Credit Analyst

Because it’s based on the past, a credit score works like a key that either locks or unlocks one’s future. Your ability to buy a car, get a mortgage, secure a student loan, open a new bank account and even land a new job: All that and more hinges on your credit score.

That makes a Credit Analyst a financial Gatekeeper, of sorts. That’s because it’s the Credit Analyst’s job to assess the “creditworthiness” of individuals who are applying for a loan or line of credit.

Whether you’re employed by a commercial or investment bank, a credit card company or a credit rating agency, if you’re a Credit Analyst you are responsible for guarding your institution’s figurative front door, deciding who gets in and who doesn’t.

To make your decisions, you’ll spend your days researching loan applicants, looking at their FICO scores, for instance, reviewing their credit reports, and reviewing their pay stubs or bank accounts in order to determine their payment habits and history, their annual earnings and savings, and their purchasing behaviors — all of which will paint a picture about how risky an investment the individual is.

Simply put: Banks want to know, “If I lend someone money, will they pay me back?” It’s your job to answer yes or no, then recommend a course of action. In addition to accepting or rejecting loan applications, for instance, you might make decisions about applicants’ interest rates and credit limits.

They say the pen is mightier than the sword; you’re proof — for consumers, at least — that credit scores are mightier than both.