While College is not technically needed to become a licensed insurance agent, it certainly does not hurt. Owning an insurance agency is NOT simply automatically successful if the person in question is an excellent insurance salesman. A degree in business would be quite helpful to have some of the basic skills to own and operate an independent insurance agency. A minor in Risk Management, (typically provided through the Finance School of a University that has a Risk Management program) would also be helpful. Not to mention the much-needed skill set of being able to construct a business letter coherently. Any such degree would likely ensure the individual would have the latter skills, regardless of which business degree program was chosen. (Finance, Accounting, Marketing, etc.)
Running an independent insurance agency requires HR management skills, finance/bookkeeping skills, sales skills, and social skills. Years ago, companies like The Hartford Insurance Group and Travelers had programs that would take a college graduate (you had to be a college graduate to make the cut for initial consideration) and put them through about a year of on the job training, routing them through all the various operational departments in the company. (Marketing, Underwriting, Payroll Audit, Claims, HR, etc.) before they would be assigned a geographical territory with the job of calling on a group of independent agents with the responsibility of managing the group of agents and persuading them to write their client's insurance through the company in question. These positions had several names, "Special Agent, Field Production Underwriter, Marketing Rep, etc." If the individual were good at this job, eventually, the independent agents would begin offering them a position in their agency. Often, the position included a method to own a portion of the agency. Agency perpetuation was and still is a challenge, especially in the small towns.
I started in that position 42 years ago and am still active in the business and have a number of the professional designations referenced above, CPCU, CRM, CIC, ARM-P, ARe, AIC, etc. It is true, they are helpful, but certainly not mandatory to be a successful agent. As described, I was then able to join one of the agencies that I knew with the possibility of being able to purchase an equal share of that company. This is, in my opinion, the BEST way to learn the business, as you are getting the perspective of MANY different independent insurance agents in your territory, and THEY are the ones that actually end of teaching an individual the insurance business. I doubt this route is readily available any more, but if it is, that is my recommendation.
The future possibility of the independent insurance agent being phased out is a possibility. Still, complicated risk management programs designed for the complex commercial account are always going to need individuals to be able to market, explain and service them, as they are too complex to quote and write over the phone or via the internet. I do think personal lines insurance will, for the most part, become direct sales, but we are still likely at least ten years away from that being the majority. If an individual stays computer literate, including in the social media areas, they should be well-positioned to be successful in at least the immediate future.
Good luck, it has been an exciting and rewarding career for me, that has taught me a great deal about all kinds of businesses. One needs to understand how another commercial business operates to devise an insurance and risk management program for them. I would do it all again, given my career path if I could, and that speaks volumes of my path through the previous 42 years.
