Insurance

Types of Degrees Insurance Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many insurance graduations there were in 2020-2021 for each degree level.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Master’s Degree	90
Graduate Certificate	53

What Insurance Majors Need to Know

In an O*NET survey, insurance majors were asked to rate what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important in their occupations. These answers were weighted on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the most important.

Knowledge Areas for Insurance Majors

This major prepares you for careers in which these knowledge areas are important:

• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
• Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
• Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

Skills for Insurance Majors

insurance majors are found most commonly in careers in which the following skills are important:

• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.

Abilities for Insurance Majors

A major in insurance will prepare for your careers in which the following abilities are important:

• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
• Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.

What Can You Do With a Insurance Major?

People with a insurance degree often go into the following careers:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Business Professors	18.0%	$83,960
Insurance Appraisers, Auto Damage	5.1%	$62,520
Insurance Sales Agents	9.9%	$50,600

Who Is Getting a Master’s Degree in Insurance?

According to recent stats this major attracts about equal numbers of men and women. Roughly 54% of the graduates are women, and 46% are men.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of insurance majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	3
Black or African American	7
Hispanic or Latino	5
White	63
International Students	2
Other Races/Ethnicities	10

Geographic Diversity

Students from other countries are interested in Insurance, too. About 2.2% of those with this major are international students. The most popular countries for students from outside the country are:

• China
• Saudi Arabia
• South Korea
• Bermuda
• Cote-D’Ivoire

How Much Do Insurance Majors Make?

Master’s Degree Starting Salary

The median starting salary of students who graduated in 2017-2019 with a master’s degree in insurance was $96,878 per year. These stats come from the U.S. Department of Education. During this timeframe, most salaries fell between $81,176 (25th percentile) and $104,524 (75th percentile).

We don’t know for sure if all of these people took jobs related to insurance so take that into consideration.

Salaries According to BLS

Insurance majors often go into careers where salaries can range from $67,540 to $76,880 (25th to 75th percentile). This range includes all degree levels, so you may expect those with a more advanced degree to make more while those with less advanced degrees will typically make less.

To put that into context, according to BLS data from the first quarter of 2020, the typical high school graduate makes between $30,000 and $57,900 a year (25th through 75th percentile). The average person with a bachelor’s degree (any field) makes between $45,600 and $99,000. Advanced degree holders make the most with salaries between $55,600 and $125,400.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Insurance

Some careers associated with insurance require an advanced degree while some may not even require a bachelor’s. In general, the more advanced your degree the more career options will open up to you. However, there is significant time and money that needs to be invested into your education so weigh the pros and cons.

Find out what the typical degree level is for insurance careers below.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)	10.7%
Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production)	6.5%
Some College Courses	7.9%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	8.5%
Bachelor’s Degree	42.2%
Post-Baccalaureate Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master.	2.0%
Master’s Degree	4.7%
Post-Master’s Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Master’s degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees at the doctoral level.	0.1%
First Professional Degree - awarded for completion of a program that: requires at least 2 years of college work before entrance into the program, includes a total of at least 6 academic years of work to complete, and provides all remaining academic requirements to begin practice in a profession.	0.1%
Doctoral Degree	16.8%

Online Insurance Programs

In the 2020-2021 academic year, 101 schools offered some type of insurance program. The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.

Degree Level	Colleges Offering Programs	Colleges Offering Online Classes
Certificate (Less Than 1 Year)	0	0
Certificate (1-2 years)	9	3
Certificate (2-4 Years)	0	0
Associate’s Degree	22	8
Bachelor’s Degree	6	1
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	13	6
Post-Master’s	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	1	0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Is a Degree in Insurance Worth It?

The median salary for a insurance grad is $67,890 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.

This is 70% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $559,800 after 20 years!

Majors Related to Insurance

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to insurance.

Major	Number of Grads
Business Administration & Management	131,555
Management Sciences & Quantitative Methods	31,701
Accounting	19,309
Human Resource Management	12,117
General Business/Commerce	9,137
Finance & Financial Management	5,784
Marketing	4,011
Management Information Systems	2,766
International Business	2,007
Entrepreneurial Studies	1,823
Taxation	1,350
Hospitality Management	1,341
Real Estate	1,280
Other Business, Management & Marketing	1,073
General Sales & Marketing	537
Construction Management	466
Specialized Sales, Merchandising & Marketing	180
Business/Managerial Economics	162
Business/Corporate Communications	117
Telecommunications Management	23

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• College Scorecard
• National Center for Education Statistics
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers First Quarter 2020
• Image Credit: By Nick Youngson under License

More about our data sources and methodologies.