Insurance classes begin Jan. 16 at Palomar College

Palomar College’s comprehensive insurance program is geared toward enabling students to immediately obtain employment in the insurance field or transfer to the California State University system.

The program is designed to prepare students for entry into the insurance industry and to provide further training for individuals who have recently entered the insurance industry. The program parallels the one developed by the Business Education Statewide Advisory Committee for California Community Colleges in 2004 and 2005. Palomar College is one of several community colleges across California offering this innovative new program.

“The insurance industry provides outstanding career opportunities for today’s community college students because of the abundance and diversity of jobs available,” said Paul White, chief executive officer of Vantage Insurance Services and originator of the program. “Insurance is prevalent in our society whether you drive a car, own or rent a home, have a small business or manage a Fortune 500 company. The skills learned through this program will benefit both the individual and the insurance industry as a whole.”

Over the next two years, 36,200 entry-level positions in the insurance industry in California will go unfilled if a pool of highly skilled workers is not made available, according to research conducted as part of the program. Actively involved partners include 17 community colleges, nine Workforce Investment Boards, 30 businesses (including several of California’s largest insurance companies) and employer associations representing more than 4,500 businesses statewide with extensive linkages to national networks.

“This unique program prepares our students to tap into the resources and opportunities provided by California’s $1.06-billion insurance industry,” said Pat Schwerdtfeger, dean of Arts, Media, Business and Computing Systems at Palomar. “This model of working collaboratively with the business sector to better understand the training and education needs of future workers reinforces the vital importance of our community college system.”

The California Insurance Careers Program was designed in response to industry demand for qualified entry-level workers. Industry experts, including the Insurance Educational Association, have helped shape the insurance specialization curriculum under which students will be required to take six courses that complement a Business Associate of Arts degree. Basic requirements such as industry knowledge and computer and communication skills are the foundation of the initiative.

The California Insurance Careers Program is a statewide initiative that unites community colleges, workforce investment boards, businesses and the K-12 system to prepare students for careers in the insurance industry. The innovative new program is funded in part by a grant awarded under the President’s Community-Based Job Training Grants, as implemented by the US Department of Labor’s Employment & Training Administration. More information about the California Insurance Careers Program can be found at http://www.ca-icp.com.

For information about the Commercial and Personal Insurance Services degree and certificate program at Palomar College, call the Business Education Department at (760) 744-1150, ext. 2489, or go to http://www.palomar.edu/business. Enrollment is currently underway at Palomar. Spring semester classes begin January 16.