Analyst, Underwriter; Direct Lending

What You'll Do

Principal Alternative Credit is the direct lending arm of Principal Asset Management, providing flexible financing solutions to sponsor-backed and non-sponsored middle‑market companies. Since launching in 2020, the platform has scaled rapidly, deploying capital across leveraged buyouts, refinancings, recapitalizations, and growth investments.

We’ll help you build a successful career through:

• Coaching and mentorship from senior team members committed to your long‑term development
• Ongoing training and opportunities to build new skills and take on increased responsibility
• Access to tools and resources that enable you to work efficiently and effectively
• Opportunities to expand your network through volunteering, targeted events, and strategic introductions

As an Analyst, you will:

• Conduct due diligence including company and industry research, financial analysis, and cash flow modeling to assess creditworthiness
• Support preparation of credit memos and present recommendations to the investment committee
• Partner with stakeholders including sponsors, management teams, bankers, and internal teams
• Monitor portfolio performance and compliance with credit agreements and internal policies
• Ensure portfolio data is accurate, timely, and complete for reporting purposes
• Collaborate with team members to support deal execution and ongoing business initiatives

• Bachelor's degree in finance, accounting, economics, or a related field (minimum of 3.50 GPA)
• Ability to analyze financial statements, evaluate data, and formulate conclusions; familiarity with leveraged buyout modeling
• Proficient in Excel, Microsoft Word, and Power Point

• Previous experience with Bloomberg preferred
• Knowledge of private credit/direct lending and fixed income strategies, including general knowledge of bond mechanics and pricing calculations is preferred
• Familiarity with database structures, big data techniques (e.g., Cassandra, Spark, Hadoop), and programming languages (e.g., Python, MATLAB, R) a plus
• Previous internship in finance preferred

Salary ranges below reflect targeted base salaries. Actual compensation for all roles will be based upon geographic location, work experience, education, licensure requirements and/or skill level and will be finalized at the time of offer.

• Des Moines, IA: $89,300 – $120,650 / year
• Chicago, IL: $103,400 – $139,700 / year
• New York, NY: $112,800 – $152,400 / year

Flexible Time Off (FTO) is provided to salaried (exempt) employees and provides the opportunity to take time away from the office with pay for vacation, personal or short‑term illness. Employees don’t accrue a bank of time off under FTO and there is no set number of days provided.

Principal is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or veteran status.