Beginning an insurance career can be confusing when there’s a lot of new terminology to learn. Apart from understanding the difference between broking, underwriting and claims (and what they do), there’s also talk about Tier 1 and Tier 2.
But you don’t need a specific degree to work in insurance … do you? That’s what you may have been told when you started investigating this as a potential career path. Never fear. You don’t need Tier 1 or Tier 2 qualifications to begin your career in insurance! However, you’ll likely need to obtain at least your Tier 2 qualification to have a long and successful insurance career.
One of our Future Insure Program Partners, Gold Seal, specialises in providing Tier 1 and Tier 2 qualifications to professionals in the insurance industry. We caught up with Sheila Baker, Managing Director of Gold Seal, to find out everything you need to know about Tier 1 and Tier 2 qualifications!
Tier 1 and Tier 2 are the education levels that must be attained by financial product advisers before they can give advice. They each consist of sets of knowledge and skill requirements that vary, depending on whether the adviser gives general or personal advice and on which products the adviser provides advice.
The Tier 1 education level is partly equivalent to the Diploma level under the Australian Qualifications Framework and the Tier 2 education level is partly equivalent to the Certificate III level.
Sickness and Accident Insurance requires a Tier 1 qualification to authorise the adviser.
Tier 2 in General Insurance is required for all retail general insurance products other than Sickness and Accident Insurance. These are:
For entry into Gold Seal’s Tier 1 and Tier 2 programs, students must be currently employed in an insurance brokerage or underwriting agency or be an Authorised Representative of a Financial Services Licensee. Students require the support of management in their studies.
It is recommended graduate students have a minimum of 3 months broking experience prior to entry.
Gold Seal’s Tier 1 is almost half a Diploma of Insurance Broking. It is completed as distance education over a six-month period and is estimated to take 50 hours to complete.
Tier 2 is also completed via distance education and is estimated to take approximately 30 hours for junior staff.
In addition to legal requirements, many employers have minimum qualification requirements. Staff may not be advising on Sickness and Accident Insurance, yet the employer may require all broking staff to be Tier 1 accredited.
Hold on tight – you’ll be in for the ride of your life! It’s a fantastic industry on which to make your mark and offers substantial career options. The thing to remember is that lifelong learning plays a key part in success in insurance and will always work to the advantage of those who choose their career in this exciting industry.
Tomair Bennett - Business Development Assistant at Future Insure Graduate Program
Mat Norman - Broker Support Officer at Future Insure
Daniel Bartlett - Claims Assistant
Browse more graduate stories ➜
Gold Seal was founded in 1993, by Valerie Baker, to provide professional services to insurance brokers and underwriting agencies. They have been providing up to Diploma level education since 2005. In 2011 they established their online learning platform, goldseal campus. In addition to providing industry education, they also provide a broad number of professional development courses designed to close the gap between general insurance education and the skills required to practice the art/science of general insurance broking and underwriting.
Sheila Baker, Valerie’s sister and now Gold Seal’s Managing Director, joined Gold Seal in 2004 following five years running her own HR and Learning & Development consulting business. In 2013, she was appointed to the role of MD which encompasses the provision of services to many insurance broking and underwriting agency clients across business practices including Compliance, Human Resources and Learning and Development.
Gold Seal’s Future Insure graduate training is a structured program of formal learning to specifically support Future Insure Graduates in their new role and includes three stages; induction, training and professional accreditations/qualifications.
To find out more about the Future Insure Graduate Program, visit our profile here!