Education · 1 of 5
The path
Weeks to get licensed. Years to build something worth having.
- 1
High school diploma
Grade 12
Enough to be licensed. A two-year or four-year degree helps you get hired for commercial and employee benefits work, which pays more.
- 2
Pick your lines of authority
Decision point
Property and casualty covers cars, homes and businesses. Life, accident and health covers people. They are separate licenses with separate exams; many agents hold both.
- 3
Prelicensing course and state exam
2 to 6 weeks
An online course, usually 20 to 40 hours per line, then a proctored multiple-choice exam on policy types and state insurance law.
- 4
Get appointed by carriers
Weeks
A license lets you sell; an appointment from an insurance company lets you sell their products. Agencies arrange this for you.
- 5
Build a book
3 to 5 years
The real work. Referrals, networking, cold calls and service. Three to five years before the renewal income makes the job comfortable.