Certified Insurance Counselors (CIC) are recognized for their expertise and commitment to the industry.
"The Insurance Professional's Designation®"
The Certified Insurance Counselor program is nationally recognized and highly respected insurance professional designation for agency owners, producers, agents, CSR’s, brokers, and insurance company personnel.
This designation is recommended for:
- Licensed agents, brokers, and adjusters
- Insurance professionals with at least two years of full-time insurance or risk management experience
- Full-time insurance faculty members who have taught for at least two years at an accredited college or university
Earning the Designation
CIC Courses
Learn the fundamentals of strategic planning within an agency and learn what actions are needed to achieve growth.
Discover the foundations of strategic planning inside an organization and the steps required to attain growth. You will learn how to apply the management ideas, methods, and practices required to run a profitable insurance agency in the CIC Agency Management course. Leave the session prepared to put profit-boosting techniques into practice.
Topics:
Strategic Planning
Talent Acquisition and Development
Client Retention and Acquisition
Technology Utilization
Ethical Responsibility
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Become familiar with current, practical policy knowledge and learn how to apply the limits of insurance and recommend appropriate endorsements.
Learn about current, useful policy concepts, how to apply insurance limits, and how to suggest the right endorsements. You will obtain a thorough understanding of the coverage, limitations, and Workers’ Compensation and Employers’ Liability Insurance Policies in the CIC Commercial Casualty course (WC & EL Policy).
Topics:
Commercial General Liability Concepts and Coverage
Additional Insured Concepts and Endorsements
Business Automobile Coverages and Endorsements
Workers Compensation and Employers Liability
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Learn how to help commercial clients navigate critical issues, such as cyberthreats and crime from both property and casualty perspectives.
Learn how to guide business clients through complex situations like cyberthreats and criminality from both the property and casualty standpoints. This course helps you learn how to recognize exposures to Commercial Inland Marine, Crime, Cyber, and Employment Practices in the CIC Commercial Multiline course. As you create insurance strategies for your clients, the course will also assist you in learning about the different types of coverage available to handle these exposures.
Topics:
Commercial Inland Marine Concepts & Coverages
Employment Practices Liability Insurance
Crime Coverages & Endorsements
Cyber Exposures and Coverage
Commercial Excess/Umbrella Coverages
Self-Paced Online
or
Webinars & Classroom
Learn the latest trends in commercial property insurance and innovative ways to maximize coverages with up-to-the-minute forms.
Discover the most recent developments in commercial property insurance and creative strategies to increase coverages with the most recent forms. You will learn how to maximize coverage and defend your property accounts in the CIC Commercial Property course, as well as how to understand Commercial Property coverages and endorsements in great depth.
Topics:
Commercial Property Coverage Forms & Endorsements
Commercial Property Causes of Loss & Endorsements
Time Element Coverages & Endorsements
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Navigate Personal Lines Coverage with Confidence
With a focus on the Property and Casualty insurance sector, you will learn about topics including Personal Residential, Personal Auto, and Personal Umbrella or Excess Policies in this CIC Personal Lines course. You will be able to identify risks and coverage gaps of personal lines clients, suggest coverage alternatives, and understand how to react in the event of a loss by exploring the nuances of policy coverages, limitations, and exclusions.
Topics:
Personal Residential Coverages
Personal Automobile Coverages
Personal Umbrella/Excess Coverages
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What are the basic characteristics, provisions, and riders found in most life, health, and retirement contracts? Learn how to target these financial products to meet your client’s personal and business needs.
What fundamental traits, clauses, and riders are present in most life, health, and retirement contracts? Discover how to tailor these financial products to the demands of your clients’ businesses and personal lives. You will discover useful knowledge on Life and Annuity Policies, Business Life Concepts, Health Insurance, and Employee Benefits in the CIC Life and Health course. You’ll leave the seminar with knowledge you can utilize right now.
Topics:
Life and Annuity Policies
Business Life Concepts
Health Insurance and Employee Benefits Concepts
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Learn more about how you can apply advanced executive strategies to improve business functions and promote company success.
What function(s) do you perform inside a company, and how are these functions related? Find out more about how to use cutting-edge executive tactics to improve company operations and foster business success. You will discover strategic decision-making techniques in the Insurance Company Operations course for meeting compliance standards, satisfying regulatory requirements, developing products, underwriting them, distributing and promoting them, and performing other crucial business operations.
Topics:
Executive and Financial Management
Product Development
Underwriting
Claims Management
Product Distribution
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Instructor-Led Online
- Same tested, high-quality curriculum.
- Interaction with and instruction by the same expert faculty—with the ease of a webinar • Convenience—use your computer, tablet, or cell phone.
- 16 Hours of Webinars, delivered over 2-4 Weeks.
- Extended study period for exam-takers.
- Instructive quizzes, optional reading assignments, exercises, and discussion board postings.
NEW Self-Paced Online
- Courses are accessible by computer, tablet, or cell phone—24/7 with an amazing 120-day period to complete (currently, the notebooks and other documents are not optimized to read on your phone).
- Enjoy the easy-to-use learning environment—navigate freely.
- You’re in charge—the courses are self-directed! Stop and start your sessions anytime—your place will be saved.
- You’ll find helpful interactive Knowledge Check exercises with great feedback.
- Self-quizzes to check comprehension—passing is required.
- Complete the 1-hour proctored final exam to earn designation credit.
In-Person Classroom
- Each course is two days of instruction, followed by an optional 2-hour exam- passing the exam is required to earn the designation.
- Expert, nationally recognized faculty who provide concrete examples and scenarios.
- Helpful notebooks and other resource materials.
- More than 300 courses are conducted on-site each year in major cities throughout the U.S. and Puerto Rico.
- Train your entire team and save money by bringing Alliance programs to your corporate or agency location—contact Business Development at 800-633-2165 or email alliance@riskeducation.org.
Sharpen your edge and stand out from the crowd.
Earning the Designation
Take the five CIC courses of your choice and pass the corresponding exams within five calendar years after you pass your first CIC exam, or Take four CIC courses and one CRM or one CPRM course and pass all corresponding exams within five calendar years.
Earning Multiple Designations
Should you select a CRM or CPRM option in earning your CIC designation, you can choose to complete the remaining four courses in CRM or CPRM and earn that designation as well.
Keeping the Designation
After receiving the CIC designation, no further examinations are required. To keep your designation current, you will need to complete any one of these yearly update options.
- James K. Ruble Seminar
- PROFocus Series Seminar
- MEGA Seminar
- Dynamics of Selling
- Dynamics of Sales Management
- Dynamics of Company/Agency Relationship
- Certified Insurance Counselor (CIC) course
- Certified Risk Manager (CRM) course
- Certified Personal Risk Manager (CPRM) course
A status available to CICs who are ready to retire, but not ready to give up the designation for which they worked so diligently and maintained for so many years. CIC Emeritus status is maintained with annual dues payment and no annual update is required. The CIC Emeritus status guidelines are:
- Candidates must be retired from the insurance or risk management industry
- years held designation plus age must equal 70 or greater,and
- CICs must be dues-paid members in good standing.
Those are the technical requirements; however, it means much more than that to be an Emeritus CIC. These professionals are committed to continuing education and to the community they have helped to build and foster. They continue to support our efforts to broaden the opportunities to learn and to succeed.
If you have any questions about the Tenured and Emeritus status or how to apply, please call Program Services at 800-633-2165 for assistance.
In recognition of the many milestones and achievements CICs have made in their successful careers, the CIC Board of Governors initiated the Tenured CIC status in 2011. Significant educational achievements and a record of maintaining your designation have broadened each individual’s substantial base of knowledge. Therefore, this special recognition of tenure has been granted to CICs who have met the following criteria:
- Held the designation for 25 or more years,
- or CICs who have not held the designation for 25+ years, but are 70 years old or older,
- Designation is in good standing,
- AND membership dues are current.
These CICs will be eligible for tenured status and may maintain their designation by paying CIC dues every year and attending a qualified program every other year.
Best of all, tenured CICs retain all of the rights and privileges of the designation and of their membership in the Society.
The Certified Insurance Counselor (CIC) designation is the nationally recognized and highly respected insurance professional designation. The CIC designation demonstrates the insurance professional’s expertise and commitment to continuing education and their career industry.
While there are no prerequisites to earn the CIC, the program is recommended for insurance professionals with at least two years of full-time insurance or risk management experience. To earn the CIC, participants must successfully complete five CIC courses and pass five exams within five calendar years. Participants also must score 70% or better on a two-hour, essay-style exam.
The CIC courses include:
- Agency Management
- Commercial Casualty
- Commercial Multiline
- Commercial Property
- Personal Lines
- Life & Health
- Insurance Company Operations
The CIC designation must be updated every year to remain current. CIC designees can choose from a number of course options to fulfill their annual update requirements. Update courses must be completed by the end of the participant’s birth month each year.
While there are no prerequisites to earn the CIC, the program is recommended for insurance professionals with at least two years of full-time insurance or risk management experience. To earn the CIC, participants must successfully complete five CIC courses and pass five exams within five calendar years. Participants also must score 70% or better on a two-hour, essay-style exam.
The CIC courses include Agency Management, Commercial Casualty, Commercial Multiline, Commercial Property, Personal Lines, Life & Health, and Insurance Company Operations. The CIC designation must be updated every year to remain current. CIC designees can choose from a number of course options to fulfill their annual update requirements. Update courses must be completed by the end of the participant’s birth month each year.
Additional CIC courses aimed at insurance companies or agency managers include Agency Management and Insurance Company Operations. Agency Management covers what it takes to operate an agency and includes key topics such as strategic planning, talent management, technology, client acquisition and retention, and ethics. The Insurance Company Operations course covers vital topics including strategic planning, product development, underwriting, meeting compliance standards and regulatory requirements, marketing, and policyholder services.
A CIC designation shows that you are one of the best educated insurance professionals serving your clients and the industry. Earning a CIC benefits your career in many ways. Your knowledge and expertise about the industry, including changes and current risk management issues will be constantly up to date. The CIC designation is a sign of credibility and expertise that sets you apart from others in the industry. The skills and knowledge that you gain from any of the CIC courses can be used immediately in your insurance practice to benefit your organization and your clients.
The CIC designation is recommended for insurance industry professionals including agency owners, producers, brokers, agents, adjusters, and insurance company personnel such as marketing professionals, underwriters, HR directors, or agency operations professionals. Insurance professionals who want to build or enhance their insurance career can benefit from the CIC designation whether they have a few or many years of industry experience.
There are currently over 30,000 CIC designees nationwide.
The CIC dates back to 1969, when a group of independent insurance agents met with University of Texas insurance professor Dr. William T. Hold to develop a program to help agents better understand Texas policies and increase professionalism through education. Eventually the CIC Program was made available to agents and other insurance professionals nationwide. The CIC Program remains the cornerstone of Risk & Insurance Education Alliance designation programs.
All CIC courses are available in two formats: a live classroom format and online webinars with a live instructor-led format. Insurance professionals can choose the format that works best for them. Each course consists of 16 hours of classroom instruction.
All CIC courses are taught by active insurance practitioners with expertise in the field. Courses are taught with the latest industry information including forms and policies used by insurance professionals every day.
Risk & Insurance Education Alliance CIC courses are continuously reviewed, updated, and expanded in order to meet the needs of the industry and its professionals.
