MightyRecruiterPeople struggling with debt will often seek the assistance of credit counselors. These professionals specialize in developing debt relief strategies. They’ll review their clients’ finances and offer advice on eliminating their debts through consolidation loans, mortgage refinancing or even bankruptcy. They also work with creditors to develop repayment schedules that are more advantageous for their clients.
The credit counselor job description template provided here will show you how to solicit the services of the right professional for your organization. He or she should possess outstanding customer service skills, with an emphasis on empathy for a client’s financial struggles. A working knowledge of effective debt relief methods should also be a basic job requirement.
Strong math skills will also help a credit counselor assist his or her clients with budgeting. Consider all of these skills as you review the credit counselor job description below prior to creating your listing.
Credit Counselor Job Summary
Countless citizens and business owners in your own community are currently struggling with debt. How would you like to use your financial know-how to help them get back on track with their finances? Our firm is looking for a qualified credit counselor to help clients develop debt-relief strategies. Your budgeting skills and your knowledge of debt management will help people as they work to qualify for mortgages, school loans and small business financing. This position also offers you the chance to develop valuable networking relationships with clients, external partners and third-party financial services providers. As a member of our team of personal and commercial finance professionals, you’ll work under the guidance of our finance director as we fulfill our mission to improve the collective outlook of our community.
Job Responsibilities
- Review documentation detailing your clients’ financial histories to assess their current situations from a debt perspective
- Offer advice and education on personal debt-relief strategies, such as implementing better budgeting tools, exploring the possibility of debt consolidation or seeking bankruptcy protection
- Work to develop customized debt management plans that will allow clients to ultimately put themselves in position to qualify for our other financial services
- Create outlook reports based off of your clients’ financial documentation that provide savings calculations, expense estimates and other concrete data to help support your debt management proposals
- Advise clients on the wise use of credit, whether that be helping them curtail their credit purchases or to consolidate all of their consumer credit into a single account
- Assist clients with personal and commercial budgeting, creating spending plans and savings strategies to help them meet their financial goals
- Coordinate with creditors to help negotiate lower monthly payment amounts that better fit into your clients’ budgets
- Represent clients in meetings with banks, credit unions and other financial institutions as they work to better manage their consumer loans
Job Skills and Qualifications
Reqiured:
- Bachelor’s degree in finance, accounting or business administration from an accredited four-year college or university
- Previous professional experience in either personal or commercial finance
- Demonstrated understanding of current effective methods of debt relief
- Excellent communication or customer service skills
Preferred:
- Prior experience as a credit counselor
- Strong mathematics skills
- Familiarity with financial management software programs
Credit Counselor Job Responsibilities
Getting out of debt requires a structured plan. So does writing a well-crafted credit counselor job description that covers the details without overwhelming, and engages the reader with action-oriented language. If you fill the page with whatever comes to mind, you’ll end up with a rambling screed that will turn away qualified jobseekers and even repel the top candidates you’re looking for. Strive for focus, structure and clarity when building your job responsibilities section, and improve your chances of attracting the right talent for the job.
Part of that structure involves an easy-to-read format. You don’t need any more than six bullets to convey everything you need to regarding the job, especially if you’re writing using action-oriented language. Begin each sentence with an action verb to kick things off with a punch, and create impressive impact that will engage applicants in the potential they see for themselves with your company. Center your credit counselor job description on core duties that let applicants know exactly how their contributions will contribute to your organizational mission.
See our sample credit counselor job responsibilities:
- Performed in-depth assessments of clients’ credit and financial situation
- Determine extent of debt and repayment capacity
- Develop detailed, personalized repayment plans within customers’ ability to pay
- Represent clients in negotiations with lenders and collections agencies
- Check in with customers periodically to ensure adherence to plan goals
Credit Counselor Job Specifications
A good credit counselor job description is just like a credit score. If you don’t meet the minimum requirements, you won’t be approved. Applicants should know what those minimum requirements are before they apply, which is why you need an effective job qualifications and skills section that details exactly what’s necessary to even be considered for the job.
This list of necessities shouldn’t mirror the list of job responsibilities; you’ve already outlined what they should be capable of. Now you need to clarify the skills, education and other qualities they need to possess. Keep it to no more than 5-6 bullets. If you’re having trouble figuring out what to include, talk to other members of your team. They’ll know best the criteria needed to function in the role and can help you narrow down what’s most essential for your credit counselor job description.
Narrowing this list down also helps you save time on screening candidates. Take a look at our credit counselor job specifications for a few ideas:
- Bachelor’s degree in finance, accounting, statistics, economics or related discipline
- 2-3 years of experience minimum in credit counseling
- Prior background in collections or lending preferred
- Excellent, highly accurate mathematical skills
- Strong communicator and relationship builder
