Credit risk analyst education requirements

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

There are several educational requirements to become a credit risk analyst. Credit risk analysts usually study finance, business, or economics. 70% of credit risk analysts hold a bachelor's degree, and 20% hold an master's degree. We analyzed 2,228 real credit risk analyst resumes to see exactly what credit risk analyst education sections show.

The most common colleges for credit risk analysts are the New York University and the New York University.

There are also many online credit risk analyst courses to help get the education required to be a credit risk analyst.

There are certain credit risk analyst certifications that you should consider. These credit risk analyst certifications include Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) and Certified Financial Risk Manager (FRM).

What education do you need to become a credit risk analyst?

What degree do you need to be a credit risk analyst?

The most common degree for credit risk analysts is bachelor's degree, with 70% of credit risk analysts earning that degree. The second and third most common degree levels are master's degree degree at 20% and master's degree degree at 6%.

Bachelor's, 70%

Master's, 20%

Associate, 6%

High School Diploma, 2%

Other Degrees, 2%

What should I major in to become a credit risk analyst?

You should major in finance to become a credit risk analyst. 28% of credit risk analysts major in finance. Other common majors for a credit risk analyst include business and economics.

Finance, 28%

Business, 25%

Economics, 11%

Accounting, 8%

Other Majors, 28%

Most common colleges for credit risk analysts

Credit risk analysts often get their degrees at New York University, University of Phoenix, and University of Delaware. Here are the most common colleges for credit risk analysts in the US based on their resumes.

Credit risk analyst common college	Percentages
New York University	9.13%
University of Phoenix	8.22%
University of Delaware	7.31%
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey	6.39%
University of South Florida	5.94%

Show more common credit risk analyst colleges

Best majors for credit risk analysts

Rank	Major	Percentages
1	Finance	28.1%
2	Business	24.6%
3	Economics	11.5%
4	Accounting	7.7%
5	Statistics	3.2%

Show more common credit risk analyst majors

Best colleges for credit risk analysts

The best colleges for credit risk analysts are Northwestern University, University of Pennsylvania, and Vanderbilt University.

A credit risk analyst with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for credit risk analysts. We based this list on several metrics: admissions rate, retention rate, mean earnings of graduates, the ratio of working vs. non-working students ten years after admission, the average cost of attendance, and median debt for graduates who become credit risk analysts.

1. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$55,584

Enrollment

10,764

2. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

In-state tuition

$54,568

Enrollment

8,451

3. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$56,225

Enrollment

19,548

4. SUNY at Binghamton

Vestal, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$9,808

Enrollment

13,990

5. Villanova University

Villanova, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$53,308

Enrollment

6,819

6. San Diego State University

San Diego, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,488

Enrollment

30,018

7. Boston University

Boston, MA • Private

In-state tuition

$53,948

Enrollment

17,238

8. SUNY Stony Brook

Stony Brook, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$9,625

Enrollment

17,407

9. New York University

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$51,828

Enrollment

26,339

10. University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

Minneapolis, MN • Private

In-state tuition

$14,760

Enrollment

31,451

20 best online courses for credit risk analysts

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2. Corporate Finance II: Financing Investments and Managing Risk

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3. Intro to Commercial Credit Analysis, Credit Risk and Lending

4.4

(2,213)

Commercial Credit Underwriting Lending & Commercial Credit Financial Analysis Credit Risk Foundations...

4. The Credit Analyst Training course

4.1

(3,058)

Learn the complete Credit Risk Analysis skills for jobs in Banks, Asset Management & Credit Rating Agencies...

5. Credit Repair: The Total Guide to a Great Credit Score

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6. Banking Credit Analysis Process (for Bankers)

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7. Option Spreads and Credit Spreads Bundle

4.7

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8. Credit Risk Modeling in Python

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13. Get Credit for Your EIN That's Not Linked to Your SSN

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14. International Trade Finance - Letter of Credit & UCP 600

4.2

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Letter of Credit UCP 600 Articles Introductory Guide to CDCS Exam...

15. Real-time Credit card Fraud Detection using Spark 2.2

4.4

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Real time Credit card Fraud detection using Spark Streaming, Spark ML, Kafka, Cassandra and Airflow...

16. Financial Accounting-Debits & Credits-Accounting Transaction

4.5

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Masterclass: Learn Accounting Principles, Financial Statements, Transactions & More in this Comprehensive Course...

17. Introduction to Compliance Risk Management CRM

4.1

(300)

Compliance risk management CRM for Compliance, Risk Management, Internal Audit and IS Security Professionals...

18. Informed Risk Taking: Risk Management Process - Analysis

4.5

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Risk Management Strategies : Risk Analysis Techniques : Risk Management Principles : Risk Management Process : Methods...

19. 3-in-1 Banking, Banking Risk and Compliance Masterclass

4.6

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The essentials of the banking business (business model, compliance, others), financial risk management and compliance...

20. Certified Risk Management FMEA ISO 31000 Expert Accredited

4.6

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Certified Risk Management Expert ISO 31000: 2018 FMEA Enterprise Risk Management Risk Assessment Risk Analysis...

Top 10 most affordable universities for credit risk analysts

The most affordable schools for credit risk analysts are Baruch College of the City University of New York, suny farmingdale, and university of florida.

If the best universities for credit risk analysts are out of your price range, check out these affordable schools. After factoring in in-state tuition and fees, the average cost of attendance, admissions rate, average net price, and mean earnings after six years, we found that these are the most affordable schools for credit risk analysts.

1. Baruch College of the City University of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,262

Cost of attendance

14,046

2. SUNY Farmingdale

Farmingdale, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,306

Cost of attendance

16,091

3. University of Florida

Gainesville, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,381

Cost of attendance

21,034

4. Brooklyn College of the City University of New York

Brooklyn, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,240

Cost of attendance

13,991

5. California State University - Long Beach

Long Beach, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,798

Cost of attendance

18,306

6. USF Sarasota-Manatee

Sarasota, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$5,587

Cost of attendance

13,043

7. California State University - Dominguez Hills

Carson, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,942

Cost of attendance

14,469

8. Brigham Young University

Provo, UT • Private

In-state tuition

$5,620

Cost of attendance

18,136

9. University of Puerto Rico - Mayaguez

Mayaguez, PR • Private

In-state tuition

$4,094

Cost of attendance

14,302

10. Florida International University

Miami, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,556

Cost of attendance

19,434

Top 10 hardest universities to get into for credit risk analysts

The hardest universities for credit risk analysts to get into are Northwestern University, University of Pennsylvania, and Vanderbilt University.

Some great schools for credit risk analysts are hard to get into, but they also set your career up for greater success. The list below shows the most challenging universities to get into for credit risk analysts based on an institution's admissions rates, average SAT scores accepted, median ACT scores accepted, and mean earnings of students six years after admission.

1. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

Admissions rate

SAT average

1,508

2. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

Admissions rate

SAT average

1,492

3. Vanderbilt University

Nashville, TN • Private

Admissions rate

10%

SAT average

1,514

4. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

13%

SAT average

1,445

5. New York University

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

20%

SAT average

1,419

6. Boston University

Boston, MA • Private

Admissions rate

22%

SAT average

1,420

7. Villanova University

Villanova, PA • Private

Admissions rate

29%

SAT average

1,407

8. Carnegie Mellon University

Pittsburgh, PA • Private

Admissions rate

17%

SAT average

1,507

9. Washington University in St Louis

Saint Louis, MO • Private

Admissions rate

15%

SAT average

1,506

10. Boston College

Chestnut Hill, MA • Private

Admissions rate

28%

SAT average

1,429

Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for credit risk analysts

The easiest schools for credit risk analysts to get into are Oklahoma Wesleyan University, notre dame college, and holy names university.

Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a credit risk analyst without much hassle, check out the list of schools where you will be accepted in no time. We compiled admissions rates, average SAT scores, average ACT scores, and average salary of students six years after graduation to uncover which were the easiest schools to get into for credit risk analysts.

1. Oklahoma Wesleyan University

Bartlesville, OK • Private

Admissions rate

68%

SAT average

964

2. Notre Dame College

Cleveland, OH • Private

Admissions rate

90%

SAT average

994

3. Holy Names University

Oakland, CA • Private

Admissions rate

70%

SAT average

849

4. Kean University

Union, NJ • Private

Admissions rate

86%

SAT average

991

5. Barry University

Miami, FL • Private

Admissions rate

91%

SAT average

1,006

6. William Paterson University of New Jersey

Wayne, NJ • Private

Admissions rate

93%

SAT average

994

7. Iona College

New Rochelle, NY • Private

Admissions rate

88%

SAT average

1,089

8. Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey - Camden

Camden, NJ • Private

Admissions rate

71%

SAT average

1,086

9. Midwestern State University

Wichita Falls, TX • Private

Admissions rate

71%

SAT average

1,033

10. Rosemont College

Rosemont, PA • Private

Admissions rate

89%

SAT average

1,026

Average credit risk analyst salary by education level

According to our data, credit risk analysts with a Bachelor's degree earn the highest average salary, at $91,849 annually. Credit risk analysts with a Associate degree earn an average annual salary of $80,436.

Credit risk analyst education level	Credit risk analyst salary
Bachelor's Degree	$91,849
Some College/ Associate Degree	$80,436

Credit risk analyst education FAQs

What is the best college for Credit Risk Analysts?

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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

Updated January 8, 2025

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