Becoming a Credit Manager
Credit managers make the final decisions on who will get credit from a company or financial institution. They may work for a car dealership, putting together loans for new car buyers, or for a credit card company, issuing credit to consumers.
Get Your Degree Online!
If helping people get the money to realize their dream of buying a car or starting a small business sounds appealing, you will enjoy a career as a credit manager. Put your people skills and your love for detail to work after you have earned the degree necessary to get started.
Cash Manager Degrees
Most credit manager positions require at least a bachelor's degree, but applicants holding a master's degree are preferred. It is helpful to keep updated with legal issues and changing global markets by taking online courses as part of a continuing education program, even after you've obtained your degree.
Online Associate Degrees
Online Bachelor's Degrees
Online Master's Degrees
Ph.D. Programs
Credit Manager Job Description
There are two kinds of credit managers -- those who work on the consumer side of finance and those who work on the commercial side.
A consumer credit manager may work in a small company such as a car dealership or furniture store helping people fill out credit applications and checking their credit references. In larger institutions, such as credit card companies or banks, the credit manager supervises a team of people who are working on credit issues for their department.
Commercial credit managers work in financial institutions and make decisions about the credit worthiness of large and small businesses. They research the firm's credit history and decide whether the financial institution can lend them money to start or grow their business. A commercial credit manager is often involved in loans worth thousands or millions of dollars. They will often travel to financial association meetings or meetings with high-profile clients.
Credit Manager Salary
For their knowledge of legal and business issues that affect the economy, both locally and globally, credit managers are well paid. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics, the median salary for a depository credit manager (such as in a bank) was $72,580. For a non-depository credit manager (a commercial credit manager) the median salary was $86,340 as of May 2006. Because they are found in every industry, credit manager jobs are expected to grow 13 percent between now and 2016.
