What to Expect From the Insurance Licensing Exam
If you desire to become an insurance agent, you will have to undertake a great feat – completing your classwork and preparing for and passing your state’s insurance agent’s licensing exam. However, with proper attention to your studies, a can-do attitude, and sufficient preparations, all of that hard work will pay off as you successfully pass your licensing exam. Here are some things you’ll need to know first.
What sort of license do I need?
The first question you need to ask yourself is if you are getting the type of licensing you need. Your employing agent probably has requirements for you to fulfill, but that shouldn’t stop you from meeting the bare minimum he or she requires. With 200 hours of required class work in most states, becoming a licensed agent is no small feat. However, there are different types of licenses required for nearly every kind of insurance available – life, property, casualty, health – so you may actually have to take more than one class, more than one licensing exam. Be prepared to take all the classes and tests required to become the kind of agent you desire.
There’s one other factor to consider – do you need an out-of-state license to do your job? Many claims adjusters often work out of their home state. Therefore, they need to be licensed in the state in which they will be assigned a claim. All states offer both a residential and a non-residential licensing exam, to ensure that all needs are met.
How Can I Prepare for the Licensing Exam?
Each state uses a different exam provider. Those exam providers make study guides and preparation materials, both in printed and online, to help you prepare to take your licensing exams. Ensure that you are using the test prep materials relevant to your test, for best results. However, as long as the material is up to date, some of the topics covered are a bit “universal” and common to all exams, such as questions like “What is an insurance agent?”
What Can I Expect When I Take the Licensing Exam?
You will take your test at a testing center set up by the state’s test provider. You will have to sign in with some sort of photographic identification. You may also have to present your certificate proving completion of your classroom work. You’ll be asked to leave all your “stuff” – wallet, purse, watch, mobile phone, sometimes even jewelry, in a locker, to avoid any possibility for cheating on the exam. The test is computerized, so you will be given an assignment cubicle or computer station in which to take your exam.
What Is On the Licensing Exam?
The licensing exam consists of 160 multiple choice questions. They cover everything from general knowledge common to all insurance agents to concepts and topics very specific to the field of insurance you are licensing for. Your preparation materials should cover all the relevant topics on your exam, so while they can’t give you exact exam questions, you should be more than adequately ready if you have studied them diligently.