Should You Take Insurance Continuing Education Online?
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.
Typically, a minimum number of insurance CE credits must be earned every two years. The providers of continuing education training must themselves be certified to train in the state in which the insurance professionals are licensed.
Traditionally, insurance CE training has been delivered in classroom facilities or, more recently, in hotel conference rooms. The training consists of a series of lectures, each of which is followed by a written exam. Once the licensee passes the exams, the results are submitted to the states insurance licensing department where the credits are recorded. If the agent successfully completes sufficient credits before the deadline, the license is renewed for another two-year period.
Classroom training has its merits. Agents and adjusters can meet one another, compare notes, and network. Points in the lectures can be clarified through discussion and Q&A. Most of us are familiar with the classroom environment and are comfortable learning in this way; however, there are several significant disadvantages to the classroom training approach:
The training cost is relatively high because it involves travel and meals, use of rented space, and hiring a professional trainer.
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 training offers an option that counters many of the shortcomings of classroom training.
The cost of training is lower than a classroom based course. Often it is a percentage of the usual cost.
The trainee can access learning modules at any time when it is convenient. Work day productivity is not interrupted.
Students can move through the lessons at their own pace or revisit previous modules to reinforce a concept.
Insurance professionals who are licensed to work in several states can fulfill their CE requirements at one time and place.
Some online insurance CE schools permit the student to re-take their certification exams until they are passed, at no additional cost.
Many insurance CE providers report achieved training credits to the licensing board automatically, in the states where this is allowed.
Training credits are reported automatically to the state insurance board by some online providers, provided this is allowed in that particular state.
Companies that sign up for online CE training in bulk can monitor the training requirements and status of every licensed employee via the Internet.
Online insurance CE courses are generally delivered through presentation slides that are displayed in the users web browser. Virtually all computer users today know how to use a web browser. No specialized computer skills are required.
Several online providers provide multimedia support to complement the slide presentations. A professional looking to complete their insurance CE requirements should locate a CE provider that offers audio presentations to augment their training. These lessons can be downloaded to an MP3 player or transferred to CD and the learning can continue while the professional is traveling to work or an appointment.
As an insurance professional, once you have decided to use an online training provider to meet your continuing education requirement, it may be beneficial to find a provider that offers a training package deal where you can take an unlimited number of courses for one price. This can save a lot of time and money and will allow you to complete your training program wherever and whenever you find it convenient to do so.