The insurance industry offers a variety of career opportunities for individuals who strive to make a dent in the world of finance and business. In today’s article, we discuss some of the career paths that the industry has in store.

1. Actuary:

Deemed as one of the most desired professions in today’s market, actuarial services are present in a host of businesses and their role involves risk assessment. In the insurance industry, actuaries can be of different kinds based on their specialization and type of insurance they are involved with. For instance, auto insurance actuaries analyze data involving road accidents and other mishaps that concern vehicles to determine settlement costs that the insurance companies would have to pay policyholders.

Actuaries also set the number of premiums a person has to pay based on the data they analyze, always keeping the profits of the insurance company in mind. Due to the nature of their work, actuaries are highly paid professionals with annual median pay being around $102,880 and senior-level actuaries earning upwards of $150,000–$250,000 a year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

2. Insurance Underwriter:

An insurance underwriter has a deep connection with actuaries. While actuaries look and assess risks from a broad perspective, underwriters use this data to real-time specific cases to determine company profits. For instance, an actuary’s data regarding auto-insurance accidents will be used by an underwriter to assess whether it would be wise to provide insurance to a vehicle owner with a bad driving record. An Underwriter’s job focuses on saving the insurance company from losses and balancing out the settlement costs for policyholders. Underwriters, on average earn $57,000 to $70,000, with the amount going up with seniority and experience.

3. Claims Adjuster:

When it comes to mediating between the insured and the insurer, claims adjusters are the people involved. Their job includes inspecting damaged properties for loss assessment, interviewing the claimants and creating scoping reports that provide detailed information of the claim. The report also contains the settlement amount that the adjuster estimates based on the inspection. Being a claims adjuster is rewarding but it is contingent upon how many claims one is able to handle. One can either go for public adjusting, or he/she can work with a firm or even as an independent adjuster. The median pay for adjusters, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics is $65,670. However, with experienced adjusters, this amount goes upwards of $80,000.

4. Claims Examiner:

Claims examiners are specialists that work closely with adjusters. Their job is to further examine scoping reports that adjusters send their way. Being specialists, their work includes evaluation of insurance claims and then providing recommendations to the insurance companies. They ensure that their settlements are in line with the organization's practices and procedures. On average, a claims examiner’s salary lies between $41,000–$60,000, according to statistics, depending on the location, company as well as their education, certifications, and experience.

Many insurance careers require not more than a high school diploma while some higher-level positions require a master’s degree. Nevertheless, being in the insurance industry is surely rewarding.