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Insurance Continuing Education for Insurance Agents

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Prelicensing Education

Group of new graduates raise their diplomas. Why Insurance is a smart choice for new grads.

Why Insurance Is a Smart Career Choice for New Grads

Posted on 05.12.26

Graduating into uncertainty can feel overwhelming, especially when you’re deciding what comes next. However, some career paths offer more than just a job. They offer momentum. The insurance industry is one of them. While it may not be the flashiest option, it’s one of the most stable, flexible, and opportunity-rich sectors available to new grads.

At BetterCE, we specialize in helping licensed insurance professionals stay current through fast, flexible, and fully online CE courses. While we don’t offer pre-licensing, our work with thousands of agents has shown us what makes this industry such a smart move for long-term career growth.

This article explores the real-world reasons insurance education is an ideal choice for recent graduates entering today’s job market.

Get in on a Growing Field With High Demand

Insurance is everywhere: behind every car, home, business, and hospital. As a result, the industry needs a constant flow of new professionals to keep up with demand. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects about 47,000 openings per year for insurance sales agents in the U.S.

One major reason is a wave of upcoming retirements. More than 400,000 experienced insurance workers are expected to leave the field by 2026. That creates an immediate need for new talent, especially young professionals who can grow into leadership roles over time.

This is not a shrinking industry. It’s resilient, supported by steady demand and ongoing needs for insurance education, even during economic downturns, because risk never goes away.  

Three reasons listed for strong demand for insurance professionals.

Explore Diverse Career Paths Beyond Sales

When people hear “insurance,” they often think only of sales. However, the industry goes far beyond that. If you studied communications, marketing, computer science, finance, or even liberal arts, you’ll find a place here.

Some roles that appeal to recent grads include:

  • Claims adjusting and investigation
  • Underwriting
  • Risk assessment and data analysis
  • Customer experience and retention
  • Insurance tech development
  • Commercial or specialty lines brokering

The beauty of the insurance education field is that you can move laterally or vertically without needing to leave the industry entirely.

Build Income That Compounds Over Time

A significant advantage of the insurance profession is its compensation structure. Many earnings for agents and brokers are commission-based, which may sound uncertain at first, but commissions can grow quickly with effort.

Another insurance career benefit is that many insurance lines (like life and property) pay residuals: recurring income from policies you’ve already sold. That means your income doesn’t reset each month. Over time, experienced professionals can build a strong book of business and enjoy long-term financial rewards.  

Three benefits of online insurance education listed.

Enjoy Remote Flexibility and Digital Tools With Insurance Education

The insurance industry adapted quickly to remote work during the pandemic and hasn’t looked back. Today, many agencies and carriers offer hybrid or fully remote roles, which is ideal for new grads who value flexibility or want to live outside traditional office hubs.

This digital shift also extends to how professionals meet licensing and training requirements. For example, online insurance training with BetterCE gives working agents access to self-paced CE anytime, from anywhere, including on mobile devices.

The BetterCE insurance education platform offers both text-based learning and live webinars, so learners can choose the format that best fits their schedule and learning style.

Enter a Field That Welcomes New Talent

One thing new grads appreciate about insurance is the relatively low barrier to entry. Most entry-level roles require a high school diploma or college degree plus a state license. It is also helpful to understand the difference between prelicensing and CE.

Once you’re licensed, it’s important to stay compliant with your state’s continuing education requirements. That’s where BetterCE insurance education makes a difference.

We make it easier for agents to keep their licenses active with:

  • Same-day credit reporting
  • Self-paced, mobile-friendly formats
  • State-specific course catalogs
  • Helpful support and renewal reminders

With so many transitions already happening in your first job, BetterCE continuing education helps you handle CE with zero guesswork. And with BetterCE’s same-day processing, you never have to guess about CE credit reporting timelines.

Make a Real Impact in People’s Lives

Working in insurance means being part of someone’s safety net. When a car crashes, a storm hits, or a business faces a setback, you are often the first person they hear from. Your job is not just to explain what their policy covers. It is to listen, guide, and help them move forward when life takes a sharp turn.

That kind of connection matters. Many new grads today want more than a paycheck. They want to make a difference. In insurance, you do that every day, often in ways that go unseen but not unfelt. As you grow in your career, continuing your insurance education ensures you can serve people with both empathy and expertise.

BetterCE is Your Solution for Keeping Your License Active After You Enter the Insurance Profession.

At BetterCE, we make it easy to stay current, stay licensed, and stay confident. Our platform offers both text-based CE courses and engaging webinars that meet state requirements and your schedule. We’re proud to be a trusted partner for professionals across the country.

If you’re building a lasting career in insurance, ongoing insurance education is key to staying competitive and compliant. Explore BetterCE today and get started with CE that fits your life.

Female taking course on laptop- What's the Difference Between Prelicensing and CE?

What’s the Difference Between Prelicensing and CE

Posted on 06.23.25

Becoming and staying licensed as an insurance agent in the United States involves two distinct phases of education: prelicensing and continuing education (CE). At BetterCE, we help licensed professionals meet their insurance CE requirements through online, text-based courses and live webinars.

Before we get into that, it is important to understand what distinguishes prelicensing from insurance continuing education and why each plays a crucial role in your career.

What Is Prelicensing Education?

Prelicensing is the initial step for anyone seeking to become an insurance agent. Depending on the state you are trying to become licensed in, you may or may not have to take a state-approved prelicensing course in the line of licensing you want to sell. Some states require taking a pre-licensing course, while others do not. You should check with your state’s Department of Insurance to be certain. 

Regardless of whether the state requires a pre-licensing course, we strongly encourage you to take one. The study materials for any type of license are vast and often complex. Pre-licensing courses not only help you better understand the subject matter more easily, but they also help narrow the focus of the topics that are most likely to be covered on the state exam. Prelicensing courses cover the following foundational knowledge:

  • Definitions
  • Insurance laws
  • Policy types
  • Ethical standards

They are structured to help you pass the licensing exam, not to prepare you for long-term client work. Many states require at least 20 to 40 hours of study, although some require more, depending on the license type. 

These courses are typically offered by private education providers, and many states allow them to be completed entirely online. Some states also approve in-person classes through community colleges or local training centers, but most learners prefer online options due to their flexibility.  

Male taking notes while working at laptop- Prelicensing courses cover four areas.

Once you have completed your studies, you will be required to take an exam to show that you are proficient in the lines of insurance you wish to sell. The exam is strictly proctored and must be taken in a state-approved facility. The topics covered typically include both state-specific and national components. Most states require a minimum passing score of 70 percent.

After you successfully pass your pre-licensing examination, there are 2 additional steps that must be completed in almost every state. First, you must undergo fingerprinting from a facility specifically approved by the Department of Insurance for the state for which you are applying. The purpose of this is to run a background check through a national database to ensure that you do not have a criminal background that would prohibit you from being eligible to sell insurance. States differ in the types of crimes allowed, but generally, individuals with recent felonies or crimes of moral turpitude are not eligible for licensing. Again, you should check with your state’s Department of Insurance to be certain if this is a concern.  

After obtaining your fingerprints, only 1 step remains: completing your license application. This is a relatively straightforward procedure that requires you to fill out an application, provide responses to additional background questions, and then pay the initial application fees. The fees vary by state, ranging from $25 to as much as $250. For most states, you can review the fees as well as access your application through the National Insurance Producer Registry, here: NIPR

What Is Continuing Education (CE)?

Once you are licensed, your focus shifts to staying compliant. Insurance continuing education (CE) is mandatory in all states and required for license renewal or continuation of your license. Almost all states require agents to complete 24 hours of CE every two years, including at least 3 hours on ethics; however, a handful of states have slightly different CE requirements (Missouri, Massachusetts, New York, Nevada, Iowa, and Kansas). Many states also require that you take special training if you sell certain products. For example, most states require that you take product-specific training if you sell Annuity Products, Long Term Care Policies, or Flood Insurance. These courses apply to your CE requirements. Again, you can verify the specific requirements and fees in the State Requirement section of NIPR, located here: NIPR STATE REQUIREMENTS. BetterCE Insurance CE courses are designed to help licensed professionals stay current with laws, regulations, and industry best practices. The topics are more applied than prelicensing.

These might include:

  • Annuities
  • Long-term care
  • Social Security strategies
  • Anti-money laundering

BetterCE offers CEU courses in two formats: text-based online courses and live webinars. Agents can study at their own pace and track the credit hours they earn. Most importantly, BetterCE reports your credits to your state’s department of insurance on the same day courses are completed. Some states also allow you to carry forward extra CE credits for insurance to your next renewal period. However, rules vary by location, so it is important to confirm with your state department or a CE provider.  

Person taking online course- BetterCE offers CEU courses online and live webinars.

How Prelicensing and CE Compare

Prelicensing and CE are two completely different phases of your professional development. Here’s how they stack up:

Category Prelicensing Continuing Education (CE)
When Required Before the licensing exam After licensure
Purpose Prepare for the state exam Renew and maintain the license
Frequency One-time per license Recurs every renewal cycle
Content Insurance basics, laws, ethics Law changes, product updates, advanced topics
Format Lecture, online modules, live classes Self-paced text-based or webinars
Testing Required final and licensing exam Unlimited quizzes or tests per course
Compliance Risk Cannot take the licensing exam License suspension or revocation

How CE Meets Real-World Needs

While prelicensing teaches you how to pass the test, CE helps you stay competent in a fast-changing industry. That difference matters when clients rely on you for accurate, up-to-date information.

CE also provides you with the opportunity to specialize. You can select insurance CE topics that align with your practice, such as Medicare planning, long-term care insurance, or estate strategies. This personalization not only sharpens your expertise but also expands your value to clients.

We built BetterCE’s platform with these real-world needs in mind. Our course tracking, flexible scheduling, and automated state reporting simplify the process, especially for agents managing multiple licenses.  

BetterCE Is Your Solution for Last-Minute CE

Blue Continuing Education enter key on keyboard- BetterCE makes CE easy and worth your time.

Explore Smarter CE Options Designed Around You

At BetterCE, we believe continuing education for insurance agents should be easy to access, easy to track, and worth your time. That is why we offer online CE credits in both text-based and webinar formats so that you can learn how and when you want.

We ensure that every course is approved in your state and handle credit reporting, so you never miss a deadline. Our unlimited exam retakes, clear course guides, and friendly support help you focus on what matters most: staying compliant and staying sharp.

Whether you’re gearing up for your next renewal or simply want a better way to manage your insurance CE courses, we’re here to support you. Explore our course catalog today and take the next step in maintaining an active license and keeping your knowledge current.

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Recent Posts

  • Why Insurance Is a Smart Career Choice for New Grads
  • Why It’s Worth Keeping Your Insurance License Active — Even If You’re Not Practicing
  • Why Insurance CE Courses Require a Final Exam Monitor
  • BetterCE Is Your Solution for Last-Minute CE
  • Insurance CE Courses Made Easy – State-Specific Packages with BetterCE

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