Continuing Insurance Education – Completed Online

The majority of professions these days require their agents/employees to keep up to date on industry trends, laws and regulations, and best practices. In one form or another, they are required to complete continuing education. Every profession is different, depending on what their state requires. In a very highly regulated industry, insurance and financial professionals must abide by certain rules their state enforces. There are rules and regulations in place for a reason. Everyone is better off if the agents are more knowledgeable in their field. The insurance company, the agent, and the client all benefit from insurance continuing education.

Most states allow the professional to choose how to complete their education, while others enforce certain rules. For instance, the state of Utah makes their insurance agents complete at least three credits of ethics sitting in a classroom. On the other hand, the state of California will allow their agents to complete all of their continuing education online. You must check with your state’s rules and regulations to make sure you are cooperating with state guidelines. Online continuing education is usually the fastest, easiest, and most convenient way to complete your education. It can be done from anywhere where in the United States with internet access.

Online insurance continuing education courses vary from state to state. Some will allow you to read a textbook and then take an open-book multiple choice test on whichever subject you choose. Others actually require a monitor present while completing the online exam. Once you finish the exam, the monitor must fax in an affidavit stating that you did not cheat or use the textbook while completing the exam. The third type of online courses are interactive courses. Interactive courses are usually considered classroom equivalent. Students must read a chapter out of the book, take a short quiz, and then move on to the next chapter. They must do this for every chapter in the book. Then, once the agent completes the quizzes, they must take a final exam to complete the course. Many students take online interactive courses so they do not have to sit in a classroom. They have become more and more popular over the years.

As you can see there are many different options when taking online insurance continuing education courses. It is advised to contact your state to see exactly what they require when completing online education. If you cannot reach your state, call an approved provider for more information.