High School

Small insurance companies may hire people without a college degree for trainee positions, and high school graduates may be trained for underwriting work after working as underwriting clerks. In general, however, a college education is advantageous, if not required, for employment. In high school you should take mathematics, business, economics, and speech classes to help prepare you for work in this field. A basic knowledge of computers is also necessary.

Postsecondary Training

Most insurance companies prefer to hire college graduates for beginning underwriting jobs. Many different majors are acceptable, but a degree in business administration or finance may be particularly helpful. Accounting classes, business law, and computer classes will help to round out your educational background for this field. 

Certification

LOMA, an international trade association for the insurance and financial services industry, offers a certificate in underwriting to those who complete a class, Underwriting Life and Health Insurance. Visit https://www.loma.org/ProfDev/Certificates.aspx for more information. 

Other Education or Training

The National Association of Health Underwriters, National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors, and the Society of Financial Service Professionals provide continuing education classes, webinars, and workshops. Contact these organizations for more information. 

Certification or Licensing

The Institutes offers the associate in commercial underwriting (AU) and the associate in commercial underwriting-management (AU-M) designations. Requirements for the AU and AU-M include completion of designated course work (that can last up to two years) and passing a comprehensive examination. The Institutes also offers a more advanced professional certification, the chartered property casualty underwriter (CPCU) designation. Course work for the CPCU usually takes two to three years, and a candidate must pass courses/examinations, covering such subjects as accounting, finance, business law, and commercial risk management.

For life insurance underwriters, The American College of Financial Services offers the chartered life underwriter (CLU) designation. Like the CPCU, the CLU requires completing a comprehensive series of courses and passing examinations.

The National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors offers the life underwriter training council fellow credential to applicants who complete three courses and pass an examination for each course. 

Applicants should have a high school diploma and, preferably complete a baccalaureate degree program that includes an internship at an insurance agency. Most entry-level underwriters begin as trainees working with experienced underwriters. Familiarity with an office setting, such as part-time work in an insurance company during high school or college, is helpful. Interpersonal experience is important.

Underwriting work requires great concentration and mental alertness. Underwriters must be analytical, logical, and detail oriented. They must be able to make difficult decisions based on technical, complicated information. Underwriters must also be able to communicate well both in speech and in writing. Group underwriters often meet with union employees or employer representatives. The ability to communicate well is vital for these underwriters.

Keep in mind that advancement in this career comes through continuing your education. While insurance companies often pay tuition for their employees taking underwriting courses, the underwriters themselves must have the desire to learn continuously.