Present-day, the insurance sector in India is booming. With the emergence of private players and multinational companies, career opportunities in the market have grown rapidly. Insurance is a trillion-dollar business; it employs a humongous number of candidates. This is a stable yet dynamic field, which provides a wealth of advancement and works. As the population ages and wealth increases, the need for insurance experts is also going high. There are 30 insurance companies in India; some of them are major like Life Insurance Corporation of India, General Insurance Corporation and Postal Life Insurance.
Many new multinational companies have entered the market like ICICI Insurance Co., Max New York Life, SBI Life Insurance in life insurances and ICICI Lambard, IFFCO Tokyo, Tata AIG, Royal Sundaram are working in the Non-life insurance. IRDA or Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority was established to regulate, promote and manage the insurance market of the country, present all insurance companies are running under its guidance.
Today, this sector not only provides a shield to the lives and assets of the nation but also generates huge jobs and career opportunities.
Some of its specialized fields are-
- Life Insurance
- Property Insurance
- Accident, Sickness and Unemployment Insurances
- Auto Insurance
- Travel Insurance
- Pet Insurance
- Job Perspectives
Eligibility Criteria
Educational Qualification
Minimum educational qualification to join the insurance sector is 10+2 or equivalent. To obtain a license that allows you to work in this sector you need to appear in an examination conducted by the Insurance Institute of India.
Candidates having an educational background in mathematics, commerce, statistics, computers, and English can try their luck in the industry. But before this, they need to develop a good understanding of money, finance, market, and insurance business.
Required Skills
- Apart from the required educational qualification, there are some basic skills that a person should have to make a bright future in the insurance industry. Like-
- You should have ability to convince, presence of mind and dedication for service towards the clients.
- Organization skills, logical approach, quick learning ability, good communication skills are some additional qualities that support you to reach on higher positions.
- If you want to be an insurance agent, then you should be able to convince people and hold great business sense.
- In case, you are planning to make your career in fieldwork, then here good communication skills coupled with the willingness to work outside the office for odd hours work great.
Work Opportunities
Work opportunities in the insurance sector are enormous. Those who fulfil the eligibility criteria can work under the following capacities in the insurance companies of India:
- Insurance / Composite Agents
- Insurance Surveyors
- Investment Professionals
- Administrative Officer
- Assistant Administrative Officer
- Development Officer
- Actuaries
- Insurance Underwriter
Salary
The pay scale in the government sector is according to the rules and varies according to the position. For each grade, apart from the basic salary, many other allowances are provided. When it comes to the private sector, here the salary scales are better. They take in management graduates to work mostly in the areas of marketing and sales with an initial salary from 15,000 to Rs 25,000. The commission is one of the important factors for insurance agents. Here, the amount of commission depends on the types of amount of insurance sold, and whether the transaction is a completely new policy or just a renewal.
Renowned Institutes Offering Insurance Courses
- Institute of Insurance and Risk Management, Hyderabad
- Acharya Nagarjuna University Centre for Distance Education
- Annamalai University
- Pondicherry University Directorate of Distance Education
- Punjabi University Department of Correspondence Studies
- South Arcot
- Manonmaniam Sundaranar University
- Institute of Actuaries of India
- Insurance Institute of India
Scholarship for Study
There are no special loans available for insurance course. If you are already in the insurance sector, you may study through your company sponsorships. Additionally, education loans of up to Rs. 7.5 laces are available through banks.
Scope in Future
As said earlier, insurance professionals are on high demand. Data says that only 14% of the world population has been covered by insurance professionals. It shows that there is much potential in the 86% population that is still untouched. So, the demand is very high as compared to the supply. If you are passionate to work in the insurance sector then clearly you are going to earn a lot of money and fame in the future.
Best Tips for Getting Hired
I am going to wrap-up this article with these few effective techniques to get selected in reputed insurance companies just after studies:
- Keep checking the best insurance companies for the job openings and apply for the same if you find any vacancy
- Try to make a friend and contact circle to avail their references in coming days for negotiating in insurance deals
- Keep yourself updated with the top-notch companies, latest happenings of the insurance market and new rules and regulations
- Read books for getting a business sense, selling skills and more.
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