Are You an Insurance Professional? Learn How an Online CE Provider May Be Right for You!

Like many other service professionals, registered Insurance agents and adjusters are required to stay up to date with the latest rules, regulations, and best practices of their industry through regular Insurance Continuing Education (CE) training. While each state has its own unique licensing requirements, all states require some level of periodic Insurance CE to maintain a license in that state.

Each state’s insurance licensing board usually requires a number of continuing education credits be attained every two years.  The training provider must be certified to teach in the state in which the insurance agents are licensed.

The insurance professional now has a couple of options in regards to how they receive their training. In the past training followed a traditional approach; a classroom setting in which a lecture is given and an exam taken.  Once the exam is passed the results are sent to the state’s insurance licensing board to be recorded.  When the trainee has completed sufficient credits by the deadline, they receive their license renewal for another two years.

There are certain advantages gained by learning in a classroom environment.  Most everyone went through school in a similar learning environment and so it is a familiar venue.  Insurance agents and adjusters can meet each other, network, compare notes and discuss the lecture. There are some disadvantages to this learning model, however which include:

• The costs associated with this kind of training are high due to the need to rent classroom space and hire a professional trainer, as well as the associated travel and lodging costs.

• Most classes are offered during the week during business hours, causing lost productivity.

• Completed course credits usually need to be reported by the trainee to the licensing board.

• Insurance is a very competitive business.  Time away from the office may result in lost opportunities or a backlog of work which needs to be attended to.

Online insurance continuing education provides a number of benefits which address the shortcomings of traditional classroom training. Some of the advantages include the following.

• The cost of training is lower than a classroom based course.  Often it is a percentage of the usual cost.

• Training can be undertaken at any time of day or night.  One is not locked into being present at any particular time, allowing studying to take place when their schedule allows for it.

• Students can traverse the course materials at their own pace.  Lessons can be revisited until all concepts are understood.

• Several online providers allow test retakes at no extra charge.

• Insurance professionals who are licensed in more than one state can receive their accreditation all at once.

• Many insurance CE providers report achieved training credits to the licensing board automatically, in the states where this is allowed.

• Individual insurance CE deadlines are mailed to the license holder as a reminder to complete their licensing requirements before the deadline occurs.

• Insurance companies that sign up their employees for training can keep track of training requirements and monitor the licensing status of each employee through a web interface.

Online training courses are typically delivered via slide presentation using a computers web browser. Most people know how to use a web browser and therefore require no additional training.

Some online Insurance CE courses now provide multimedia support that augments the presentation slides. Insurance professionals should choose an online Insurance CE provider that includes audio training as a complement to on-screen slides. For example, the audio can be downloaded as a “podcast” and the insurance professional can listen and learn while driving to an appointment.

If you are an insurance professional and are considering using an online provider to complete your insurance CE, you may be able to find special deals that offer unlimited courses for a fixed price.  This can save you a lot of time and money, not to mention the convenience of being able to study at the location and time of your choosing.