Hosted By: Lorrie Wohlfeil
For 30 years, the University of Lending has helped credit unions strengthen their teams by teaching lenders to look beyond the application and uncover the story behind the member. In today’s lending environment, success requires more than reviewing a score or applying policy, it requires listening, asking better questions, and understanding the full picture.
As we celebrate the 30th Anniversary of the University of Lending and continue the legacy of Rex Johnson, this program focuses on powerful interviewing techniques that teach staff how to pivot and plan to help more members. By uncovering motivation, repayment ability, financial habits, and opportunities not visible on a credit report, lenders gain the confidence to make smarter decisions while staying true to the credit union mission.
Because sometimes the answer isn’t “not approved.” Sometimes it’s “not now… because not ever is not an option.” Learn how to structure solutions, create pathways forward, and build stronger relationships that create long-term member success.
Course Objectives:
Designed for Loan Managers, Member Service Representatives, Loan Officers, Underwriters, and Credit Union Management, this industry-leading training equips teams with practical interviewing techniques, stronger underwriting strategies, and the confidence to look beyond the score to uncover opportunity. Strengthen performance, grow loans, improve ROAs, and elevate member service by helping more members succeed.
Attendees Will Learn How To:
• Ask the Top 10 questions not found on the application to uncover the story behind the member, elevate interviewing skills, deepen member relationships, and drive sustainable loan growth
• Use effective interviewing techniques to better understand repayment motivation, spending habits, financial stress points, and opportunities that may never appear on a credit report
• Read beyond the surface of the credit report to identify hidden risk, recognize real opportunity, and make smarter lending decisions
• Interpret FICO® and VantageScore® models with greater clarity and confidence, including the impact of utilization, trended data, and score movement
• Apply practical underwriting strategies that evaluate true repayment ability, not just approval eligibility
• Structure subprime and debt restructure loans with confidence while protecting the credit union and serving the member
• Eliminate the “ping-pong” effect between departments through stronger documentation, better loan notes, and more effective member conversations• Recognize cross-selling opportunities during the interview process that help save members money, strengthen loyalty, and increase product penetration
Tuition: Includes breakfast and lunch each day
$1495 per person
$1295 return attendees
$1000 CEOs
Location:
Charleston Marriott
170 Lockwood Boulevard | Charleston, South Carolina
$184/night through 10/30/26
Please make your reservation by visiting: Book your group rate for University of Lending Room Block
Please contact Tracy Bruce at LSCI – 224-286-6067, tbruce@rexcuadvice.com with any additional questions.
Cancelation Policy:
All cancellations must be received in writing and submitted via email to tbruce@rexcuadvice.com. Cancellations received more than 45-30 days prior to the event are subject to a 25% administrative fee of the conference total. No refunds will be granted for cancellations received on or after 30 days prior to the event. Substitutions are accepted prior to the start of the program and may be submitted via email. Please provide the event name, current participant name, and the new participant and email to tbruce@rexcuadvice.com.
CLASSROOM AGENDA
7:30-8:30 Registration/Breakfast
8:30am – 9:00am
Welcome & Program Overview
Set the stage for three days of practical, profit-driven lending strategies.
9:00am – 2:00pm
Loan Interviewing
Learn techniques on how to go beyond the application and uncover the story behind the member through effective interviewing techniques. By asking the right questions, lenders can better understand spending habits, repayment motivation, financial stress points, and opportunities that may never appear on a credit report.
Members deserve more than a quick approval or denial. They deserve someone willing to listen, educate, and guide them toward stronger financial decisions.
During this session, attendees will learn the Rex Johnson approach to interviewing through real-world examples, practical questioning strategies, and live discussion around member conversations that lead to stronger lending decisions. We will review how to identify key details often missed during the interview process, uncover opportunities for better loan structuring, recognize cross-selling moments, and eliminate the “ping-pong” effect between departments. Attendees will leave with practical techniques they can immediately implement to strengthen member relationships, improve documentation, and make more confident lending decisions.
12:00pm – 1:00pm
Lunch
2:00pm – 4:00pm
Understanding the Credit Report
Learn how to read beyond the surface of the credit report to uncover risk, opportunity, and member potential. This session focuses on dissecting the credit report to determine if the member is truly on schedule with their obligations, highlights The Power of the Dash, what that small detail can reveal about true payment behavior, and introduces Beat the Clock, a strategy that evaluates a member’s likelihood of repayment by determining how close they may be to “midnight” financially, helping the credit union quickly assess risk level, and the window of opportunity to structure a successful loan.
DAY 2 – Smart Decision Making & Underwriting Fundamentals and Score Enhancement
7:30-8:30 Breakfast
8:30am – 2:00pm
Scoring Models: FICO® & VantageScore® — What You Really Need to Know
Low scores can mean BIG profits when understood correctly. We’ll dramatically increase your team’s confidence with credit scores and show how approval ratios can reach up to 75% without increasing risk.
Score Enhancement
Learn how to move members from “E” paper to “A” paper in just a few short months. This session gives your credit union a powerful competitive edge, builds member loyalty, and positions you as the financial institution of choice.
12:00pm – 1:00pm
Lunch
2:00pm – 4:00pm
Decision Making: The Fundamentals of Underwriting
Poor lending decisions cost credit unions millions both in loans approved and loans unnecessarily declined. Your team will learn how to identify inflated income, evaluate true repayment capacity, and make sound, defensible lending decisions.
Participants will actively underwrite loans during class to immediately apply what they learn.
DAY 3 – Subprime and Debt Restructure Loan Review & Sales Opportunities
7:30-8:30 Breakfast
8:30am – 2:00pm
Decision Making: Subprime & Debt Restructure Loans
Master the strategies needed to confidently approve and structure higher-risk loans while protecting the credit union and helping members succeed. Using real-life examples submitted by conference attendees, this session walks through practical scenarios and proven approaches to strengthen decision-making and risk management.
12:00pm – 1:00pm
Lunch
2:00pm – 4:00pm
Sales Skills & Cross Selling
Millions of dollars in cross-selling opportunities pass across your desk every year. Learn how to recognize these moments, save members money, deepen relationships, and significantly increase loan and product penetration.
©Lending Solutions Consulting Inc.