows. Faculty, program leads and student investment club leaders can book a demo to discuss teaching seats and program access.